TEAS 7 Reading Study Guide

Topic, main idea and supporting details

The topic is what a passage is about in a couple of words. The main idea is the single point the author makes about that topic, and supporting details are the sentences that prove it. Most passages state the main idea in the first or last sentence of a paragraph.

If an answer choice is true but only covers one paragraph, it is a supporting detail, not the main idea.

Summarizing

A summary restates the whole passage in far fewer words, keeping the main idea and dropping examples, anecdotes and repetition. It stays neutral and adds nothing the author did not say.

Wrong summaries usually fail in one of two ways: they include a vivid detail that is not central, or they add a judgement the author never made.

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing restates one specific passage in your own words at roughly the same length. Unlike summarising, it does not compress; it swaps vocabulary and sentence structure while preserving the exact meaning.

Finding info in a text

Straight retrieval questions ask for something stated directly. Scan for the keyword from the question rather than rereading from the start, then read the full sentence around it before answering.

The correct answer is often a reworded version of the sentence you find, not a word-for-word match.

Making inferences

An inference is a conclusion the passage supports but never states outright. It must follow from the evidence given; if you need any outside fact to justify it, it is not the answer.

Choose the smallest inference the text supports. The bigger and more dramatic the claim, the more likely it is wrong.

Drawing conclusions

Conclusions combine several stated details into a single judgement. Where an inference fills a gap in one place, a conclusion pulls threads from across the passage together.

Determining a sequence of events

Sequence questions ask what happened first, next or last. Signal words such as before, after, meanwhile, finally and subsequently carry the order, and the order of events is often not the order of the sentences.

Watch for flashbacks and for instructions given out of order, which is a common trick in procedural passages.

Finding the author's purpose

Every passage is written to inform, persuade, entertain or instruct. Identify which by asking what the author wanted the reader to do or feel by the end.

Persuasive writing shows itself through opinion words and one-sided evidence, even when it sounds factual.

Author's point of view

Point of view is the position the author writes from: first person uses I and we, second person addresses you, and third person stands outside the events. It also covers the stance the author takes on the subject.

Identifying the author's tone

Tone is the author's attitude, carried almost entirely by word choice. The same fact described as "a firm decision" or "a stubborn refusal" reports identically and feels completely different.

Underline the adjectives and adverbs. Tone lives in those far more than in the nouns and verbs.

Text features

Headings, subheadings, bold text, captions, footnotes, indexes and tables of contents all tell you where information sits before you read a word of the body text.

Questions asking where you would find something are testing features, not content. Answer from the structure.

Types of sources

A primary source is first-hand evidence from the time: a diary, a photograph, raw data. A secondary source interprets primary material, and a tertiary source compiles both, such as an encyclopaedia.

A nurse's own chart entry is primary. A textbook chapter describing charting practice is secondary.

Evaluating arguments

An argument has a claim and evidence for it. Evaluating one means asking whether the evidence is relevant, sufficient and actually supports the claim, and separating fact from opinion throughout.

A statement that can be checked against a record is a fact. One that can only be agreed or disagreed with is an opinion, however confidently it is written.

Evaluating and integrating sources

This asks you to weigh two or more texts together: where do they agree, where do they conflict, and which is more credible given who wrote it and why.

Comparing and evaluating themes

A theme is the underlying message rather than the plot. Comparing themes means identifying each text's message and judging how they relate, which is often contrast rather than agreement.

Finding info in visuals

Charts, graphs, labelled diagrams, scales, maps and product labels all carry testable information. Read the title, the axis labels and the units before looking at any data point.

Unit errors are the most common mistake here. Check whether an axis is in tens, hundreds or thousands before comparing bars.

Identifying inconsistencies in a text

Some passages deliberately contain a claim that contradicts another statement, or a conclusion the evidence does not reach. You are being asked to notice the mismatch, not to resolve it.

Making predictions

Predictions extend the passage forward using only its own pattern and evidence. The correct answer is the most reasonable next step given what the author has already established.