21,99 €
Mehr erfahren.
- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Bildung
- Sprache: Englisch
Get your (digital) SAT on, the easy way Digital SAT Prep 2024 For Dummies gives you all the practice you need (FOUR practice tests, to be specific, PLUS extra math practice) to take this oh-so-important test with confidence. We don't need to tell you that a high score on the SAT can put you on the road to admission at the school of your dreams and can even translate into scholarships that will help get you there. If you'll be taking the SAT this year, you need Digital SAT Prep 2024 For Dummies to make sure you knock it out of the park. Updated with everything you need to know about the new digital format, this book walks you through the ABCs of the SAT, so you'll know what to expect when you walk into the test. Is it better to guess randomly or skip questions you don't know? All your questions are answered inside. You'll roll into the test room ready to go, thanks to customizable study plans in this complete Dummies prep guide. * Become an SAT whiz with full-length practice exams and extra practice questions * Get the highest score you can and move your application to the top of the admissions committees' lists * Refresh your math knowledge and boost your confidence on this much-feared test section * Qualify for scholarships and keep your options open for your higher education Digital SAT Prep 2024 For Dummies is the must-have guide for anyone taking this year's test.
Sie lesen das E-Book in den Legimi-Apps auf:
Seitenzahl: 502
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023
Ähnliche
Digital SAT® Prep 2024 For Dummies® with Online Practice
Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2023 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey
Published simultaneously in Canada
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the Publisher. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.
Trademarks: Wiley, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, Dummies.com, Making Everything Easier, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and may not be used without written permission. SAT is a registered trademark of the College Board, which was not involved in the production of, and does not endorse, this product. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.
LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: WHILE THE PUBLISHER AND AUTHORS HAVE USED THEIR BEST EFFORTS IN PREPARING THIS WORK, THEY MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES REPRESENTATIVES, WRITTEN SALES MATERIALS OR PROMOTIONAL STATEMENTS FOR THIS WORK. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZATION, WEBSITE, OR PRODUCT IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE PUBLISHER AND AUTHORS ENDORSE THE INFORMATION OR SERVICES THE ORGANIZATION, WEBSITE, OR PRODUCT MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR YOUR SITUATION. YOU SHOULD CONSULT WITH A SPECIALIST WHERE APPROPRIATE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAPPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR AUTHORS SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFIT OR ANY OTHER COMMERCIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR OTHER DAMAGES.
For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit https://hub.wiley.com/community/support/dummies.
Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2023941210
ISBN 978-1-394-18343-2 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-394-18345-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-394-18347-0 (ebk)
Digital SAT® Prep 2024 For Dummies® with Online Practice
To view this book's Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for “Digital SAT Prep 2024 For Dummies with Online Practice Cheat Sheet” in the Search box.
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Introduction
About This Book
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Part 1: Getting Started with the SAT
Chapter 1: What to Expect with the SAT
Thinking About the ACT
So … What’s on the Digital SAT?
Working the Online, Adaptive SAT
Signing Up before Sitting Down: Registering for the SAT
Accommodating Special Needs
Making the SAT Work for You as a Foreign Student
Examining Your Mind: What the SAT Really Looks For
Scoring on the SAT
Chapter 2: Strategies for Success
Planning Your Prep Time
The Exam Is Tomorrow: What to Do the Night Before Your SAT
Show Time: What to Do the Day of Your SAT
It Isn’t You: Testing under Adverse Conditions
Part 2: Owning the SAT Reading and Writing Section
Chapter 3: Raising Your Best SAT Reading and Writing Score
Understanding SAT Reading and Writing
Managing Your Time with Reading Strategies
Applying More Strategies to Find the Right Answer, Fast
Putting the Strategies to Use
Content of the Reading Passages
Chapter 4: What Are They Saying: Sentence Completion and Grammar Questions
Getting Sentence Completion and In-Context Vocabulary
Killing It Softly: The SAT Grammar Review
Working in the Research Questions
Practicing Sentence Structure and Grammar Questions
Practice Answers
Chapter 5: Thinking Fast: Critical Thinking and Data Questions
Recognizing the Question Formats
Applying the Strategies
Exploring the Question Formats
Practicing More Data Questions
Practice Answers
Part 3: Owning the SAT Math Section
Chapter 6: Raising Your Best Math Score
Taking On SAT Math
Starting with Formulas
Typing Your Answers
Refreshing the SAT Math Topics
Chapter 7: Simplifying Numbers and Operations
Simplifying the Basics
Simplifying Numbers and Operations
Chapter 8: Solving Algebra and Functions
Solving for
X
Solving for More Than One
X
Setting Up Equations
Graphing Coordinate Geometry
Chapter 9: Drawing Geometry and Trigonometry
Drawing Basic Shapes
Drawing 3-D Shapes
Solving Trigonometry Problems
Chapter 10: Measuring Statistics and Probability
Measuring the Mean, Median, and Mode
Measuring Probability
Measuring Graph Data
Part 4: It’s All You: Acing the SAT Practice Exams
Chapter 11: Practice Exam 1
Section 1: Reading and Writing
Section 2: Math
Chapter 12: Practice Exam 1: Answers and Explanations
Section 1: Reading and Writing
Section 2: Math
Answer Key
Chapter 13: Practice Exam 2
Section 1: Reading and Writing
Section 2: Math
Chapter 14: Practice Exam 2: Answers and Explanations
Section 1: Reading and Writing
Section 2: Math
Answer Key
Chapter 15: How Did You Do? Scoring Your Practice SAT
Finding Your Reading and Writing Score
Finding Your Math Test Score
Recording Your Overall Scores
Part 5: The Part of Tens
Chapter 16: Ten Mistakes That Others Make That You Won’t
You Won’t Cheat
You Won’t Neglect Your Break
You Won’t Pack Sugary Snacks
You Won’t Panic Over the Time Limit
You Won’t Run Out of Steam
You Won’t Rush Through the Questions
You Won’t Get Stuck on a Question
You Won’t Stress Out Over the Answers
You Won’t Change Your Morning Routine
You Won’t Dwell on Previous Modules
Chapter 17: Ten Ways to Get the Most from Practice SATs
Practice an Entire SAT Exam in One Sitting
Practice Not Making Mistakes under Pressure
Practice with the Bluebook App
Practice with Others in the Room
Practice as a Dress Rehearsal
Practice Your Competitive Edge
Practice Your Test-Taking Strategies
Practice Managing Your Time
Practice Finding Your Areas of Focus
Review your Practice SAT Answers and Explanations
Index
About the Authors
Advertisement Page
Connect with Dummies
End User License Agreement
List of Tables
Chapter 1
TABLE 1-1 Digital SAT Breakdown by Section
List of Illustrations
Chapter 6
FIGURE 6-1: The SAT gives you these formulas.
Chapter 7
FIGURE 7-1: The number line.
Guide
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Table of Contents
Begin Reading
Index
About the Authors
Pages
i
iii
iv
1
2
3
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
267
268
269
270
271
273
274
275
276
277
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
299
300
301
302
Introduction
Years ago, during an early gig as a consultant, I sat at a desk that had a For Dummies book on the shelf. The book was something office related, like SQL For Dummies. I took a sticky note and wrote the word “Ron” with a black marker, then placed the note over the word “Dummies” on the spine of the book, so it read, “SQL For Ron.” It fit nicely.
Since starting my test-prep company, I’ve had students who would go on to do great things, and many have had amazingly successful careers. You, too, are in this group of future success stories. How do I know? Because you’re on your way to a good school for a college degree, which will open lots of doors, and you’re oh-so-close to getting started. You just need to get past this one hurdle called the SAT.
The SAT challenges your ability to conjure up everything you’ve covered in high school — some stuff you haven’t touched in years. Really all you need is a refresher, some strategies, and practice. This book has all that and more: It goes beyond rehashing what you’ve learned (and forgotten) by providing exam-specific strategies and tips for answering questions quickly and getting through the exam. There are examples, practice questions, and practice exams to help you build your skills, identify areas you need to work on, and build your confidence for test day.
I know deep in my heart that each person I work with can do well on this exam. Right off the bat, I aim for 100 percent success with each student. You’re a little rusty here, haven’t seen that there, could use a few tips, but you’ll pick it up fast and do just fine. Succeeding on the SAT is like handling any other task: If you know what to do, and you practice, you’ll be fine. I get you started with some review and guidance, and you take it from there.
About This Book
Digital SAT Prep 2024 For Dummies with Online Practice is a whirlwind tour of the SAT. This book takes you through each section of the exam, explaining what the test-makers are looking for and how you can deliver it. This book starts at the very beginning to cover all the basic math and verbal concepts, and because you have the capacity, it then challenges you with SAT-level questions. This book also shows you how to approach the questions, avoid common mistakes, and master the intuitive tricks that help you knock it out of the park.
To earn a top score on the SAT, you have three goals:
Know what’s on the exam.
That’s in this book, so read the whole thing. No matter how well you know a topic, you can discover strategies and avoid common traps, and the SAT has a way of asking a question that’s different from what you’re used to — or what you learned in the classroom. This book has hundreds of tried-and-true strategies so you can cut through the muck and get the most points on the SAT.
Strengthen your weak areas.
Turn to specific sections for targeted information. This book is organized to make it easy for you to find strategies and practice for specific question types that you have trouble with.
For more practice exams and a bonus set of math questions, see the “Beyond the Book” section below.
Prepare for the test-taking experience.
You’ll need practice exams to get ready for the experience. Packaged with this book are four online practice exams: two in this book, and all four online. When your exam is around the corner, take one or two practice exams in real-life, dress-rehearsal settings. Flip to Part 5 for ten ways to build your skills from the practice exams.
Basically, this book does it all: It prepares you for the exam by bringing your skills from the basic level to the SAT level. What else is there?
There’s vocab.
To help you with vocab, as you read through this book, you’ll notice that some words have a style all their own. Each SAT vocabulary word in this text appears in this font, followed directly by its connotation (meaning). Fortunately, the SAT doesn’t hammer vocab like it used to, and most of the vocab on the exam is in context, so it’s easier to work with. That said, a good way to learn SAT vocab is to encounter it in a question and see what it means along with how it’s used. When you get stuck on a vocab word, write it down. This is an effective complement to studying from a list or flash cards.
Icons Used in This Book
Icons are those cute little pictures that appear in the margins of this book. They indicate why you should pay special attention to the accompanying text. Here’s how to decode them:
This icon points out helpful hints about strategy — what all-star test-takers know and rookies need to learn.
This icon identifies the sand traps that the SAT writers are hoping you’ll fall into as you take the test. Take note of these warnings so you know what to do (and what not to do) as you move from question to question on the real SAT.
When you see this icon, be sure to file away the information that accompanies it. The material will come in handy as you prepare for (and take) the SAT.
This icon indicates an example practice question within the regular chapter text.
Beyond the Book
Besides all the ways this book can help you perform well on the SAT, there are even more online, including these.
Cheat Sheet:
At
www.dummies.com
, type “Digital SAT Prep 2024 For Dummies cheat sheet” in the search box and you’ll find the book’s cheat sheet, which gives you last-minute details that you’ll want to have at your fingertips, including a rundown of how to get the most points on each SAT section.
Practice questions:
You’ll find about 400 SAT-type questions in the practice exams, plus about 50 bonus SAT-style math problems, all online to help you build your competence and confidence. Focus on areas where you need practice and verify that you’re up to speed in other areas. You can select the level of difficulty and answer the questions through untimed and timed quizzes, so you can work at your own speed and gain experience working under pressure.
To gain access to additional tests and practice online, all you have to do is register. Just follow these simple steps:
Register your book or e-book at Dummies.com to get your PIN. Go to
www.dummies.com/go/getaccess
.
Select your product from the drop-down list on that page.
Follow the prompts to validate your product, and then check your email for a confirmation message that includes your PIN and instructions for logging in.
If you do not receive this email within two hours, please check your spam folder before contacting us through our Technical Support website at https://support.wiley.com/ or by phone at 877-762-2974.
Now you’re ready to go! You can come back to the practice material as often as you want — simply log on with the username and password you created during your initial login. No need to enter the access code a second time.
Where to Go from Here
Get started! No matter what you do next, start simple. You have exactly what you need right here in your hands, so breathe deep and turn the page. It’s all you.
Part 1
Getting Started with the SAT
IN THIS PART …
Getting the scoop on the Digital SAT
Seeing how the SAT measures your performance
Planning and managing your time leading up to and including test day
Chapter 1
What to Expect with the SAT
IN THIS CHAPTER
Choosing between the ACT and the SAT
Seeing what the SAT covers
Scheduling your study time for the SAT
Accommodating for special needs
Doing amazing even if English isn’t your first language
Understanding what the SAT looks for
Getting the SAT scoring
The best and easiest way to reduce your anxiety and own the SAT is to become familiar with it. Knowing what to expect means you can plan for it, so nothing on exam day is a surprise.
In this chapter, you find the basics of the SAT, including when, where, and how often you should take it. This chapter also tells you what sort of scores you receive, explains how to deal with special needs, and gives you a peek into the structure of the actual exam. If English isn’t your first language, there are tips on getting the edge over your primarily English-speaking competition.
Thinking About the ACT
Most 11th and 12th graders take one of two, or both, giant exams on their way to college. One is the SAT, and the other is the ACT. Most colleges accept both, but you should check with your target schools just to be sure. When you call or email the college admissions office, among your other questions, ask the following:
Do you require an exam score with my application?
If so, do you accept both the SAT and the ACT?
Do you need me to write the exam essay?
At the time of this writing, the ACT is offered only in a pencil-and-paper format. However, students will have the option to take the ACT either on paper or online, first during a pilot and then at certain testing centers for the Fall 2023 through Summer 2024 season. The paper-and-computer versions of the ACT are exactly the same in terms of length, types and numbers of questions, difficulty level, and scoring algorithm.
It’s possible that in response to the revised SAT, the ACT will change even more, with reduced numbers of questions and shorter reading comp passages. At this time there is no indication of other changes to the ACT, so here’s a rundown of the differences between the current ACT, whether on paper or the computer, and the new digital SAT.
The SAT and the ACT are similar in overall difficulty. The math is about 90 percent the same, but SAT math goes more in depth than ACT math, while ACT math covers more topics. (ACT math has logarithms, for example, which SAT math does not.) Some students may find ACT math easier.
The ACT also has a Science Test, which the SAT does not. To compensate, the SAT has science-based questions mixed into the Reading and Writing section, but not to the extent of the ACT Science Test. Students who struggle with science may prefer the SAT.
The ACT also ends with an optional essay question, which the SAT does not.
SAT Reading and Writing cover similar topics to the ACT Reading and Writing tests; however, the SAT has these combined into one section that runs slightly over an hour, while the ACT separates Reading and Writing into two tests, or three tests with the optional essay, totaling about two hours (or close to three hours with the essay). The SAT doesn’t have an optional essay, so the entire exam is about two and a half hours, while the ACT can run over five hours if you include the essay.
Basically, it sounds like the digital SAT is a better bet, but I would expect the ACT to respond with its own shorter, digital version sometime soon. In the meantime, for more on the ACT overall, pick up ACT Prep 2024 For Dummies with Online Practice by Lisa Zimmer Hatch and Scott A. Hatch (published by Wiley).
Besides contacting your target schools and checking their websites, you can find more on the application requirements by checking a college guide. A college guide is a compendium (thorough collection) of school listings and admission requirements. Many libraries and bookstores carry college guides, and you can also talk with your college counselor, who may also have one.
If college isn’t in your immediate future, you may want to take the SAT just to get it out of the way, while the test topics are still fresh in your head. If your plans include a stint in the armed forces or the Peace Corps before hitting higher education, you can keep your options open by taking the SAT before you go. Then when you’re ready to get back into the classroom, you’ll have some scores to send to the college of your choice. As of this writing, your SAT scores are officially valid for five years, but that could change, or the college you apply to may require newer scores. Just keep that in mind.
So … What’s on the Digital SAT?
What are you getting into here? Well, it’s nothing you can’t handle, but it helps to know what’s coming up. Here is the digital SAT testing experience, in this order.
Reading and Writing section: Two 32-minute modules consisting of 27 questions each, totaling 64 minutes for 54 questions.
10-minute break.
Math section: Two 35-minute modules consisting of 22 questions each, totaling 70 minutes for 44 questions. You’re provided with an on-screen calculator for both modules.
Table 1-1 provides a quick overview of what’s on the exam.
TABLE 1-1 Digital SAT Breakdown by Section
Section
Number of Questions
Time Allotted
Reading and Writing Module 1
27 questions
32 minutes
Reading and Writing Module 2
27 questions
32 minutes
Break
—
10 minutes
Math Module 1
22 questions
35 minutes
Math Module 2
22 questions
35 minutes
Each section mixes in a few unscored “trial” questions, which are impossible to discern from the actual, scored questions. This is good — it means you don’t get an extra, unscored “trial” module.
Note that the paper-based practice SATs from CollegeBoard.org have more questions in each section (33 questions per Reading and Writing module; 27 questions per Math module), but no stated time limit. These practice SATs are excellent for preparing, but they don’t reflect the actual testing experience.
Working the Online, Adaptive SAT
Within each module, each question counts exactly the same toward your score: The more questions you get right, the higher your score for that module. An easy question is worth the same as a hard question. Because you can move back and forth within each section, one strategy is to skip around and answer all the easy questions first, then go back and work the hard questions. If you like this idea, try it out on a practice test before exam day.
On the computer version of the exam, the second Reading and Writing or Math module becomes easier or harder based on your performance on the first one. For example, if you do extremely well on the first Math module, the SAT thinks you’re good at math, so it makes the second Math module harder. Even if you don’t get as many right answers in the second Math module, your score will be good because the questions were harder. Your score will definitely be higher than the score of someone who bombs the first Math module — so the SAT thinks they’re not good at math — but does great in the second Math module, because the questions were much easier.
Signing Up before Sitting Down: Registering for the SAT
The SAT is given at multiple times at select high schools and testing centers throughout the United States and in English-speaking schools in many other countries. This section explains how and when to register for an exam and the acceptable methods of payment.
How to register
You can register for the SAT online, by mail, or, if you’ve taken the SAT before, by phone.
Online registration is simple: Go to www.sat.collegeboard.org/register to create an account, sign up, and choose a test center and date. You need to have a credit card or PayPal account and a digital photo of yourself ready to upload. Be sure the photo meets the College Board’s standards: a headshot where your whole face is visible and you’re the only one in the photo. Head coverings are okay if they’re religious in nature.
You can also register by mail. At the time of this writing, you have to register by mail if you’re younger than 13 or older than 21 or if you need to take the exam on a Sunday for religious reasons.
You can also ask your school guidance counselor for a registration form. If you’re homeschooled, call the nearest public or private high school, or call the College Board Customer Service Center for help. If you register by mail, you’ll have to attach a photo and enclose registration payment (credit card number, a check from a United States bank, or a bank draft).
The College Board Customer Service line within the U.S. is 866-756-7346 and outside the U.S. is 212-713-7789. Hearing-impaired test-takers can call the TTY Customer Service number, which within the U.S. is 888-857-2477 and outside the U.S. is 609-882-4118. You can also contact the College Board by mail at this address: College Board SSD Program, P.O. Box 8060, Mount Vernon, IL 62864-0060.
However you register, you’ll be asked whether you want to sign up for the Student Search Service. Answer yes and fill out the questionnaire. Colleges, universities, and some scholarship-granting organizations receive information about you from this service. Expect lots of emails and letters — a little annoying, perhaps, but it’s good to know that the schools are interested in you. You may also discover a school or scholarship that you weren’t aware of but that meets your needs perfectly.
Scammers are interested in you, too. Don’t send personal or financial information to any organization unless you know it’s legitimate. You know this, of course, but exam registration and college application is a new game. Not sure something is legit? Call the College Board Customer Service line to check.
When to take the test
The SAT is typically offered seven times a year, and you can take it as often as you want. Ideally, you take it two or three times, but the door is open if you want another chance. Most high schoolers follow this pattern.
Start in the fall of your sophomore year:
Here you take the PSAT/NMSQT, which stands for Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, and is sort of a junior SAT, for the first time. For you as a 10th grader, this exam doesn’t count for much other than a practice and eye-opener of the series of exams to come. See
Chapter 2
for more on the PSAT.
Continue in the fall of your junior year:
Here you take the PSAT/NMSQT again, only this time it counts. If you do well, it opens the door to many scholarship opportunities and special programs. No pressure now.
In the spring of your junior year:
Take the SAT as a first run, which serves as a practice test, though you can send in your scores if you’re pleased with them. Note that you can also practice with an unscored practice exam, but this experience isn’t quite the same as the real thing. Some juniors take the SAT twice during the spring.
Again in the fall of your senior year:
The SAT strikes again, but this time you’re ready, and you should do well enough to use these scores for your application. You also have the chance for a few tries. If you’re an early decision candidate, you should take the test in October or November.
Finally, in the winter of your senior year:
You have one more chance to get it right, or if you did get it right, you have one more chance to get that scholarship. By now you’re a pro, so success should be right in your hands. There may be some juniors in the room with you.
The SAT is typically given on a Saturday, but there are exceptions for those who can’t on Saturday for religious reasons. If you fall into that category, your SAT may be on a Sunday or a Wednesday following a Saturday SAT day. Get a letter from your religious leader on letterhead and mail it in with your registration form.
Register early to select a test site. When you register, you may request a test site, but if it’s filled, you get an alternate. So don’t delay — send in the form or register online as soon as you know when and where you want to take the exam. You’ll probably want to test at your own high school, if possible, where the campus setting is familiar to you.
Accommodating Special Needs
Like many products and services, the SAT stresses fairness and equal access for all students, including those with special needs. Even if you don’t think you belong in this category, skim this section. You may discover an option that will help you “show what you know” when it matters most.
Learning disabilities
If you have a learning disability, you may be allowed to take the SAT under special conditions. The first step is to get an Eligibility Form from your school counselor. (Homeschoolers, call a local high school.) You may also want to ask your college counseling or guidance office for a copy of the College Board Services for Students with Disabilities brochure. If your school doesn’t have one, contact the College Board directly or check the testing agency’s website (https://accommodations.collegeboard.org).
Once you’re certified for accommodations on any College Board test (an AP, an SAT Subject Test, or the PSAT/NMSQT), you’re certified for all College Board tests, unless your need for accommodation arises from something temporary, as described in the next section. If you fall into that category, see the next section for more information.
File the form well in advance of the time you expect to take the test. If the College Board grants you the accommodation, you’ll be eligible for extra time on the SAT, which could mean an extra 50 percent of time for each test. So if a regular test-taker has 32 minutes per verbal module, for example, an extended-timer gets 48 minutes.
Physical issues
At no additional charge, the SAT also provides wheelchair accessibility, large-print tests, and other accommodations for students who need them. Be sure to submit your Eligibility Form early so that the College Board can request documentation and get things ready for you. You can send paper documentation or file an Eligibility Form online. Check out https://accommodations.collegeboard.org for details.
If a physical issue (say, a broken arm) occurs shortly before your scheduled SAT and you can’t easily take the exam at a later date, call College Board Customer Service, explain the situation, and have your physician fill out the forms requesting whatever accommodation you need.
Questions about special needs? Your high school’s counselor or principal can help, or you can check the preceding link or email the College Board ([email protected]).
Financial help
If you need financial help, you can apply for a fee waiver, available to low-income high school juniors and seniors who live in the United States, Puerto Rico, and other American territories. (United States citizens living in other countries may also be eligible for fee waivers.) The College Board also gives you four extra score reports for free, along with four request forms for college application fee waivers. The College Board does what it can.
If you’re worried about paying for school later on, there are loans, grants, scholarships, and other programs to help you achieve success in college and hopefully your career. There are many, many opportunities and places to look, so talk to your school counselor. That’s what the counselor is for!
You can also check with your school counselor for fee-waiver applications. (As with everything SAT, if you’re a homeschooler, call a local high school for a form.) And be careful to avoid additional fees when you can. You run into extra charges for late or changed registration and for some extras — super-speedy scores, an analysis of your performance, and the like. (See the section, “Scoring on the SAT,” later in this chapter for more information on score-reporting options.)
Making the SAT Work for You as a Foreign Student
This is an opportunity for you to stand out among your high school peers and represent with honors the country where you are a national! A high score on this exam is certainly within your reach, even if English is not your first language, if you know what to do and practice your skills.
For the SAT Reading and Writing section, you may get stuck on some of the academic vocabulary. To work on this, as you practice SAT-level reading, underline and look up any word you don’t know. After a while, you’ll know enough of the words.
Also, the vocabulary strategy for all SAT-taking students helps you as well: As discussed in this book’s intro, be sure to learn any word in this font, which is an SAT vocabulary word followed by its elucidation (definition).
You also have probably studied the mechanics of English more than your native English–born counterparts, so you may have a better academic understanding of sentence structure and verb form than they do. I have observed many, many times in a class with both English-only and non-native English speakers that after a refresher of the basics of this test, the non-native English speakers often do much better than the native English speakers!
One thing that you can do right now is start reading books in English. Pick movies or novels that you love in your own language and read the English versions. You’ll be more into the story, and you’ll know the gist of events well enough to pick up the English style of writing. Most importantly, you’ll learn the placement of grammar and the style of expressive writing.
For the SAT Math section, the math doesn’t change from language to language, so if you can crack the basic language used to put forth the problem, you should do just fine. There may be some minute differences (for example, 2,345.67 in one language may appear as 2.345,67 in another), but the basics are the same, and the small differences are easy to master. Just be sure to practice using SAT materials.
Examining Your Mind: What the SAT Really Looks For
The exam attempts to measure the skills you need to succeed in school and in the workplace. It’s not a measure of how smart you are, nor is it a measure of how well you do in school. It measures how adaptable you are, and especially how well you prepare for a giant exam.
The college application essay is a great place to put your scores in perspective. If your SAT score struggles from a special circumstance, such as a learning disability, a school that doesn’t value academics, a family tragedy, or any other reason, you may want to explain your situation in an essay. A good essay gives the college a way to interpret your achievement and to see you, the applicant, in more detail. For help with the college admission essay, check out College Admission Essays For Dummies by Jessica Brenner (Wiley).
The SAT doesn’t test facts you studied in school. You don’t need to know when Columbus sailed the Atlantic or how to calculate the molecular weight of an atom. Instead, the SAT takes aim at your ability to follow a logical sequence to comprehend what you’ve read and write grammatically well in Standard English. The math portion checks on the math skills you have picked up during your years in high school. The point is that the SAT isn’t a giant final exam or a review of high school. It’s a test of your skills, not your knowledge.
Use this to your advantage. The skills for the Reading and Writing section, covered in Part 2, are easy to learn and just take practice to master. The skills for the Math section are also of a limited scope and are captured in Part 3 of this book. In other words, pretty much everything you need to know for the SAT fits into a medium-sized book. There may be an occasional “oddball” question as the SAT steps outside its defined scope of topics, but these questions are very few and very far between.
One caveat (disclaimer) to the preceding claim: Everything you need to know for the SAT is right here in this book, assuming you already have a basic grasp of English and math. This claim assumes that you have certain skills at the basic high school level: You can read and understand a narrative in English, you can construct a complete sentence in English, and you can execute basic math, such as long division and adding fractions. If any of these topics is an area where you struggle, there are literally thousands of books and resources available to you, many free online or at a library. You can also check with your school for any type of remedial program, including student tutors. This is something you can easily fix and place into the past, and it’ll help you far beyond this exam.
Scoring on the SAT
The SAT gives colleges an in-depth look at your skills and performance. If you take the exam more than once, as most students do, you can use the detailed information from your score reports to craft a personalized study program and zero in on the skills you need to fine-tune.
Composite score
Your exam score, called the composite score, is the score that everyone is worried about. It’s the sum of the Reading and Writing section (200 to 800 points) and Math section (also 200 to 800 points). The maximum composite score is 1600, and the minimum is 400, which you get for showing up.
You can run through the basics of converting your correct answers to a tangible SAT score in Chapter 15, following the practice exams in Part 4.
Score reports
At the time of this writing, the SAT provides four score reports, which can be sent to your choice of schools. (Yikes? Not really. More like, Yes!) If you want to send out more reports to more schools, you can do so for a nominal fee. Check the College Board website at www.collegeboard.org for current prices. You can request additional score reports when you sign up for the exam, when you take the exam, or after the fact. At the time of this writing, your scores are good for five years.
After you get your SAT scores, you can order a Question-and-Answer Service (QAS), which shows each question from the exam, which answer you selected, and if applicable, the correct answer. There may be a small fee for this, and the fee waiver may apply. If you are planning to retake the SAT, this service is a lifesaver: It’s like turning on a light to see your exam performance. The bad thing is that this service isn’t available for some tests, but the good thing is that it is available with your PSAT, so use that!
Score reports arrive in your mailbox and at your high school a few weeks after your test, and in your email about a week sooner. The College Board usually posts on its website the date that the test scores will be available.
Last thing. Be sure to create a free College Board account at www.collegeboard.org, where you can check your scores and register for the PSAT and SAT. Here, along with your score, you can find how well you did in comparison to everyone else who took the exam when you did. You can also immediately access the QAS and get right to the questions. Plus, you can get the Bluebook app and practice SAT pdfs, all for free.
Chapter 2
Strategies for Success
IN THIS CHAPTER
Managing your time before the SAT
Getting ready the night before and morning of your SAT
Taking control of the testing experience
Dealing with adverse test conditions
“All things are ready, if our mind be so,” wrote William Shakespeare. When you hit test day, your preparation is the key to your success. You know this; it’s why you’re here. And this chapter outlines the strategies and game plans for you to prepare for the SAT and the opportunities that follow.
SAT prep can start at any point along your high school path and still be effective. In this chapter are ways to plan your studying when the test is a year away, a few months away, and right around the corner. And for those of you who suddenly realize that the test is next week, there is a panic-button scenario (and some suggestions on goal planning and time management). Lastly, this chapter tells you what to do the night before and the morning of SAT day, along with steps to take if you’re faced with adverse conditions.
Planning Your Prep Time
As soon as you sign up for an SAT, the clock starts ticking. You have only so much time to study and practice, and suddenly the exam is tomorrow morning. The good news: I’ve taken many a student down this road, with great results, and here I’ve curated (collected) the best success strategies. The following sections show you how to optimize your study and practice time so you can answer the test questions quickly and easily. Note that these strategies are in addition to studying with this book.
Starting early: The long-term study time
You’re the person who buys summer clothes in December. (Smart! That’s when they’re on clearance.) You also plan ahead — way ahead. This is not a bad strategy for long-term success in your life and career. When your SAT is roughly a year out, start with these strategies:
Sign up for challenging courses in school.
Skip the courses that require papers short enough to tweet and just enough math to figure out how many minutes remain before your next vacation. Go for subjects that stretch your mind. Specifically, stick it out with math at least through Algebra II. If high school is in your rearview mirror, check out extension or enrichment adult-ed courses. Colleges will appreciate this initiative along with your SAT scores.
Get into the habit of reading.
Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube don’t do the trick. Instead, take on academic journals, established news sources, and any publication aimed toward an adult or college-level audience. The more you read challenging material, the more you build your ability to comprehend it. This will help you in so many ways in life, but on the SAT, it helps you understand vocabulary, analyze reasoning, and deconstruct evidence. Take note of unfamiliar words and check the words online. Also notice how an author makes a point — through description, citing experts, word choice, and so forth. This helps you understand the passages and writing methods of the Reading and Writing section.
Take a critical eye.
Read the school or local paper, websites, or any publication, and look for reasoning techniques. They’re everywhere, and once you spot them, you see them all over. Is the sales pitch, persuasive argument, or editorial using statistics, emotion, anecdotes, or humor to make its point? As a side benefit, you learn to see through these tactics and spot the logic.
Revisit your math.
Resist the urge to burn your geometry books the minute the semester is over. Keep your math notebooks and especially your old exams. Revisit the questions, especially the ones you missed, because these are the topics you’ll see on the SAT. Research shows that memory improves when concepts are reviewed after a period of time, and this will help when the SAT asks you to factor a quadratic, which you may not have done for a couple of years.
Take the practice exams in
Part 4
of this book.
Work your way through all those questions and then check the answers and explanations to everything you got wrong, skipped, or wobbled on. After identifying areas of focus, you know where you have to practice. There are also free practice exams at the College Board website: go to
https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/sat/practice-preparation
.
Build up your grammar.
The grammar review in
Chapter 4
covers
almost
all of what you need for the Reading and Writing sections, but the SAT likes to throw the occasional “no one is expecting” question. For a more thorough, in-depth review of English grammar, pick up
English Grammar Workbook For Dummies
or
Grammar: 1001 Practice Questions For Dummies
(both authored by Geraldine Woods and published by Wiley).
Take the PSAT/NMSQT.
This “mini-SAT” gives you a chance to experience test conditions. It may also open the door to some robust scholarships, including the National Merit Scholarship (the “NMS” in the title of the test). The PSAT is a good preview of the SAT, and when you get your scores, you get to see the questions you missed along with the right answers — which, as stated in
Chapter 1
, is like turning on a light to see your exam performance.
This is a good, early start. Now continue on to the medium-range plan as the time before your SAT shortens.
Moving along: The medium-term study time
As the SAT moves along its timeline to your door — or something like that — here’s the medium-term phase of your plan. This is where you should be when the exam is three to six months out. Don’t worry if you didn’t start earlier. You have time, and these steps make a huge difference.
Continue sharpening your reading skills.
College-level reading skills matter, so continue reading college- and professional-level materials and looking up words that you don’t know.
Peruse
(read carefully) the daily newspaper, either online or in print, and check out the way that stories are told and statistics appear. Also read the editorials and think about how the author argues a point.
Work on your writing.
Send a story in to the school newspaper or send letters or emails to a publication editor. Writing for an audience ups your writing game, because you pay much closer attention to your reasoning and grammar. Do this a few times, and you’re a pro! This is especially true with the sort of questions that challenge your writing skills, because there are plenty of those that you have to answer correctly on the SAT.
Get an exam study-buddy.
Not a tutor. A tutor is good, but you can also benefit from practicing the SAT with someone on your own level. You get stuck on a question that your friend knows, while your friend needs help that you can provide. The studying process gets a little less tedious, and you’ll be glad to know that you’re not the only one in the room who doesn’t know all the answers.
Revisit the practice exams in
Part 4
of this book.
Pay special attention to the questions that you missed before, or if this is your first round, mark those missed questions for review later on. Also check any question that puzzled you or took too much time, even if you guessed the right answer! After you know which sort of question is likely to stump you, read the chapters that explain how to answer those questions.
Revisit your PSAT/NMSQT.
Just as with the practice exams, you need to revisit your performance on an SAT-style exam, and the PSAT is helpful because it shows how you do in an actual exam setting. Plus, you need to make sure that you can handle the topics that you missed on that exam, such as critical thinking, verb parallelism, or coordinate geometry. See the sidebar titled,
Should you take the PSAT/NMSQT?
at the end of this chapter for more on this preliminary exam.
Keep following this plan, and you’ll be in fine shape for the SAT. Now to shift your process for the final stretch.
Getting closer: The short-term study time
The SAT is weeks away! Whether you’ve been following the progression or are starting now, these steps can make a nice difference and add quite a few points to your score.
Work or revisit the practice questions in the chapters of this book. If you can answer the question easily, you’re good — but if you struggle with a question, review the chapter pages that show you how to answer it. Look for the questions with the Play icon (shown to the left), and check out the online practice questions that go with this book.
Work at least one practice exam from
Part 4
or
www.collegeboard.org
.
Do your diligence and keep practicing! Get your stamina ready for the SAT marathon, plus get a sense of what’s on the exam. Review your practice exam afterward, so you know where to focus. Best case, review it with a friend who is also taking the SAT and has taken the same practice test. Check out
Chapter 17
for good ways to use the practice exam to boost your score.
Clear your calendar of all unnecessary activity so you can study as much as possible.
It’s time to prioritize, and it’s just for a few weeks. Anything else can wait. Right now is crucial, and an hour in the weeks before your exam is worth a
lot
more than an hour in the weeks after. That movie or golf game can wait.
Download and practice with the Bluebook testing app.
This app is free to download from the College Board’s website (
www.collegeboard.org
), and it’s the best way to experience what the actual exam is like at a testing center or high school. Here you can take the digital SAT practice test and explore the online calculator, the reference screen with all the formulas, and the ability to annotate text and cross off wrong answers. Make sure you know how the app works. Don’t discover these features on exam day — practice using them now.
Check the device requirements.
As of this writing, you can take the digital SAT on your own laptop or tablet, provided it meets the requirements described on the College Board’s website. If you don’t have a device that meets these requirements, you can borrow one from your school — provided your school has one to spare.
The Exam Is Tomorrow: What to Do the Night Before Your SAT
Your SAT is tomorrow. Scared? That’s normal. When you walk into that testing room, everyone is scared — except you’re more prepared than they are. The fear is normal, so don’t deny it. Just accept that tomorrow is a big day and do what you can to control it. More on handling anxiety and taking control coming up in this chapter, but for now, here’s what you do on the night before the SAT.
Most important: Don’t study anything. Instead, get your rest. You’ve prepared for months (or weeks), and you’ve built your skills and addressed your gaps. Right now, you need to build your strength, so get some rest. There’s always one more thing to review, but now is the time to shift focus from studying to conserving energy.
Don’t go out. There’ll be another party or game. Stay home and relax, maybe read or watch a movie. (No binge watching! You need your sleep.) Have a good, wholesome dinner and avoid anything intense like sushi or spicy food. The last thing you need on exam day is an upset stomach.
Resist the urge to contact friends who are also taking the test. If they’re nervous too, their anxiety is not going to help you relax. Instead, mitigate (reduce the effect of) your anxiety by taking control of the situation. Take control of the morning by setting your phone alarm and asking your parents or guardians to wake you just in case, so you’re not worried about oversleeping. Take further control by getting your stuff together (detailed in the next section) and placing it all in one spot, so it’s ready to go and you’re not worried about forgetting something. As you take control of the situation, your confidence will follow.
Show Time: What to Do the Day of Your SAT
Whatever your normal morning routine is, do the same on this day. Along these lines, eat something good that you’re used to, that has protein (eggs, cheese, meat, tofu, and so on). Stay away from sugary foods (donuts, sugary cereals, and the like) because sugar gives you a surge of energy and then a rush of fatigue. You don’t want to crash in the middle of the math section.
If disaster strikes — fever, car trouble, hurricane — and you suddenly can’t take the SAT, call the College Board at (866) 630-9305 and request that they transfer your fee to the next available date.
Starting out that morning
Be sure to have the following items with you. Get them together the night before.
Admission ticket for the SAT:
Don’t leave home without it! You can take a picture, print it, or email it to yourself. Either way, just make sure you know where it is. (If your ticket hasn’t arrived, check with the College Board, ideally a week or so before the test.) Without your ticket, you can’t get in, and you’ll have to do this whole routine over again.
Photo ID:
The SAT accepts your driver’s license, school ID, passport, or almost any other official document that includes your picture. The SAT doesn’t accept your Social Security card, credit card, or anything without your picture. If you’re not sure what to bring, ask your school counselor or check the College Board website at
www.collegeboard.org
.
Water bottles:
Bring a couple of chilled water bottles to drink during your breaks. Don’t bring anything sugary like soda or juice, because you’ll crash and get even more thirsty. If you want electrolytes, such as a smart water, make sure it’s a drink that you’ve tried before. If it gives you a headache, you don’t want to discover that on the day of the test.
Some snacks:
Bring healthy snacks in your backpack, so you don’t have to wait in the vending-machine line for a lousy selection. You can eat during your break, and your water bottles can keep them cold.
After you arrive at the test center, take out what you need and stow the rest of the stuff in a backpack under your seat.
Your phone must be completely powered off and put away when you take your exam. You’re not allowed to bring a laptop or tablet. Nor can you bring scrap paper, books, or other school supplies (including rulers, compasses, and highlighters). Leave them behind. Also, no portable music devices. If your watch is a smartwatch, leave it at home.
Taking control of the tension
You’ll probably feel nervous when you arrive at the test center. This is normal, and it’s okay. If you’re prepared, then once you start the exam, you’ll realize that it’s all the stuff that you practiced, and you should feel better. Try a couple of stretches and head shakes to chase away tension. During the exam, wriggle your feet and move your shoulders up and down whenever you feel yourself tightening up. If you roll your neck, be sure to close your eyes and not to face the other students so you don’t risk a charge of cheating. And take a few deep breaths to calm yourself.
Focusing during the test
Keep your eyes on your own screen. If you glance around the room, you may see someone who has already finished. Then you’ll panic: Why is he done, and I’m only on Question 2? You don’t need this kind of idea rattling around in your head. Besides, that student may have skipped to the end. Also, wandering eyes open you to a charge of cheating.
Hardly anyone gets a perfect score, so don’t expect to. And you don’t have to, anyway. All you need to do is score higher than many other test-takers, and with these strategies and practice, you will! Once you’re in college and/or have a scholarship, the SAT doesn’t matter anymore. But for now, you’re not trying to get all of them right — you’re trying to get most of them right.
