<p>Some students really do benefit by being identified early and by getting support for their accelrated abilities and interests.
While my daughter barely recieved a 1000 on her SAT in 7th grade, and she did participate in a snail mail writing course through CTY, we decided that her school gave her plenty to do without the extra work.
However her best friend who was a year younger received a 1400 and this gave her the motivation to change schools from the best prep school in the state to the early entrance program at the university of washington, condensing 4 years of high school into one year and graduating with a double major a few years later.</p>
<p>I took the SAT as as 8th grader for the Johns Hopkins Talent Search, or something with a similar name. I didn't study for it, and I went in with a "let's just see how this goes" attitude. At the time, I remember hearing that your score would increase naturally by about 100 points each year, and for me this proved true. Two years later, when I took the PSAT in 10th grade, again without any prep, my score had increased by 180 points. I prepared the summer before junior year for my 11th grade PSAT, and sure enough, my score went up another 120 points. By the time I took the SAT later that year, with a bit more studying, I improved another 80 points. Most of my other friends who took the SAT as 7th or 8th graders also had similar results: their scores improved by leaps and bounds naturally, and even moreso with a little studying. So, all those kids who are getting 1000-1250 in 7th grade aren't "most kids," but more likely the kids who will end up receiving near-perfect scores of 1500-1600 or whatever the new SAT equivalent will be by the time the real test roles around. Seventh grade is too early to be worrying about studying for the SAT, in my opinion, because your child will improve a lot naturally in the next few years, and can begin to study as the test gets closer, say in 10th or 11th grades. Most seventh graders haven't even had algebra or geometry yet, and many questions on the SAT test these areas.</p>
<p>In California, school children are given a test called the SAT9 which is a grade level test given to middle school students.</p>
<p>All a standardized test tells you is how you did on a particular day with a certain number of questions. There are a lot of factors that can affect the outcome. Personal health, room disruptions, poor directions are just a few.</p>
<p>I knew an elementary student who got all the answers on a standardized test correct one year and then scored in the bottom quartile the next time the test was given. The student had come across a math problem that was knew to them and they spent an hour trying to solve it. Unfortunately our school used volunteers or other staffers to monitor the test taking and this person never walked around encouraging students to move on with their test, like most experienced teachers would have.</p>
<p>Fortunately the school knew the student and didn't use the test to determine which academic class offerings would be available to them the next year.</p>
<p>New not knew......I need my coffee</p>
<p>Although it seems like hyper-preparation for college, there is another way of looking at it. Gifted programs need a benchmark test and the SATs are widely available and relatively cheap, compared to coming up with an original test for giftedness (there are several tests of giftedness available, but they need skilled administrators and interpreters.) It's not a perfect solution, but it is a practical one. Since you say your child is out of the average range of the gifted program, it seems like a good time for you to read up on giftedness and the many forms it takes. Most kids are strong in a few areas and average or weak in others. </p>
<p>All of my kids took SATs in junior high as part of their school's gifted program. The best thing about it was their getting used to the test format, and realizing that learning vocabulary is pretty important. The College Board has an SAT question of the day that you can set as your computer's start-up screen. Sheppard software has a series of free SAT/GRE vocabulary quizzes online, (plus some fun geography games) if your child would like to do more "testing." However, nothing will substitute for a strong reading program. Your child should be making the transition to classic adult books and will want to discuss them with you; why not read them together?</p>
<p>there's really no downside to studying for it. I'll be honest, I think the only reason I got into boarding school is because I got an 800 math in 7th grade. If you don't get a good score, fine its not a big deal. But if you do, thats a tremendous hook for any school.</p>
<p>As I recall kids who scored 97 percentile and above on the SSAT were invited to take the SAT for CTY, which my daughter did without studying. We could not afford the John's Hopkins courses so there was no advantage to taking the SAT in 8th grade with the possible exception that it may have helped her get into boarding school. </p>
<p>She also took the SAT last year without studying, except doing a couple "10 Real SAT's" the day before. There just wasn't time.</p>
<p>I agree with the others that it is not valuable to study for the SAT in 7th grade. What you have is time to naturally develop learning skills. Read books for vocabulary and comprehension development. Also, try to take Algebra in 8th grade. The lack of algebra in middle school meant my dd had to take two math courses concurrently (or summer, but she didn't have time) in order to get to Calculus BC in Sr. year. This is not an SAT prep tip, but just something I wish we'd known.</p>
<p>it doesnt count at all. i took them in 7th grade, i got an 1180, i didnt 'qualify' for anything. its just a learning experience</p>
<p>a note on the math portion of the SAT I (at least until they change things) - the problems are exactly like Mathcounts problems, which are intended for middle schoolers.</p>
<p>As everybody says, they don't keep the 7th grade results on file. On the other hand, if your score is pretty high, you can tell ETS to keep it (you have to contact them before the school year ends). Moreover, they keep all the old scores in the archives, and (if nothing will screw up in the archives) you will be able to order them to be sent to wherever you want (for separate fee). That's what I did this Fall, when DS was applying to colleges (I was not so sure he will score 800 again, as he did in 7th grade)</p>
<p>As for the preparation, I'd say it is a good idea to make sure the student is familiar with the test format - just get a Kaplan or PR book in a library, photocopy the pages with the bubbles and give it a try in real time... Our older daughter took the SAT in 8th grade, right after the family moved to the U.S. Although she was consistently getting a perfect score for the Math part (playing with an SAT computer game at home), she scored just 640 in the real testing situation (she had never seen a bubble sheet in her life before that). </p>
<p>Besides the CTY and similar talent-search camps, a good test result in 7th grade may be helpful when advocating for grade-skip and/or other accomodations in school; and when applying to other competitive summer programs. We were not aware about the merit scholarships in CTY; so, we figured that $1500 for 6 weeks in PROMYS will be much better than $3200 for three weeks in CTY (prices 4 years back)... Son loved PROMYS and I guess he will go there again next summer for the 4th time</p>
<p>Oh, and EPGY uses the SAT scores as an indicator if you want to take their distance course... and they give pretty good need-based aid.</p>
<p>After my son did quite well on the SAT in 6th grade (1200)--scoring better than the average senior in the school--it was easier to persuade his teachers that he was flunking their classes because the work was too easy, not because it was too hard. This was the biggest reward of having him take the test. The other amusement was hearing him say: "I'd never seen some of the math, which made it kind of fun to work it out." when he finished the test. Qualifying for the special programs was nice--but only a bonus.</p>
<p>Don't prep the kid, except for perhaps going over the test methodology. You really DO NOT want to bias 7th grade results, since you could be setting up your kid for a lot of struggle over the years to follow.</p>
<p>My son scored 1420 on Sat when doing JHU talent search at 7th grade without any preparation, which made him first place for his grade in our state on that year. He got a scholarship to take one free class at state university ( scholarship is good for two years )..........on non-material part, he becomes more confident, more motivated to do well academically, plus he got a lot of information about all kinds scholarships that are available, but most of them are need-based...........</p>
<p>From my experience, the scores in 7th grade don't really indicate what you'll get in high school. I didn't even break a 1000 in 7th grade but now have a score in the 99+ percentile range.</p>
<p>If you do well, great, but, if you don't, it's no reason to freak out. (that's a lot of commas!)</p>
<p>From my observation, a poster above got it right. High early scorers in 7th or 8th grade -- let's say you're at the top 1-2 percent for your age cohort -- tend to gain 100-150 points a year and typically end up with quite high scores by junior year (1500+). But low scorers can also gain a fair bit (and after all, they've got more space to grow in).</p>
<p>marmat:</p>
<p>Another happy PROMYS parent here. My S was told by his counselor at an academic camp following 5th grade thathe should consider CTY as the present camp was not challenging enough. So he took the PLUS test for 6th grade. He loved the CTY junior camp, so the following year he took the SAT. Although he qualified for a scholarship, that could only be used at a private academy, so he passed it up. He did attend CTY camps for two summers, doing one year's worth of Honors science to prepare for AP classes (he was afraid that regular classes would be too slow). The 3-weeks long session prepared him very well indeed. For the following two summers, he's gone to PROMYS. He may decide to go one last time. </p>
<p>Taking the SAT in 7th grade is not a bad idea, since not a lot rides on the score; unlike SAT tests taken later, the scores are not kept and will not affect admission to colleges. My S was far more relaxed than the seniors who took the test at the same time he did! It is useful to know how to deal with the SAT in terms of time-management, and coping with tricks, so some preparation is useful. My S also decided to make sure he scored high enough on the verbal to qualify, so he read the vocabulary portion of Up Your Score (in retrospect, he need not have worried at all). It was a fun read, so he did not mind.
I dont' know how the new SAT will be used for talent identification, though.</p>
<p>I thought of this thread yesterday. I have a friend whose son is in 9th grade. She insisted on him taking the SAT "for practice" in October. Yesterday, when I saw her, she was complaining about his "low scores" (in the low 400's on each part) and asking me how my daughter (a junior) was prepping for the spring SAT. Apparently, she is making him take the new SAT in March and planning to have him take the SAT every year until he's a senior. I tried to explain to her that he probably hasn't had much of the material on the test (he will be taking Algebra I starting this month) and that repeatedly taking the test between now and senior year will not necessarily do more than drive him - and her - crazy. But, she is convinced that he must start prepping and testing NOW in order to do well by senior year. I worry when I hear people tell me things like this.</p>
<p>With NCLB I imagine that all states have mandatory testing. Washington is supposedly one of the more rigorous tests and my daughter who doesn't do well on tests will be required to pass it next year(in 10th gd) in order to graduate.
Her school offers both Princeton Review classes( for free) for 9th and 10th graders( whatever the other one is I have a brain fog) and ___ for 11th and 12th graders. I think this is great, but we didn't take advantage of it this year because I think starting high school is enough of a stress.
Next year, I probably will have her take the class, as I think it is just a short intro to the test, but we will see how it goes.
Many college ( not enough in my opinion) don't require SAT scores and some will not even take them. I resent that testing is replacing teacher generated curriculum. If it isn't on the test, they don't teach it at some schools.
I really can't express how much it bothers me that testing is so heavily emphasized. Their entire school year is supposed to be summed up in one test, and we all know that grading especially the written portions are very subjective.
My oldest daughter who recieved a 780 on the verbal portion of the old SAT and the same on the writing Satll , recieved the comment that her writing was below grade level on a individually administered writing test that she did the same year to ascertain what she needed for a 504.
The scores could easily have been reversed.
I don't know what to say to people who obsess about test scores. Ya it is impressive to have high scores, but there are more important things in life, and there are other ways to show that they can be a successful college student.</p>
<p>I feel really dumb...I took the SAT in 7th grade and I was really happy with a 950...I didn't make the tip program though. I'm a junior and I take the SAT in high school for the first time in January...I'll be sure to let you all know how I do. Last year I got a 28 on the ACT which is like a 1250 SAT so I improved 300 points in 3 years....haha</p>
<p>Carolyn, is this mother aware that all of those scores will show up on his score report? That just seems like a bad plan on many levels, not least of which is having that many scores on a score report, especially low scores. I agree there's too much emphasis put on scores by both colleges and students/parents, but it's the system we have. My children are good test takers, so we haven't really had to deal with all of this test preppring mania. But if they did need prep I would think doing a couple of practice tests to see where the weaknesses are, then doing some work in those areas, followed by a few more practice tests, would be sufficient. Knowing the test seems to be of much more benefit than memorizing a gazillion words.</p>
<p>Most of the 7th graders in our area take the ACT instead of SAT for the talent search programs as the ACT is viewed as being easier to score well on at that age. My son scored high enough to qualify for math/science summer programs and those have been a real boon for him. His high english score helped me advocate for some extra considerations in that area and helped me "explain" him to his teachers and the principal. We have an elementary and middle school gifted program with a large number of students and I think the teachers just assume they're all on the same level. He truly is bored a lot of the time in school, and his scores were something concrete the teachers could see. After his PSAT scores came in I have noticed a positive change in attitude from a couple of his teachers and the administration. So I have found the testing to be useful for him in the area of opportunities both in and out of school.</p>
<p>I took the SAT in 8th grade through.. Johns Hopkin's Talent Search Program? I think. I did well for my age (but never received more than info about summer programs i would have had to pay for), but the scores never surfaced again.. hadn't really thought about it either I suppose, it's been like five years haha.</p>