<p>Son (TX) scored 209 on PSAT Sophomore
M-80
CR-66
W-63</p>
<p>Freshman PSAT score 199</p>
<p>M-73
CR-65
W-61</p>
<p>Not much increase in CR or W, though!
What do you all think he should focus on doing to significantly improve CR and W in Junior year?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>It looks as though your son is extremely adept at math, which is opposite of my strengths (I got a 76 CR and a 75 W, but only a 61 M). For me, just growing older really helped to improve my scores. I got an 8 point increase in CR and a 12 point increase in W. I did absolutely no studying for either year, because I didn’t think I’d ever score close to the NMS cutoff (as it is, I’m right on the fence…Great)</p>
<p>Does your son read a lot of books? Does he like English, or is it a (comparative) struggle?</p>
<p>He is actually a good reader and in my opinion, a good writer too. However, the way he prepared for the past PSAT was completely based on doing some practice tests and no study, at all. He won’t even go over the questions that he got wrong when he did a practice test. I feel that he will be able to make a decent score in MATH next time around, however, I believe that he needs more than just doing some practice tests, he actually may need to study CR and W, but the question is, how? and what books he should use? and how early he needs to start prepping for the next PSAT?</p>
<p>Hmmm… Based on what I’ve read on this board, the first step is not to worry about any type of prep until May of next year…At the bare minimum. A few months of prep does more good than continuous studying in my opinion, and I think that part of the reason why the PSAT is administered in October is because it is far enough into the school year that our brains are “awakened,” so to speak. </p>
<p>I got a 68 CR and a 63 W last year, close to what your son got. I think that the key to studying for CR and W is really to look at old PSATs. The CR section has some roundabout/ambiguous questions that can really trip people up, and so can the writing. Rote memorization may not help at all, but maybe taking a look at what types of questions are asked could help. </p>
<p>Let’s see here… Practice tests can be more difficult than the real PSAT in an attempt to get you ready. (I took a practice PSAT just for fun and scored a 195 vs. a 212 on the real PSAT) How close are your son’s scores on practice tests to his actual scores?</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I can’t say from experience what books are good for studying. My practice test came from McGraw-Hill’s PSAT/NMSQT book. That test was certainly more difficult than the real thing, and it may be a pleasant surprise if your son overprepares with more difficult questions and then goes on to do well on the PSAT. McGraw-Hill has answer explanations which may help. I’ll need to look over it and see if the questions are similar to the real thing (sometimes they’re not)</p>
<p>Take my advice with a grain of salt, though. I did no studying, so I can’t say from experience what really helps. And I don’t know your son, so I can’t see how his natural aptitude does or doesn’t carry over into the testing room.</p>
<p>Your son is in good shape. He only needs four or five more questions correct next year.</p>
<p>Your son’s score are similar to my daughter’s. 187 Freshman. 208 Sophomore (68CR-64M-76W), 228 Junior year (78CR-73M-80W). The first 2 were with no studying. </p>
<p>The Junior year plan was thus. I rounded up a group of her friends. This made it easier to stay involved. The competition was good for all of them. They met once a week from June until school started. They did one Blue Book test over the course of the week and and discussed the ones they found difficult.
Once school and activities started, finding time to meet became a problem. My daughter worked through the last 2 Blue Book tests and studied Direct Hits for Vocabulary. Then almost nothing until after the October 9 SAT. She found the SAT more difficult than expected and received a 2100.<br>
Luckily, her school was on break the following week. She did five PSAT practice tests, which had been sitting on her desk for months, scoring a 233 on the final one. She was confident she had done well on the real one. </p>
<p>Have him study vocabulary and SilverTurtle’s guide for the grammar. If he does, he should be in good shape for next year…</p>
<p>Thank you all for sharing your PSAT experience and BTW, Congratulations flashpoint1230 on your PSAT score and I hope you will make NMF in your state and Congratulations for your daughter Yankee Belle, great job! </p>
<p>We have too many of those prep books, but we need to order the Direct Hits Vocab and the grammar one.</p>
<p>Thanks again, this is a great forum.</p>