Guessing Strategies (ACT Test Strategy)

The Golden Rule: Never Leave Anything Blank!

The ACT has NO guessing penalty.

What this means:

• Wrong answer = 0 points
• Blank answer = 0 points
• No difference!

Therefore: Always bubble something for every question, even if you have to guess randomly.

Why Guessing Matters

The Math

If you guess randomly on 5 questions with 4 choices each:

• Expected correct by chance: 5 × 0.25 = 1.25 questions
• Expected incorrect: 3.75 questions
• Net gain: ~1 more point vs. leaving blank

If you use smart guessing strategies:

• Can often eliminate 1-2 choices
• Success rate increases to 33% or 50%
• Expected gain: 1.5-2.5 questions on 5 guesses

Bottom line: Guessing strategically can add 2-3 points to your score!

Types of Guessing

1. Random Guessing (Last Resort)

When: You have NO idea and NO time

Strategy:

• Pick one letter (B or C) and use it for all random guesses
• Consistency gives you ~25% success rate
• Don't randomly switch between letters

Why this works:

• ACT distributes correct answers fairly evenly
• Sticking to one letter gives you statistical advantage over completely random pattern
• Saves time (don't even read question)

When to use:

• Final 30 seconds of section
• Multiple questions with no time to read
• Complete lack of knowledge on topic

2. Educated Guessing (Much Better!)

When: You can eliminate at least one answer choice

Strategy:

• Read question carefully
• Eliminate obviously wrong choices
• Choose from remaining options

Success rate:

• Eliminate 1 choice → 33% chance (vs. 25%)
• Eliminate 2 choices → 50% chance (vs. 25%)
• Eliminate 3 choices → 100% (educated guess becomes right answer!)

Goal: Eliminate as many wrong answers as possible before guessing

3. Strategic Guessing (Best Option)

When: You have some knowledge but aren't certain

Strategy:

• Use context clues
• Apply test-taking logic
• Make inference based on partial knowledge
• Trust your intuition

Much better than random guessing! Can boost success rate to 40-60%.

Section-Specific Guessing Strategies

English Guessing Strategies

Strategy 1: When in doubt, choose the shortest answer

Why?

• ACT rewards conciseness
• Wordier options often contain redundancy
• "Omit the underlined portion" is often correct

Exception: When brevity loses meaning or clarity

Example:

A. the fact that it was raining outside
B. the outdoor rain
C. the rain ✓
D. it was raining outside

Choose C — shortest and clearest

Strategy 2: "NO CHANGE" is right about 25% of the time

Don't avoid it!

• It's correct roughly 1 in 4 questions
• If sentence sounds fine, choose it
• Don't assume there must be an error

Strategy 3: Eliminate choices with obvious errors

Common wrong answer patterns:

• Creates sentence fragment
• Wrong verb tense
• Pronoun disagreement
• Misplaced modifier
• Redundancy

Strategy 4: Consistent tense/style

• Check surrounding sentences
• Match tense (past, present, future)
• Match style (formal vs. informal)
• Consistency usually wins

Strategy 5: Trust your ear

• Read it aloud in your head
• If it sounds wrong, it probably is
• Standard English grammar should sound natural

Math Guessing Strategies

Strategy 1: Eliminate impossible answers

Check for:

• Wrong sign (positive when should be negative)
• Too large or too small
• Wrong units
• Doesn't match question (asks for X, answer gives Y)

Example:

"What is 15% of 80?"

A. 1.2
B. 12 ✓
C. 120
D. 1,200
E. 12,000

Eliminate: C, D, E are way too large (15% must be less than 80)
Eliminate: A is too small
Guess: B

Strategy 2: Test the middle value (C)

For "solve for X" questions:

1. Plug C into the equation
2. If it works, choose C
3. If it doesn't, often tells you whether answer is larger or smaller
4. Adjust guess accordingly

Works because: ACT usually lists numerical answers in order

Strategy 3: Use logic and estimation

Example:

"Circle has radius 5. What's the area?"

A. 10π
B. 15π
C. 25π ✓
D. 50π
E. 100π

Logic: Area = πr² = π(5)² = 25π

Even if you forget formula:

• Radius 5 → area probably has 5 or 25 in it
• 25 more likely than 5 for area
• Eliminates A, B, D, E

Strategy 4: Check if answer makes sense

Example:

"Speed is 60 mph for 3 hours. Distance?"

A. 20 miles
B. 63 miles
C. 180 miles ✓
D. 300 miles
E. 600 miles

Common sense: Going 60 mph for 3 hours should be around 180 miles

Strategy 5: Recognize "distractor" patterns

ACT loves these wrong answers:

• Result of common mistake (forgetting negative sign)
• Partial answer (forgot to finish calculation)
• Used wrong formula
• Arithmetic error

If your answer matches a choice easily, double-check your work!

Reading Guessing Strategies

Strategy 1: Eliminate extreme language

Watch for:

• always, never, only, all, none
• must, impossible, definitely, absolutely

These are often wrong because:

• Reading passages are nuanced
• Extreme claims are rarely supported
• ACT prefers moderate, qualified answers

Better words in right answers:

• often, sometimes, may, can, suggests
• most, many, some

Example:

Question: "The author's attitude toward X can be described as:"

A. complete admiration with no reservations
B. thoughtful appreciation with some concerns ✓
C. total rejection and harsh criticism
D. absolute indifference

B is moderate (best guess if unsure)

Strategy 2: Choose answer closest to passage

If two answers seem possible:

• Which is more directly stated?
• Which requires fewer assumptions?
• Choose the one closer to actual text

ACT Reading rewards close reading, not creative interpretation

Strategy 3: Main idea questions

Eliminate:

• Too narrow (just one detail from passage)
• Too broad (beyond scope of passage)
• Not mentioned in passage

Choose:

• Covers whole passage
• Matches introduction and conclusion
• Appropriate scope

Strategy 4: Use line references

If question has line numbers:

• Read those specific lines
• Read sentence before and after
• Answer is usually right there

Don't rely on memory — verify in passage!

Strategy 5: When totally stuck

Look for "safe" middle-ground answer:

• Not too extreme
• Balanced perspective
• Acknowledges complexity

Science Guessing Strategies

Strategy 1: Graph reading questions

Often straightforward:

• Find X value on axis
• Trace to line/data point
• Read Y value
• Choose matching answer

Even if confused about passage, can often answer graph questions correctly

Strategy 2: Trend identification

Common patterns:

• As X increases, Y increases (direct relationship)
• As X increases, Y decreases (inverse relationship)
• No clear relationship

Look at graph/table:

• Which direction does data go?
• Choose answer matching that trend

Strategy 3: Compare experiments

Questions ask: "How does Experiment 2 differ from Experiment 1?"

Strategy:

• Find both experiments
• Identify one changed variable
• That's the answer

Don't overthink — usually ONE clear difference

Strategy 4: Conflicting Viewpoints

If stuck:

• Find relevant scientist's section
• Look for direct statement
• Choose answer matching that scientist's view

Don't: Mix up scientists' positions!

Strategy 5: Eliminate answers requiring outside knowledge

ACT Science tests reading comprehension, not science knowledge

If answer requires you to know:

• Specific chemistry formulas
• Advanced biology concepts
• Physics equations

...and it's not in the passage, it's probably wrong.

Choose answer based on passage information only

When to Guess and Move On

Time-Based Guessing

English:

• If > 45 seconds on one question → guess and move on

Math:

• If > 90 seconds with no progress → guess and flag for return

Reading:

• If > 60 seconds on inference question → guess and move on

Science:

• If > 60 seconds on complex question → guess and move on

Difficulty-Based Guessing

Know your limits:

• If question is clearly beyond your current skill level
• If you've never seen this type of problem before
• If you don't understand what's being asked

Make educated guess and move on — don't waste time on impossible questions

The Two-Pass Strategy

Especially useful for Math and Science:

First Pass (75% of time):

• Answer all questions you know
• Skip hard ones (circle in test booklet)
• Make quick educated guesses on medium-difficulty

Second Pass (25% of time):

• Return to circled questions
• Spend more time
• Use process of elimination
• Make educated guesses

Ensures you don't run out of time on easy questions while stuck on hard ones!

Improving Your Guessing Success Rate

1. Learn Common Wrong Answer Patterns

English:

• Wordiness and redundancy
• Inconsistent verb tense
• Misplaced modifiers

Math:

• Forgetting negative sign
• Using wrong formula
• Stopping calculation too early

Reading:

• Extreme language (always, never)
• Too narrow or too broad
• Not supported by passage

Science:

• Confusing experiments
• Mixing up variables
• Requiring outside knowledge

Study these patterns → recognize them → eliminate them → better guesses!

2. Practice Process of Elimination

On practice tests:

• Don't just find right answer
• Practice eliminating wrong answers
• Understand WHY each wrong answer is wrong
• Builds pattern recognition

3. Track Your Guesses

On practice tests:

• Mark questions where you guessed
• Check how many you got right
• Analyze: Were they random or educated guesses?
• Goal: Improve educated guess success rate to 40-50%

4. Review Missed Questions

After practice test:

• Look at questions you guessed on
• Understand the correct answer
• Identify what you could have eliminated
• Learn for next time

Common Guessing Mistakes

❌ Leaving questions blank
Always bubble something!

❌ Switching letters randomly
Pick one letter for random guesses, stick with it

❌ Second-guessing good educated guesses
Trust your elimination process

❌ Spending too long trying to avoid guessing
Sometimes guessing and moving on is smartest strategy

❌ Not using process of elimination
Even eliminating one choice helps!

❌ Guessing without reading question
Unless completely out of time, at least skim question

❌ Choosing longest/most complex answer
Often wrong, especially in English

❌ Choosing answers with familiar passage words
ACT uses these as distractors!

Quick Guessing Tips

✓ Never leave blank — no guessing penalty
✓ Eliminate first — even one wrong choice helps
✓ Use one letter — for random guesses
✓ Trust POE — process of elimination works
✓ Be consistent — don't second-guess too much
✓ Watch the time — know when to guess and move on
✓ Middle is safe — B and C statistically good for random guesses
✓ Shorter is better — in English section
✓ Avoid extremes — in Reading section
✓ Check graphs — Science guesses often in visuals

Developing a Guessing Strategy

Before Test Day:

1. Practice eliminating wrong answers

• On every practice question
• Understand why answers are wrong
• Build pattern recognition

2. Track your guessing success rate

• How many educated guesses do you get right?
• Goal: 40-50% (vs. 25% random)

3. Learn section-specific patterns

• English: shorter, concise answers
• Math: eliminate impossible values
• Reading: avoid extremes
• Science: stick to passage info

4. Develop timing awareness

• Know when to guess and move on
• Don't waste time on impossible questions

On Test Day:

1. Stay calm

• Guessing is normal and expected
• Even top scorers guess on some questions

2. Use your practiced strategies

• Don't abandon what you've learned
• Trust your elimination skills

3. Make quick decisions

• Eliminate what you can
• Choose and move on
• Don't agonize

4. Fill in ALL bubbles

• Check at end of each section
• Use last 30 seconds for random guesses if needed

Remember: Strategic guessing is a skill, not cheating or giving up. The best test-takers know when to invest time in solving versus when to make an educated guess and move on. Practice eliminating wrong answers, learn common patterns, and develop the confidence to guess intelligently. Those 2-3 extra points from smart guessing could be the difference between your target score and falling just short!