<p>Help! It's been ages since I have taken these tests. My very bright 7th grader is taking them, and I would love to have some advice to give him. He has not done any type of test prep as I would like to see how he scores without it, but if I could get some advice as to how much time to spend on questions, if a calculator is really needed, etc....anything and everything a newbie needs to know!
Thanks!</p>
<p>He really shouldn't be worrying about taking the SATs. He probably hasn't had 90% of the material on it in school. So, I'm not sure how much test prep will help. As for advice, if there is a Waffle House in your area, you should take him there for breakfast before the test. WH brought my SAT up 170 points, and my ACT up 4 points. IHOP just wont do. It has to be Waffle House. So, that's my advice.</p>
<p>Good luck, and make sure he doesn't worry about this. There is much much more to childhood and life as a whole than preparing for test that he won't really need to take until 4 or 5 years from now. </p>
<p>Just chill, have some Waffle House, and have fun filling in the bubbles. </p>
<p>and dont forget about the new writing section.</p>
<p>Talk to the counselor in his school. There should be a pamphlet with instructions and I think a sample test. That, you can over with him. Beyond that, there isn't much to do besides getting a good night's sleep and a good breakfast. If you want more information on above-level testing, go to the Duke TIP website (you will also get links to the other talent searches).</p>
<p>Why exactly, would a 7th grader need or want to take the SAT?</p>
<p>He should bring a calculator. May be try one practice test provided by college board. You can visit CTY</a> Talent Search -- Frequently Asked Questions for advice on this topic.</p>
<p>A 7th grade SAT opens doors to Talent search programs. My daughter participated in these and it did open doors later - or rather it was like a comradery or fraternity, a kind of seal of approval when meeting other talent search participants. Like a secret handshake. For really smart kids, who usually are alone or isolated in their home community, this kind of connection is important. </p>
<p>CTY and MIT SPLASH are like tribal gatherings. One writer liked these really smart kids to camels; they attend these gatherings and drink in the connections and stimulation. And it gets them through another year. </p>
<p>For my 6th grader, review of basic solid geometry would have been helpful. Also we sat down for 30 minutes every day for a month, reviewing questions in an SAT prep book, not to learn the material, but for my daughter to understand the syntax and arrangement and way of thinking of these kinds of tests. </p>
<p>One of the greatest challenges is stamina and emotional control. Not becoming discouraged in the face of questions that one could not possibly understand is key. </p>
<p>Take a water bottle and snacks - and you need to do your homework so that your child is not set up for failure.</p>
<p>Good Luck.</p>
<p>Good advice from toadstool. I only object to the failure part. In our area the students that are able to participate are the top 5% scorers on the regular grade level tests they have taken up to this point. That is success enough by itself, and they should not be considered failures for any score they achieve. </p>
<p>"By taking advanced above-level (at least two years above a student's current grade placement) testing through Duke TIP's talent searches, gifted students and their families gain a far better understanding of where the student stands in relation to his/her gifted peers and what level of educational challenge is appropriate." (from Duke TIP website)</p>
<p>The letting you know where your student (and the preparation they've had since pre-K) stands is the most important part. The rest is gravy.</p>
<p>Thank you all for the replies. Yes, my 7th grader is in the Duke University Talent Appreciation Program and has gotten 98-99% on EOGs thus far. I surely don't expect him to do wonderfully since he will not have been taught much of the material on the test, but it has been ages since I took them, and I am sure things have changed. I appreciate the advice and comments. Toadstool, what did you mean by "and you need to do your homework so that your child is not set up for failure." I am not sure I understand what you are getting at...not trying to be sarcastic, I am really interested in your thoughts. It's sometimes very tough to parent a bright child, and I appreciate the thoughts on this forum.</p>
<p>Your kid probably knows all the "material"...it's just basic math, reading comprehension, and grammar. </p>
<p>The question is merely how developed his thinking skills in those areas.</p>
<p>7th graders NEED to take the SAT when they are identified as talented and have done things like aced the Stanford achievment test. They need these scores to qualify for a number of gifted program like JHU CTY. Without programs like CTY or Northwestern's CTD, these kids can languish in regular classrooms wasting their considerable talent.</p>
<p>I'm "talented" enough and I didn't ever get tested for those programs. I think I turned out okay.</p>
<p>CTY was a fun and useful thing for my kids. The SAT was the entrance test for this program, that's all; I assume it's the same for TIP. I would suggest having the kid do a couple of sample tests from a review book, just so he is comfortable with the format of the test. All the other kids will have calculators for the math section.</p>
<p>A wristwatch is helpful to keep track of time. That sounds obvious, but we didn't think of it when my daughter took the SAT in middle school.</p>
<p>Your son should definitely bring a calculator, water, a snack, and a watch. I wouldn't really worry about preparing extensively. When I took them in 7th grade for CTY, I did not review anything. Got a 670 in verbal and a 510 in math. The way it worked then was all the 7th graders took them together in one room. Doubt I would have done as well sitting next to a 17 yr old and it probably would have been just as unsettling for a 17yr old. Its just like any other standardized test your son has sat through.
It is a rewarding experience to get your scores and see how you measure up to current seniors in High School. I'm sure the Duke program has similar awards to CTY, you got one at graduation if you scored high enough. You'll also get an amazing amount of literature from the program and the opportunity to participate in those programs, though I was never interested and they were rather cost prohibitive. My best friend won a free course at Vassar, we're from Poughkeepsie, for all you haters out there, when we took the test in 7th grade.<br>
There are a lot of upsides to doing it but it really should not be a big deal. P.S.- I was not in the advanced math track in 7th grade and I still beat the average. To put this in context, I'm a sophomore at Wesleyan now so this is 2002- 2003 range.</p>
<p>We found the summer programs to be quite expensive. What the scores gave us was more clout to demand services at the local level from the school system, in other words, access to the magnet programs and when we got the "but no one has ever attempted that before" line, or "you can't take Biology and Chemistry together," or "he can't take so many AP classes at the same time," we just smiled and pulled rank. We are lucky that our public school system offers excellent Gifted and Magnet School programs. We had many choices.</p>
<p>Thanks again! I didn't even think about a watch. It seems nobody wears them anymore, since we have cell phones! And the fact that the 7th graders will likely be alone is assuring. My son is not the least bit worried about the test, but he might be a bit intimidated by high school kids. I am glad I found this group!</p>
<p>When I took the SATs in 7th grade I was unfortunately seated behind a 17-year old with a very large afro who kept stretching and tilting his head back almost in my face. This was in a huge lecture hall at Yale. Unless there are many, many 7th graders taking the SATs, expect to be in a room full of older teenagers.</p>
<p>Also, CTY rocks :)</p>
<p>My children's middle school really pushed for them to take the SAT in 7th grade and then they rewarded those who did well with awards at the award ceremony. I don't recall using the results for any programs but it seemed like it didn't hurt the kids to take it.</p>
<p>The snack is important (I suggest a bottle of water and granola bars or something similar) since the test is long and takes a lot of endurance. </p>
<p>The one thing that has haunted us is the user name and password I used to get their scores for the 7th grade SAT. My D is a senior now and still stuck with that user id and it is not something easy for her to remember.</p>
<p>I took the SATs in 7th grade. I didn't prepare much, but my mom bought a practice SAT book and we went over the different formats of questions together so I'd know what to expect. I was in a room with just 7th graders, which was nice.</p>
<p>Make sure your son gets a lot of sleep the night before the test.</p>