Da VIP Academy / GED / RLA
Reasoning Through Language Arts
Close reading, evidence and argument, grammar and usage, and a step-by-step method for the extended response essay.
Your readiness
Take the diagnostic to get a readiness score for RLA.
About the real test
- • About 150 minutes, including a 45-minute extended response essay.
- • Roughly 75% of reading passages are informational; the rest are literary.
- • Grammar is tested inside real paragraphs, not as isolated rules.
- • Calculator: not used
Domains & skills
Reading Informational Text
Main ideas, supporting details, inference, and author's purpose in nonfiction.
Main Idea & Supporting Details
Identify the central idea of a passage and the details that support it.
Inference & Text Evidence
Draw conclusions the text supports and cite the evidence behind them.
Author's Purpose & Tone
Determine why an author wrote a text and how word choice shapes tone.
Reading Literary Text
Character, theme, plot, and figurative language in fiction.
Character, Theme & Plot
Analyze character motivation, theme, and how events shape meaning.
Figurative Language & Vocabulary in Context
Use context clues to define words and interpret figurative language.
Argument & Evidence
Claims, reasoning, and judging how well evidence supports a position.
Analyzing Arguments
Identify claims, reasons, and unstated assumptions in an argument.
Evaluating Evidence
Judge whether evidence is relevant, sufficient, and credible.
Grammar, Usage & Mechanics
Sentence structure, agreement, punctuation, and word choice inside real paragraphs.
Sentence Structure
Fix run-ons, comma splices, and fragments, and combine clauses correctly.
Usage & Agreement
Match subjects with verbs and pronouns with antecedents, and keep verb tense consistent.
Punctuation & Mechanics
Use commas, apostrophes, and capitalization correctly.
Word Choice & Transitions
Choose precise words and transitions that show the right relationship between ideas.
Extended Response Writing
A repeatable 45-minute plan for the argument essay.
Planning the Extended Response
Read two source texts, pick the better-supported position, and outline in five minutes.
Writing With Evidence
Build body paragraphs that quote, explain, and connect evidence to the thesis.
Revising & Editing
Use the last five minutes to fix the errors that cost the most points.