We received this question from a Sparkler who identified herself as a "frustrated test maniac":

Hi, I'm having some problems with the reading section of the SAT. I just can't seem to get the passages read fast enough. I estimated that I need to allow about 1 minute for the long passages and 30 seconds for the short ones in order to leave enough time for all the questions. It seems like if I try to read fast I miss WAY too many punch lines and by the time I get to the end I can hardly tell whether it was about Easter bunnies or underwater gymnastics! If I try to get the punch lines I take WAY too long! Do you have any advice for efficiently skimming?