English

Ask 'What is the purpose of this paragraph/passage?' Relevance is judged against that purpose. Material that does not advance the stated focus should be deleted, even if it is true or interesting. Example: in a paragraph about HOW a glacier forms, a sentence about a famous mountaineer is irrelevant and should be cut.

Delete. The paragraph's purpose is pollination; the appeal of honey on toast is off-topic and breaks focus. Truth or interest does not justify keeping irrelevant material.

A well-written sentence is still wrong to add if it is irrelevant, redundant, or interrupts the logical flow. ACT rewards relevance and focus over quality of prose in isolation. Always check: does it serve THIS paragraph's purpose?

Look at what the sentence DOES for the surrounding text: a definition restates a term in plain words; an illustration gives a concrete example; an emphasis repeats or intensifies a key point. Example: 'For instance, the 1906 quake leveled blocks' illustrates (gives an example of) a preceding claim about earthquake damage.

Choose a concrete, specific example that demonstrates the claim: 'Over 2,000 patrons visit each week.' Vague restatements ('The library is popular') or unrelated facts ('The library was built in 1920') do not illustrate. Illustration = concrete supporting detail.

Identify what specific function the sentence performs (a transition, an example, a key fact). If deleting removes that function, the passage loses it; name the function precisely. If the sentence merely repeats nearby content, the passage loses NOTHING and deletion is fine.