SSAT Reading

The SSAT (Secondary School Admissions Test) reading portion consists of grade appropriate passages followed by multiple choice questions about the passage. The passage and follow-up questions will measure a student’s ability to understand what they read.

Elementary Level

The reading section, at the elementary level, consists of short prose, poetry, fiction, or non-fiction passages from diverse cultures. Each passage will be followed by multiple choice questions that will demonstrate the student’s understanding of the passage.

Questions related to the passage may ask the student the following:

• Distinguishing literal and non-literal language
• Inferential comprehension
• Main idea
• Meanings of words and phrases
• Supporting details

Example 1:

Washing our hands before meals is important to our health.  Some dirt has germs and germs cause disease. If we eat with dirty hands, the germs can enter our bodies with the food. So, if you want to look good and stay healthy, you must keep yourself clean.

Which words persuade the reader to wash their hands?

1. to look good
2. to stay healthy
3. to smell
4. some dirt and germs
5. to eat

Middle Level

Reading passages at the middle level can vary in length. The literary works can be literary fiction, biography, poetry, science, or social studies.

Questions related to the passage may ask the student the following:

• Author’s purpose
• Details
• Inferences
• Main idea
• Meaning of words
• Predictions based on information in the passage
• Tone

Example 2:

Read the following poem.

The Stars are Singing (written to a girl from a boy)

Tonight my head is ringing

With the words your text is bringing

While the image of you is lingering

And all the stars are singing

Three letters on a screen

Are the sweetest ever seen

From my angel, from my queen

You don’t know how much they mean.

Or the happiness they bring

They make me feel a king

It’s a boyfriend-girlfriend thing

When all the stars sing:

Ily

What is the theme of this poem?

1. coming of age
2. fulfillment
3. vulnerability
4. love
5. freedom

Upper Level

Reading passages at the upper level can vary in length. The literary works can be literary fiction, biography, poetry, science, or social studies. These can be presented in two types of writing: narrative or argument. Narrative writing will include excerpts from novels, poems, short stories, or essays. Argument writings will present a point of view about a subject.

Questions related to the passage may ask the student the following:

• Author’s purpose
• Details
• Inferences
• Main idea
• Meaning of words
• Predictions based on information in the passage
• Tone

Example 3:

Read the passage.

He shook himself wildly in the morning rain, the tufts of his early feathers remaining on alert as his eyes bolted about. Squeals and squaws arose from the neighboring tree well before he caught sight of the cause for alarm. He dipped and dodged through the brush, hipping to the upper branches and hopping down to the lowest boughs, piping his own alarm as he went. For an instant, as he cocked his head to the side, glaring down the menace, he imagined a world where he could paw about so silently and effortlessly; he pictured perfectly in his mind his own low stance, prowling about among the grass.  He squinted his bulging eye darkly as the image overwhelmed his mind.

In his mind’s eye he smelled the stark leaves and beady dew as his limbs swept over the ground.  He allowed a low purr to rumble through his bones as he stalked ever closer to the bushes, now lined with yearling sparrows. He felt an ominous grin cross his beak as he envisaged his cat-like glee, and the scent of panic bustled out of his own body, creating a momentary pause in the images crossing his mind.

He swiveled and cocked his head, this way and that, shuddering the grimace from his beak, his tail bobbing about below. He sounded the alarm, “chap, chap, chap,” and bounded to the outer branches of his bush. He threw a piercing stare toward the approaching friend and ruffled his wings, leaving them to quiver at his sides in a weary manner.  He braced himself for the dive, conjuring memories of the heroes of his youth, even his own father springing to action to defend the tree. His anxious feet couldn’t help but hop a bit on the branch as he yelped and yelped his warning.

Without further pause he leapt into action, bolting out of the tree and swooping almost-fearlessly toward the ground. He felt the rush of air as the menace pawed at his approach, catching the wake of it to push himself back toward the tree. Missing his home landing, he swerved to the next set of branches and piped a call to action to his fellows: move back, get out, stand ready, look alive, and hold it…hold it.

His mind slipped back to the scent of moldy leaves and the energy of adrenaline at the hunt. He pictured his tree from the vantage of the sprouts on the ground and felt himself salivate at the thought of so much young prey. His own body hunched low as his mind’s eye slithered along the mulch at the base of the tree, his tail flicked in anticipation. His body was preparing to pounce when he heard the cries that jostled him back to the present: who had it been? Who did it get?

Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?

1. The Habits and Habitat of Sparrows
2. How Domestic Cats Hunt
3. Captive!
4. Entering Enemy Eyes
5. Living in Harmony

Example Answers:

1. B
2. D
3. D

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