I also took the PSAT, and a practice SAT, and I'm going to try to fit in another practice before I take it for real. I'll probably be taking the SAT on June 5, and maybe again at the end of July. (I *don't* want to take the new SAT! )
Posts: 4174 | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
The only book that I think is worthwhile for preparing for the SAT is 10 Real SATs by the makers of the test. They simply give you retired tests and let you practice and get familiar with the real thing. Many other books will do more harm than good.
I think I will do separate posts on math and verbal, and then maybe come back when I have more time and amplify them . . .
Posts: 1001 | Registered: Dec 2002
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Reading Comp questions can be divided into big picture questions and little picture questions. Little picture questions are typically in order of where the details are located in the story. So when you read a passage, don't try to memorize all the details. Try to get the gist of it--the big picture. Then, when you get detail questions, seek out the answers if you need to. Often, they will tell you line numbers. Even if they don't, they are, as I said, typically in order.
Vocabulary to come . . . including etymology, connotation versus denotation, and making your own best word list (rather than buying a general book)
However, my father just arrived with lunch, so it will be a while. Probably a couple of hours or more.
posted
Actually, I didn't read the passages first. I was so crunched for time I'd read the questions, and find where it was in the passages. But, uh...that didn't work so well with the general questions. My best area in verbal was the analogies.
Posts: 4174 | Registered: Sep 2003
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Don't study for the SAT's. That's my advice. You are going to get whatever you are going to get on it, so just do it. Studying will just waste your time.
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Yeah, I never studied for the SAT, and I did very well. I also didn't go out of my way to get a lot of rest beforehand. I think it's a lot more worthwhile to just relax about the test, as opposed to stressing and building it up into some kind of big deal.
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My brother is out right at this very moment taking the SATs. He has been taking a SAT class every weekend for the past couple of months.
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I never studied or anything for the SATs or the PSAT... My brother's school offered a class and he took that but it didn't up his score or anything :/
Posts: 3636 | Registered: Oct 2001
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My advice -- don't study for the SATs, but study *how to take* the SATs.
For example, the math section is ordered, easy to hard. You have to make sure you get all the easy ones right, and finishing the whole section is less important -- the last few questions are always the hardest. This helps you know which questions you're better off leaving blank.
It also helps to know which questions should have complicated solutions and which ones don't.
Just be prepared to take the test itself -- know what you're going to see, in what order, and how much time you'll have for each section. Know on which sections you'll lose 1/4 point for answering incorrectly. Know when it's wiser not to guess.
The material on the SAT is mostly stuff you can't really study for. Vocabulary helps, but really how well you do here is just going to be determined by how much time you've spent reading since you were a toddler. You may get lucky and learn a word you'll see on the test, but chances are slim.
Most important? Sleep the night before. Don't forget a snack. And don't *stress*! You'll be fine. Posts: 1784 | Registered: Jun 2001
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posted
Eruve- If I could tell you one thing that would help you, it would be to watch The News Hour with Jim Lehrer every night from now on. The only explanation I can give for not crashing and burning is that I used to watch 4 hours of news every night. But I lived in the Washington D.C. market so the news where you are may not be as helpful.
I didn't read squat for most of my first 18 years. I guess reading Jane Austen might also be enjoyable as well as vocab building. Don't just read a lot, read above your level.
As for math, I think personal attitudes and confidence held me back a lot. I hope this is getting better for young women today.
Posts: 11017 | Registered: Apr 2003
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posted
take a course on how to take the SATs, they give you test taking hints and such. Studying the material is unlikely to help you as much as studying the test itself.
A few things that might help: Vocab, if you increase your vocab, it will help you on the test.
Facts about triangles...standardized tests love to ask you stupid things about triangles and their angles. Learn the different rules for the types of special triangles.
Mostly, take practice tests, it will get you used to taking the real thing.
Posts: 1901 | Registered: May 2004
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posted
I AM going to study, I've already made up my mind on that. I feel like it's been helping, and even if it only boosts confidence, then it's still a good plan.
(btw, it has been proven that on average, taking the SAT again boosts your score 50 pts.)
Posts: 4174 | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
Actually, by the time I'm done, I will have covered most of what a good course will cover. But we're watching TV right now.
Notice that I have not talked about studying for the test, only knowing how to work with the structure. However, I disagree about not being able to improve vocabulary in time for the test. Stay tuned and I will tell you why/how. Posts: 1001 | Registered: Dec 2002
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quote:Actually, by the time I'm done, I will have covered most of what a good course will cover. But we're watching TV right now.
Don't follow Icky's example and watch TV! It's too late for me - I'm totally addicted - but you can still avoid it! Save yourself!
Posts: 1423 | Registered: Sep 2003
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quote:Unless you are already up there at a 1400-1600 range, studying will without a doubt help- if only by a little.
Even if you are already up there at a 1400-1600 range, studying will help, possibly by a lot. Maybe not the verbal section, but definitely the math. My main suggestion would be to get a book which reviews the math that is on the SAT. Read through it, and do as many sample problems as possible. Math is something that practice makes perfect - or at least a whole lot better - so almost invariably, the more you study, the better you'll do on the SAT. When I studied for the Math section of the SAT, I went up from a 650 to a 700. If I'd studied more, I'm sure I would have done even better. Obviously, there are limits to how well you're going to do, even with studying, but studying will almost always help.
I can't give you much help on Verbal, because I got an 800 without studying, but I agree with the others in that trying to memorize word lists probably won't help much. Instead, read through a book which discusses the various kinds of analogies, and do as many practice tests as you can to help improve your reading comprehension skills.
posted
By all means, study. At the very least, try out some practice tests first. Also, read as much as you can--vocabulary tests in school aren't useful because it's best to see words in context. Know your math well, and watch out for tricky things like average velocity (40 mph one way and 50 mph the other does not make an average of 45 mph). The best way to learn about these tricks is to take practice tests. And don't go in assuming you'll just take it again later. I only took the SAT once.
Posts: 3546 | Registered: Jul 2002
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posted
Absolutely study! I did very well on my PSATs -- better in 11th than 10th, but that was due to having taken them before and having another year of math in between -- but if you extrapolated my PSAT scores to SAT scores (that is, multiplied by 10), I think I raised my score on the SATs (which I took just once) by close to 100 points. (I could be wrong, it's been a while, but I think that's right.)
I attribute that to studying. Not cramming, not taking any classes, but setting aside a couple hours every week for 6 months to study. Mostly that meant going through actual tests, and practicing skills.
However, I disagree with Icarus on not getting any of the test-prep books. IMO, Barons is not bad, and Princeton Review is great. The irreverent tone and analysis of types of questions are great; the list of most-used words was quite useful (and I've always had a good vocabulary, but I still went through those and learned the ones I didn't know well); and the techniques were very useful -- to me, and to my brothers (although I think one preferred Barons).
Vocab cards are good. Practicing working under a time pressure is also good -- I refuse to give my science students extra time to take their tests (unlike most of their other teachers -- we never got extra time when I was in HS!), and it amazes me how many cannot pace themselves!
Remember, each question counts the same! So DO NOT allow yourself to get bogged down in one question for a long time. Stop; leave it for after you've done all the others. You may not get back to it, but at least it won't keep you from getting to 5-10 that you could have done in the same time!
I don't think watching the news will help much -- unless they've changed the SATs a lot more than I thought, there's no current events section. And there are many better ways to pick up vocabulary, IMO.
That page of math facts that they give you on the SAT? Make sure you understand everything on it. No need to memorize it, obviously, but if it takes you an extra 30-60 seconds to figure out which formula or fact you need, that's lost time.
Mostly, get used to the SAT, and comfortable with it. That means -- you guessed it -- practice, practice, and practice some more. Take one timed section every other day (or every day, if your time is shorter). Alternate math and verbal (unless you're much weaker in one than the other).
Good luck, Eruve! And I look forward to reading Ic's breakdown of section by section. Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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Do you speak any other languages? In particular, do you speak any Romance languages? If so, this will be of inestimable help to you on the verbal sections. If not, though, a knowledge of etymology will have similar value.
If you look at England from a geographical standpoint, it's an island, strategically situated near mainland Europe, and hard to defend. Over the centuries, England has had wars with much of nearby Europe, and avoided wars at other times by playing off the balance of power between other European countries. Along the way they have been invaded by the Romans and the Normans. While the tribes that first settled England, the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes, were Germanic tribes (IIRC . . . don't jump all over me if I get a detail wrong. I'm not a history major, though I do find it extremely interesting.), through their interactions with countries speaking Romance languages, a lot of latin-based words seeped into the language. English has an uncommonly large vocabulary, and, in particular, a larger than average number of words that mean the same thing, with perhaps subtle variations in meaning. (This is one reason why translations of English works are typically longer than the original.) Now, when a country is conquered, for instance, who is most likely to learn the language of the conquerers? The peasant in the fields? Nope. The local ruler. The diplomat, or the educated person, if such a thing exists. And so when we have synonyms, one of which is derived from Latin and one of which is derived from an Anglo-Saxon word, the Latin-based word is the one that has come to be considered more erudite. Consider:
intelligent vs. smart comic vs. funny content vs. happy courageous vs. brave circuitous vs. roundabout homogenous vs. similar peremptory vs. short penurious vs. cheap valid vs. true credence vs. belied Credulous vs. gullible
and so forth.
(Once again, I'm not sitting here looking up every single word in the OED, but I think my gist is clear.)
So what's the point of all of this? The point is that Latin-based words are often put together from Latin prefixes, suffixes, and root words, which have consistent meaning. So if you have a good knowledge of latin prefixes, suffixes, and roots, you can often puzzle out an unfamiliar word, or at least get insight into it. Even if you don't, though, you might still be able to think of another word in English that comes from the same root word, and work "in parallel" this way.
Anyway, in a minute (after I stretch my knuckles ) I will make a short, inexhaustive list of roots I can think of off the top of my head, with some examples. If I feel adventurous, I will also look for a web site with more of the same. If one doesn't exist, I will think about someday making one myself!
Posts: 1001 | Registered: Dec 2002
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posted
The Barons book in particular was one I found grossly inaccurate, back in 1988. Maybe it has improved greatly in the intervening 16 years. Back then, though, they seemed to believe the SAT math section was an achievement test, which it is not.
Posts: 1001 | Registered: Dec 2002
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posted
I've never used the Barons book, and the brother who did so would've in *thinks* '96-97 or so.
Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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gress (Okay, actually gradi) - go (regress, digress, progress)
trans - across (transgress, transport, transition)
ig - not (ignoble, ignominious)
a - not, without (apathy, amorpheus)
re - back, again (recognize)
pre - before (prescient, precognizant)
super - over, above (superior, superficial, supervise, supercilious)
Can you see the power of association at work as I came up with those?
And you may have noted that some of these are actually Greek in origin and not Latin (and even one or two Anglo-Saxon, I believe), but it didn't seem worthwhile to distinguish between them as I went through. Also, I did these off the top of my head, and I never took a course in Latin. What matters is whether or not you can apply these to English words, not whether or not I spelled Latin words correctly.
Also, some of the words I came up with as examples suggest other roots that I was too lazy to write down. If I get ambitious, I will go back and add to this.
But this is all for tonight. Posts: 1001 | Registered: Dec 2002
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Don't study the night before. Have a good day of fun and a good sleep beforehand. Couple sharp pencils and some sense of where to allocate your time (on the stuff you're bad at - don't second guess on the stuff you're good at).
posted
Defintely, Fallow. It's not a good idea to cram for the SATs. Eruve, I forgot to mention that you should bring a snack and a water bottle to the test with you. And eat a good breakfast beforehand.
Posts: 3546 | Registered: Jul 2002
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quote: Unless you are already up there at a 1400-1600 range,
*laughs* Heh, no.
quote: Vocab cards are good.
I've learned about 35 words that way since I took that practice SAT.
quote: Remember, each question counts the same! So DO NOT allow yourself to get bogged down in one question for a long time. Stop; leave it for after you've done all the others. You may not get back to it, but at least it won't keep you from getting to 5-10 that you could have done in the same time!
I know that's part of my problem. The first 10-15 questions are the easiest, so I shouldn't miss those. But then I came up against a problem that's trickier and I felt like I had to get it because I'm stubborn.
quote: That page of math facts that they give you on the SAT? Make sure you understand everything on it. No need to memorize it, obviously, but if it takes you an extra 30-60 seconds to figure out which formula or fact you need, that's lost time.
What page of math facts?
quote: And eat a good breakfast beforehand.
What if I don't usually eat breakfast?
Icarus, thanks for the roots list. I think I have some greek/latin word roots flash cards somewhere. If I can find them...
posted
My kids all used the Princeton Review's SAT CD-ROM program for preparing for the SAT. I don't know that it really increased their scores (hard to tell) but it helped them have a better idea of what to expect, and how to take the test. Kind of got them mentally ready for it.
posted
I finished my SATs about two hours before you started this thread. It really wasn't that bad. One girl threw her test book and answers out the window. (It was accidental, but I saw it coming.)
quote: I'll probably be taking the SAT on June 5, and maybe again at the end of July. (I *don't* want to take the new SAT! )
I hope you've already registered because the deadline for the June 5 one was a week or two ago. And the new SAT won't start until the winter/spring of 2005, so you don't have to worry about it.
Posts: 1547 | Registered: Jan 2004
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posted
I will try to post more tonight. I have the end of my own year coming, but this is a nice way to take a break from grading and stuff. Posts: 1001 | Registered: Dec 2002
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quote: That page of math facts that they give you on the SAT? Make sure you understand everything on it. No need to memorize it, obviously, but if it takes you an extra 30-60 seconds to figure out which formula or fact you need, that's lost time.
What page of math facts?
*blink* Do they really not have a cover page on the math section any more, with formulas and such? (Area formulas, stuff like that.)
Um, am I misremembering? Didn't there use to be a page like that? Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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posted
Okay, my advice is, DO STUDY. Even if you think you know the subject material.
I speak from experience. I was 13 when I took the exam, and I had a big head, thinking I was the smartest thing next to Bean. I thought I could ace without studying at all. I learned that I was wrong. I didn't do too badly (I had 690 on math and 790 on verbal) but if I had studied I would have done much better.
I learned from my own mistakes when I took the SAT 2 the year afterward, and actually studied for that one. Although it was supposed to be the harder test, I did much better at it (720 on writing, 760 on literature and 760 on Math IIC.)
Don't let the test scare you, but take it seriously! Study your behind off!
Posts: 20 | Registered: Apr 2004
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posted
I went from scoring poorly to scoring incredibly well. The test is completely possible to study for and Rivka and Megachirops have laid down a solid foundation. Good luck.
Posts: 5600 | Registered: Jul 2001
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posted
There is a short section at the beginning of each math section that lists area formulae and such.
Posts: 1001 | Registered: Dec 2002
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posted
Just so you know . . . I haven't forgotten about you, but I'm swamped right now. I will write more over the weekend. Posts: 1112 | Registered: Jan 2003
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posted
Eat a good breakfast in the morning, and go to bed early the night before.
It can really save time to have the Quadratic Formula plugged into your calculator.
Root words are very very useful.
Don't cram-- learning 300 words the night before won't help you at all.
If you finish early, check your work. It's the last thing you want to do, but you never know when you might have bubbled in C when you meant A.
Have plenty of Number 2 pencils and erasers.
Remember to bring identification and all that stuff.
Don't freak out. Really-- you can always take it again, and colleges do look at other things.
Bring AAA batteries just in case your calculator dies.
Always make sure you know whether your calculator is set on radians or degrees.
Try to eliminate wrong answers-- it really is wise to guess if you can eliminate two or more answer choices.
Posts: 274 | Registered: Apr 2002
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posted
Actually, it's a good idea to guess if you can eliminate even ONE choice with certainty.
And my calculator takes AAs -- might want to check what yours takes. These days, calculators are so inexpensive (I have several nice scientific ones that I got for less than $10 each), I'd just bring a spare.
Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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I was so crunched for time I'd read the questions, and find where it was in the passages. But, uh...that didn't work so well with the general questions. My best area in verbal was the analogies.
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-- we never got extra time when I was in HS!), and it amazes me how many cannot pace themselves!![[Wink]](wink.gif)
And there are many better ways to pick up vocabulary, IMO.![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
) I will make a short, inexhaustive list of roots I can think of off the top of my head, with some examples. If I feel adventurous, I will also look for a web site with more of the same. If one doesn't exist, I will think about someday making one myself!
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I've never used the Barons book, and the brother who did so would've in *thinks* '96-97 or so.
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rivka
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How did I overlook "Mega"? ![[Embarrassed]](redface.gif)
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