TACHS: Sequence in directions: number the steps, then find the gap
Learn to answer order questions about a set of directions by numbering the steps and using two anchors, and to handle if-steps, purpose questions and pointing phrases in the same passage.
How do you answer “what comes between these two steps?” when every choice is a real step from the directions?
Short answer
Number the steps as you read, find the two steps the question names, and look only at what falls between them. A step that is accurate but in the wrong place is still wrong.
Know first: Order words such as first, next, after and at the end, Following written instructions
Step 1 of 5
In a set of directions, the place of a step matters
Some TACHS Reading passages are directions: how to set up a project or run an activity. They are written in order, and questions often ask what happens between two steps.
The hard part is that wrong choices are usually real steps from the passage, just in the wrong place. So the skill is pinning down when each step happens. Words like begin, next, after, then, during and at the end are your map.
| Question | How to answer it |
|---|---|
| What should you do if something goes wrong? | Find the if step that names that exact problem and follow it as written. |
| Why does the writer include a step? | Look at what the step makes possible in the next step. |
| What does those or these refer to? | Read the sentence just before the phrase. |
| Why record a detail like a date or time? | Check the last lines for what a later reader will compare. |
Every one of these depends on knowing which stage a step belongs to.
Step 2 of 5
Use the anchors to close in on one step
Worked example: A bean sprout jar
To start a bean sprout jar, first soak three dry beans in water overnight. Then line a clear jar with a damp paper towel. Slide the beans between the towel and the glass so you can watch them. Place the jar in a bright spot. Each morning, check that the towel is still damp. Once roots appear, sketch them in a notebook.
What should you do after lining the jar but before placing it in a bright spot?
- ASoak the beans overnight.
- BSlide the beans between the towel and the glass.
- CCheck that the towel is still damp.
- DSketch the roots in a notebook.
- 1
Number the steps
(1) soak, (2) line the jar, (3) slide the beans in, (4) place in light, (5) check each morning, (6) sketch the roots.
- 2
Find the anchors
Lining the jar is step 2. Placing it in a bright spot is step 4.
- 3
Look between them
Only step 3 fits: slide the beans between the towel and the glass.
- 4
See why the other choices are there
A is step 1, before the first anchor. C and D come after the jar is in place. All four are real instructions, which is why numbering matters.
Answer
Slide the beans between the towel and the glass.
Find the wrong step
A student answers: In the bean jar directions, what should you do after placing the jar in a bright spot but before sketching?
- 1
Finds the first anchor: placing the jar in a bright spot, step 4.
- 2
Finds the second anchor: sketching the roots, step 6.
- 3
Picks slide the beans between the towel and the glass, because it mentions the towel and the jar.
What went wrong
That is step 3, which comes before the first anchor. Sounding related isn't the same as falling in the gap.
The fix
The only step between 4 and 6 is step 5: check each morning that the towel is still damp.
Step 3 of 5
Find the right place in the order
Read these directions
To press leaves for a class display, begin by collecting five flat leaves with no holes. Lay each leaf between two sheets of plain paper. Next, stack heavy books on top and leave them for one week. If a leaf curls at the edges, add one more book to the stack. After the week, label each leaf with the date and the place you found it, so classmates can compare leaves gathered in different seasons.
Check yourself · Question 1
What should you do after collecting the leaves but before stacking books on top?
Answer: D
Steps in order: (1) collect leaves, (2) lay them between paper, (3) stack books, (4) add a book if a leaf curls, (5) label. Only step 2 sits between the anchors.
Trap answer: Add one more book to the stack.
Real step, wrong place
- Why it looks right
- It's a real instruction, and it involves books, which the question mentions.
- Why it's wrong
- It happens only after the stack exists, and only if a leaf curls. It falls after the second anchor.
- The right answer
- Lay each leaf between two sheets of plain paper.
Check yourself · Question 2
Partway through the week, a leaf's edges start to curl. What do the directions say to do?
Answer: A
The if step names this exact problem: if a leaf curls at the edges, add one more book.
Common mistake
I picked a step because it was definitely in the passage.
- Why it's tempting
- Accurate steps feel safe, and every choice you remember reading seems possible.
- Do this instead
- Being in the passage isn't enough. Check where the step falls, and cross out anything outside the two anchors.
Step 4 of 5
What to remember
Remember
- Number the steps as you read, and notice when the passage moves to a new stage.
- For a between question, find both anchors and look only at the gap.
- An if-step applies only when its condition happens, so follow it exactly as written.
Step 5 of 5
Practice on a real question
Use what you just learned on this question, then check the explanation.
In your own words
In the practice question, what were the two anchor steps, and which wrong choice was a real step that came too late?