<p>I'm taking the ACT this Saturday, and it'll probably be my last time. I currently have a 25...and to get an automatic scholarship at the college I'm applying to I need a 26.</p>
<p>My current composite is a 25, and my sub-scores are:</p>
<p>English - 29
Math - 25
Reading - 23
Science - 23</p>
<p>Any last minute tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!</p>
<p>Relax. Don’t do any studying tonight. If you prepared for it, just know that you’ll do fine. Get to sleep as early as you can and get a nice breakfast(I know that’s a cliched phrase but stress and a bad meal are really the worst things you can do). I Hope you get a great score.</p>
<p>Good luck Harlan,</p>
<p>I am taking it tomorrow as well.</p>
<p>I am going to stop studying at 4:30 today.</p>
<p>Have a nice healthy breakfast like Manymade said. I am also bring cliff bars and a pink 5 hour energy for the break.</p>
<p>@ kansas</p>
<p>I don’t think 5 hour energy would be the best thing. There’s a chance that you’ll get too much energy and find it hard to focus.</p>
<p>Hi Harlan95! I’m a test prep tutor in Portland, Oregon. With my students, I generally counsel a few things to stay focused and head into a test mentally prepared: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Get a full night’s sleep tonight. I agree with kansaskid1 that you should stop studying sufficiently early enough to allow your brain to “calm down” before attempting sleep. </p></li>
<li><p>Lay your things out for tomorrow tonight (like your ID, pencils, snacks, etc.) so you don’t have to rush around tomorrow morning. </p></li>
<li><p>Try not to talk to anyone you see at the testing site. I usually tell my students not to register for tests at their own high schools, because you’ll need to be fully focused on your task and chit-chat with friends can not only distract you, but often psych you out to the point of stress!</p></li>
<li><p>Have a rewarding plan for tomorrow night. This is often the easiest strategy to implement! Our brains tend to wander when under stress and high expectations; and you know the first place they go? “Hmm… What am I doing later?” So if you can eliminate this distraction as well as create motivation for yourself by planning a “rewarding” evening (get together with friends, go see the Hunger Games, etc.), you’ll be killing two birds with one stone. </p></li>
<li><p>Be on top of timing. Instead of waiting for the proctor’s “1 minute” call, wear a watch and pace yourself throughout the test. There’s nothing more stressful than running out of time on a section, and that stress can easily snowball to negatively affect performance on the next section, too!</p></li>
<li><p>Speaking of which, if you feel yourself “snowballing” like this, simply push yourself back in your seat (creating physical distance between yourself and the test) and count to 20. Imagine yourself beginning a new taska fresh start, zero mistakes so far. This little psychological trick is called “re-setting” by scientists. It’s worth the time lost completing problems, I guarantee you. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>That’s all I got. GOOD LUCK TOMORROW!</p>
<p>Scott</p>
<p>__
[North</a> Avenue Education | Customized Tutoring + Test Prep in Portland](<a href=“http://northaveeducation.com%5DNorth”>http://northaveeducation.com)</p>
<p>Great advice, Scott. I really like the strategy to reset in the event of snowballing.</p>
<p>Well…thanks for all of the advice you guys. I ended up going up one point to a 26.
English: 30 +1 point
Math: 24 -1 point
Reading: 26 +3 points
Science: 25 +2 points
I’ve done very little to almost no studying every time I’ve taken the ACT…wander what I could’ve got if I ever actually studied hard? I guess I won’t be able to take it anymore since most college applications have to be in at the beginning or middle of January.</p>