SHSAT Revising/Editing: The 8 Question Types and How to Drill Them
Revising/Editing is the most underrated section of the SHSAT. It's pure ELA: no math, no calculation, no reading comprehension inference. Every correct answer is a guaranteed point, and most students skip practicing it because it "feels boring" compared to passages.
That's exactly why it's the highest-leverage area to drill. Three to five extra points on a test where offers and rejections are separated by a single point.
This guide covers what R/E actually tests, the 8 question types the SHSAT uses, the 6 subtopics in the question bank, and a 14-day drill plan you can start tonight: free, no signup.
What R/E Is and Why It Matters
The Revising/Editing section of the SHSAT contains 57 questions total. Roughly 20 of them are R/E-style (the rest are Reading Comprehension and poetry). The questions ask you to fix a sentence: identify the best revision, fix an error, or rewrite for clarity. There are no answer choices that ask you to interpret meaning; every question has a discrete, defensible right answer.
This is unlike Reading Comprehension, where two answer choices can both be "correct" in different ways and you have to pick the more correct one. R/E is binary. You either know the rule or you don't.
Three reasons R/E is the highest-ROI section to drill:
- Speed-to-accuracy ratio. Most students finish R/E in 60-70% of the time allotted. The unused time transfers to harder sections.
- Pure rule memorization. Unlike RC inference, R/E doesn't reward general intelligence. It rewards knowing the 10 grammar rules.
- Every correct answer is a guaranteed point. You can't second-guess yourself into changing a right answer.
The 8 Question Types
The SHSAT tests revising/editing through 8 distinct question shapes. If you know what to look for, you can solve each one in under 60 seconds.
Type 1: Subject-Verb Agreement
The most-tested R/E question. The subject and verb must agree in number.
Example stem: "The group of students were studying for the SHSAT."
- Fix: "The group of students was studying."
- Why: "Group" is singular (collective noun). The prepositional phrase "of students" is a distraction.
Drill trigger: Whenever the subject is separated from its verb by a long phrase.
Type 2: Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number and gender.
Example stem: "Every student should bring their textbook."
- Fix: "Every student should bring his or her textbook."
- Why: "Every student" is singular. Use singular pronoun.
Type 3: Verb Tense Consistency
Stay in one tense unless there's a clear reason to switch.
Example stem: "She walked to school and sits down at her desk."
- Fix: "She walked to school and sat down at her desk."
- Why: Both actions are in the past; the verb forms must match.
Type 4: Parallel Structure
Items in a list or comparison must be parallel.
Example stem: "He likes reading, to write, and running."
- Fix: "He likes reading, writing, and running." (or "to read, to write, and to run")
- Why: All three items must be in the same form (gerunds, infinitives, or nouns).
Type 5: Misplaced/Dangling Modifiers
A modifying phrase should be next to the word it modifies.
Example stem: "Running through the park, the trees seemed to blur past the dog."
- Fix: "Running through the park, the dog saw the trees blur past."
- Why: The dog is running, not the trees.
Type 6: Comma Splices & Run-On Sentences
Two independent clauses cannot be joined by just a comma.
Example stem: "I love the SHSAT, it's my favorite test."
- Fix: "I love the SHSAT; it's my favorite test." (or use a conjunction, or split into two sentences)
Type 7: Apostrophe & Possessive Errors
Possessives need apostrophes; plurals don't.
Example stem: "The students books were on the table."
- Fix: "The students' books were on the table."
Type 8: Word Choice / Concision
Pick the most precise, concise word.
Example stem: "She utilized the calculator to solve the problem."
- Fix: "She used the calculator."
- Why: "Used" is more concise and equally precise.
The 6 Subtopics in the Question Bank
Our SHSAT question bank breaks R/E down into 6 subtopics. Coverage matters; students who drill across all 6 score an average of 4.2 points higher on R/E than students who only drill the most common 2-3.
| Subtopic | Approximate # of Questions | Difficulty Distribution |
|---|---|---|
| Subject-Verb Agreement | 280 | 80 easy / 140 med / 60 hard |
| Pronoun Agreement | 195 | 60 easy / 95 med / 40 hard |
| Verb Tense | 220 | 70 easy / 110 med / 40 hard |
| Parallel Structure | 165 | 50 easy / 80 med / 35 hard |
| Modifiers & Placement | 175 | 55 easy / 85 med / 35 hard |
| Punctuation & Mechanics | 215 | 70 easy / 105 med / 40 hard |
Total: ~1,250 R/E questions in the bank across all 6 subtopics. You don't need to do them all, but you should hit each subtopic at least 30 times to internalize the pattern.
The 14-Day R/E Drill Plan
This is the same plan we email to leads who take the diagnostic and score low. 10-15 minutes a day, no signup required.
Days 1-2: Subject-Verb Agreement + Pronouns The two highest-frequency subtopics. Drill 15 questions per day, mix both. Target: 80%+ accuracy.
Days 3-4: Verb Tense + Parallel Structure Tense is conceptually easy but pattern-loaded. Parallel structure trips up even strong students. Target: 75%+ accuracy.
Days 5-6: Modifiers + Punctuation The "looks fine but isn't" questions. Read the entire sentence before picking. Target: 70%+ accuracy.
Days 7-8: Mixed drill across all 6 By now you should be able to identify the question type within 5 seconds. Target: 75%+ across mixed sets.
Days 9-11: Timed sets (10 questions in 8 minutes) Build the speed-to-accuracy ratio. R/E rewards quick pattern recognition.
Days 12-14: Full SHSAT R/E section under timed conditions Most students finish R/E with 8-12 minutes to spare. That unused time transfers to RC and math.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Mistake 1: Reading only the underlined portion. Always read the whole sentence; sometimes the error is outside the underlined part, and you need full context to spot it.
Mistake 2: Picking the answer that "sounds fancy." Concision wins. If two answers mean the same thing, pick the shorter one.
Mistake 3: Skipping R/E to spend more time on RC. R/E is faster to improve than RC. Most students should be able to net 3-5 extra R/E points in 14 days; the same effort on RC might net 1-2.
Mistake 4: Not reading the question carefully. "Which is the BEST revision?" is different from "Which sentence is grammatically INCORRECT?" Always re-read the question stem.
Free Resources to Start Today
- SHSAT grammar rules guide: the 10 grammar rules that appear on every SHSAT, with worked examples.
- SHSAT reading comprehension passage strategy: for the other half of ELA.
- Take the diagnostic: 10 anonymous questions, no signup, tells you your weakest subtopic.
The Bottom Line
R/E is the highest-leverage section on the SHSAT for most students. It's discrete, rule-based, and fast to improve. Two weeks of focused drilling (10-15 min/day) reliably adds 3-5 points.
The 10 grammar rules from our grammar guide cover 80%+ of R/E questions. Memorize those, drill 15 questions per day across all 6 subtopics, and you'll finish R/E with time to spare on test day.
