Best way to study for the SAT?

[kijip]

No, not me. Been there and did just fine thanks but my nephew. He has a 4.0 GPA but his practice SATs are not great. It is hard to tell if the GPA/score gap might be more a function of grade inflation or test taking skill. He wants to attend a somewhat selective school. I offered to help him study. He is enthusiastic about that. His math is fine, not awesome but good enough and I am sure improvable with some review and test taking practice. However, his verbal (well reading/writing now I guess) is really meh and I think would prevent his acceptance to the schools he is looking at. He has a few months to study. What would be your advice for the best way to improve? The verbal SAT is silly because the vocab is out of line IME with what they teach or need to know in hs at all. That is not sour grapes- my verbal score was 790 but the vocab tested is absurd IMO.

Focus on test taking skills and practice or try to cram a lot of vocab? His comprehension part seems solid but his writing needs work and he left a lot of the vocab related stuff undone he said.

He is not looking to go to an ivy - but he would like to go to UW here in Seattle (he qualifies for in state tuition even though he goes to hs in NC because a parent lives here). I would like to help him anyway I can because I selfishly want him here in town ;). And he is a good kid who has grown up in trailers with crazy criminal people and I think worthy of help out of that sort of life. Do you know kids that vastly improved their scores from practice test to actual? He can always do cc and transfer but I agreed to try and help him so any books or strategies you suggest, let me know. Thanks.

[smiles33]

I remember buying a book with actual past SAT questions and doing those. I think the SAT is really different now 20 some years later, so I'm not sure if my advice is still sound, but I would assume that being more confident after doing all the actual exam questions you can find would help. I know that anxiety can cripple even the smartest student as you can run out of time, freak out, misread something in your haste, etc.

Good luck to your nephew!

[arivecchi]

Do as many practice exams as possible according to DH. That's what he did for the SAT and LSAT. He was also a Kaplan instructor.

Good luck!

[ellies mom]

Well, it has been a billion years since I took the SAT but I did recently take and pass the NCLEX.

I would recommend a little of both. I would see if there are SAT review books that focus on both questions and vocabulary. That way he is working on his test taking skills and increasing his vocabulary. He will probably learn some test taking strategies and will gain confidence. I don't know if the SAT has "alternate format" questions but if they do, it doesn't hurt to get a book that focuses on those as well, especially for his confidence. I know those were the question we hated to see. And then just practice and read and practice some more.

[niccig]

Not the SAT but the GRE.

I used a couple of books as strategies were different. It did help to read how to attack a particular problem.

I got a GRE book that was just on vocab and started doing 10 a day - you had to read the word, write the word, then answer questions on the vocab. I also found an iPod app, so I could do a few words while waiting in car pool line etc. Turns out my vocab is very good due to me being a voracious reader, so I only had to really learn 2 or 3 out of each set of 10 words. Also look to quizzlet.com, someone else may have already put up flashcards, games to SAT vocab.

Practice exams - I didn't do enough and my pacing was off, so I rushed through some questions. My score is good enough for my program, but I know it could have been better if I had some timed practice exams.

Good luck to your nephew.

[eh613c]

Is your nephew open to taking the ACT as well? It's been a while but from what I recall, the ACT is related to subjects offered in high school. I thought I'd offer that since he has a high GPA.

[ellies mom]

I also found an iPod app, so I could do a few words while waiting in car pool line etc. Turns out my vocab is very good due to me being a voracious reader, so I only had to really learn 2 or 3 out of each set of 10 words.

A bunch of us used one of the NCLEX practice apps to help study in nursing school. It was nice because we could pick by subject area and do just a handful of questions at a time. It was a huge help on the chapter tests and of course for the boards. Definitely worth looking for and worth the money.

[JoyNChrist]

Definitely check out iPhone/iPad/iTouch apps if he has any of those devices. I've been doing DAT review (think MCAT for dental school) using a few apps and flashcards that I've made using the Anki program and app, and I really like that I can just do a few while I'm waiting in line or have a few minutes of downtime or whatever. I've found that I fit much more study into my day in short little bursts like that.

I can't really help on SAT specifics. It's been too long and I was a voracious reader so I think that really helped my vocab score.

[Cam&Clay]

There's an app for that! I've heard that there are apps that give you a question a day.

Also, I know my school system has online practice tests and e-books for SAT prep. Maybe his does as well. They are free here. Check with the public library, too. They may have these online preps available.

[JTsMom]

We had a mini SAT prep class in HS, and I remember learning some very basic Latin roots to help with the vocab portion. They also covered good test taking strategies (things like doing the easiest questions, then going back for the more challenging ones if there was time, how to make an educated guess, etc.).

My GRE scores were much better than my SAT scores though, and I attribute that to really disciplined practice test taking. Trying to duplicate the test taking experience as much as possible can help too, especially if he's nervous about it.

[hbridge]

I tutor SAT math...

If he is comfortable and motivated to study on his own, the practice books are fantastic and the sample tests that come with the answers are VERY helpful.

For verbal, the vocabulary is key. Flash cards work well along with practice using sample SAT problems. The essay is usually a time issue so again, practice. As for math; make sure that all the skills are mastered and practice sample problems. If the students doesn't not get the problem correct, make sure to review the solution so he understands why. The SAT likes to give math problems that are NOT straight forward so practice actual SAT problems to gain experience with SAT math.

If you decide to get additional help, my recommendation for all standardized test prep it to work with a one-on-one tutor and NOT rely on a "class". While the classes are great, they assume some self-motivation and may spend too much time on any one students strengths. A tutor will be able to focus on her students weaknesses and simply review what is already mastered. I no longer work at a tutoring center, but most have math and ELA "experts" that work together on test prep. While I would work on math, we had other teachers who were experts on the ELA sections.

He seems very motivated and should do fine...

[pinkmomagain]

Nearly everyone in dd's school takes some kind of prep course...many are privately tutored. Can get pretty pricey. If he is extremely self-motivated then I would imagine the prep books would be helpful. I know in the classes, they give lots of little tips and tricks on "how" to take the test in addition to learning the content...things like when to guess, when to leave something blank, etc.

[lilycat88]

A friend of mine has a sort of "elite" SAT prep in California (www.bodsat.com (http://www.bodsat.com)) for kids who already score 1800+. Might not be a match for your nephew but if he's wanting some sort of formal test prep, I can ask him for alternatives. He knows he and his partner aren't for everyone and is more than willing to find better fits for kids.

[hellokitty]

Go to one of those private SAT prep classes. The thing is, how old is your nephew? Just about everyone I know who did well on the SAT, did well, b/c they started SAT prep in jr high and took tons of practice exams.

[kijip]

Go to one of those private SAT prep classes. The thing is, how old is your nephew? Just about everyone I know who did well on the SAT, did well, b/c they started SAT prep in jr high and took tons of practice exams.

He does not need to do massively better, I would say a 100 point score increase would be nice, a little less and he would still be fine. He got a 650 math on his first try so I think that part will be fine and def improvable with a few more practice opportunities. It is the verbal part where I think he can make a big stride if he works at it.

Maybe I just knew a lot of good test takers or something because most of my friends did nothing other than take the PSAT and then the SAT and we all got decent to great scores. Or maybe the test is just harder than it was before (though I keep hearing that the math is easier).

[kijip]

A friend of mine has a sort of "elite" SAT prep in California (www.bodsat.com (http://www.bodsat.com)) for kids who already score 1800+. Might not be a match for your nephew but if he's wanting some sort of formal test prep, I can ask him for alternatives. He knows he and his partner aren't for everyone and is more than willing to find better fits for kids.

If they can recommend options for someone with a solid math score but needing help with the reading and writing, that would be great. I am looking at some books and practice exams but there are SO many to wade through.

[hbridge]

For ELA, the biggest hurdle for most students is the vocabulary. If you don't know the meaning of a word, it's really difficult to do the problem. He can find vocab lists (there are MANY SAT vocab list on-line) and make flash cards for words he doesn't know. Then study them and learn as many as possible before the test, that should help quite a bit. Also, practice the vocab sections and the short/long passages using practice tests and review books. Finally, practice the essay (again you can find topics on-line) so that it can be planned and well written in the time period given.

There's a lot of information about the SAT. If he has taken a practice exam that breaks down his strengths and weaknesses he should be able to focus his studying on his weaker skills. In my many years of experience working with SAT, vocab is by far the biggest struggle for most students in the verbal section...

[stefani]

For both the SAT and GRE, what I did was taking the practice exams many many times, and timed them myself.

To improve on the verbal portion, being a foreigner, I worked really hard to increase my vocab. I wrote the words and definition on index cards (these were the days before iPhone, iPod, etc.!). I would go over the vocab list over and over, carrying a few cards with me pretty much everywhere I went. So, use those apps on iPhone / iPod/ Android.

Good luck to your nephew!

[pinkmomagain]

There is also quite a bit of grammar in the writing section. At least in my kids' schools, grammar is not emphasized as much as it was when I was growing up. Not sure what your nephew has been exposed to, but he may want to also brush up on the grammar.

More than one administrator at dd's HS has discussed the advantage of those kids who read for pleasure. The more they simply read books, the better they get at vocab, grammar, reading comp and writing. If he doesn't already, I'd encourage him to read.

[Kindra178]

Practice tests, practice tests, practice tests. That should improve math, at the very least. For vocab words, flash cards of the Princeton Review Hit List (Hit Parade?). There is no way getting around memorizing words. I suggest he sets aside some time every day to study and devote a significant time at least two days a week.