<p>I am wondering about this. I have a daughter who works very hard at everything. She has high A's in all her classes and takes courses well above grade level. She is only a freshman in high school, but is in PreAP algebra 2 and preAP Chemistry and such. She actually had enough credits to go on and be a sophomore this year, but she is only 14 and won't be 15 until the end of the school year and elected to stay a freshman. That is her choice and I have respected that.</p>
<p>Her dad and I got on the SATs ..I got 750 (verbal) and 780 (math) and my husband 720 and 750. Back then, there were only 2 sections, no writing. My daughter really wanted an SAT prep book. She is also hoping to attend the math and science academy for 11th and 12th grade so she has to take her SATs to qualify, no later than early fall next year at this time basically.</p>
<p>Problem is, she took the practice tests she got no higher than 500s in the 2 areas. So, she studied for a while (she got the book over the summer) and then attempted to take another practice test in there as more than one set were offered. She actually for 480 and 580. This is a girl who actually completed algebra 1 with a final grade of 100% (including 100% on the final which we were told is unheard of). Her geometry grade was 97 for one semester and 99 for the other. I thought these were the only subjects covered in the SATs.</p>
<p>Are these practice tests off in the scoring? Should I buy her different study guides? I am a bit concerned now. She cannot even get in to the science academy like this (TAMS). That won't be the end of the world, but her advisor is sure she will love it and it is perfect for her. She is top of the class at her high school and has more credits than any other freshman (because she was so far ahead in maths and sciences, she spent part of her year at high school last year which is why she has so many credits, plus she did summer school just because she wanted to).</p>
<p>I have no objections to buying her more books to study from. She is a real self starter. Her biggest weakness will be in the area of vocab I think. She used to be severely hearing impaired which pushed her abilities back in that area. But looking at these practice test scores, it appears she needs help in every area.</p>
<p>My DS used the Barron’s guide with 6 practice tests. He only broke 2000 one time. When he took the actual exam he got 2210. I don’t know why. The same thing happened with the ACT (got 28 on two practices, 34 on actual exam). I would try to sit her for the October or November 2010 SAT and see how she does on an actual trial.</p>
<p>I’ve heard that Barrons is very difficult. Could this be the reason the practice scores are so low? I am about to purchase a practice book for my dtr and am wondering which one to buy.</p>
<p>They’re probably pretty accurate. One of my friends who used Barron’s got exactly a 2000 on Barron’s and exactly a 2000 on the real thing. Another got a 2260 on Barron’s and a 2220 on the real SAT. Another got a 1870 on Barron’s and a 1900 on the real thing. So… her real score will most likely be somewhere between 50 higher than her Barron’s score or 50 lower than her Barron’s score.</p>
<p>I’ve found Barron’s generally to be considerably tougher than the corresponding tests for math (SAT, SAT Subject) as well as physics.</p>
<p>For some, this type of preparation can be beneficial, but for estimating SAT scores, actual SAT tests are the way to go.</p>
<p>Get the “blue book” (the College Board official study guide); the first three tests are actual exams from a few years ago. Also, the practice test booklets available free for download from collegeboard.com are also real exams (there are currently three distinct tests, try [thread=757034]this thread[/thread] for links).</p>
<p>Take these tests under test-like conditions (timed, no distractions, etc.) and you will have an excellent idea of what your daughter’s scores would be on the real thing.</p>
<p>There really is little reason to wonder about the validity of other third-party test scores when you can use actual tests.</p>
<p>You say that your daughter has completed Algebra 1 and Geometry with honors as if the material in those courses alone is what’s tested. Remember that the SAT was designed with 11 graders in mind, and, as such, tests not only Algebra 1 and Geometry but also some Algebra 2 concepts. After your daughter completes Algebra 2 she will feel more secure about tackling the SAT math portion.</p>
<p>Algebra 2 as a freshman isn’t all that advanced as you’re making it out to be. Sure, it’s ahead, but in many schools (such as mine) Algebra 2 as a freshman is quite common or even the norm.</p>
<p>Also, it’s often hard workers that don’t do as well on the SAT, since the SAT is hard to study for and is mainly an aptitude test. However, if you look hard there ARE guides to improve the score. One of the best (and free) is silverturtle’s on this board. Check it out.</p>
<p>Finally, a reason for her math scores being so low may be simply not checking her work. I used to get 650’s on math just because of that, but with a quick pass over my answers again I now consistently score 800’s. Easy way to get math score up. Maybe it’ll help her other scores as well to check.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that some people just aren’t good at standardized tests, but find school to be very easy. I am the opposite; I get perfect standardized test scores but unfortunately have trouble keeping my grades up. Your daughter seems to be the opposite of me. However, that doesn’t mean she can’t get a good SAT score.</p>
<p>“I have no objections to buying her more books to study from. She is a real self starter. Her biggest weakness will be in the area of vocab I think. She used to be severely hearing impaired which pushed her abilities back in that area. But looking at these practice test scores, it appears she needs help in every area.”</p>
<p>Short answer? Barron’s is an extremely poor choice. Do not pay attention to the results. </p>
<p>Suggestion? Get the College Board Official Study guide (called ther BB2 or Blue Book 2 in this forum) and let your daughter “play with it” for a couple of years. You might also consider downloading and printing the free material offered by TCB, or purchasing one of the older versions (Red books) for a few cents and let your daughter READ the older tests to get used to the type of vocabulary. </p>
<p>Please realize that her scores as a HS freshman are as irrelevant as the Barron’s prep book are. Ignore both and you will be happier.</p>
<p>The questions in these sections are wayyyyyyyy harder than the ones on the actual SAT!!! in the CR section, the answer choices are even longer than the passage excerpts (line numbers) the answer itself is located in! The answer choices are ridiculously long and over-complicated. Same with math; it’s like, ALL hard (level 4-5) questions. I even disagree on the level of difficulty ratings! In the big blue book, there is time to check each math question IMMEDIATELY AFTER DOING IT (I highly recommend this instead of going back to check them once you’ve completed them all the way through. This way, you don’t forget the info that is still fresh in your mind). In Barron’s you don’t even get time to finish the questions the first time, let alone check your work a second!</p>
<p>I don’t recommend this book AT ALL. to get used to the types of questions and especially the time limit for each section, ONLY go with “The Official SAT Study Guide”, that bigass blue book MADE BY COLLEGEBOARD ITSELF. Seriously. anything else (specificially this barrons crap) will make you feel overstressed cause really the actual thing isn’t that hard</p>
<p>I think you should get her a College Board blue book and let her practice with that and than take a couple of tests. Having said that, if she scores low on CB tests also and which she might, give her time. The SAT maths questions are not the type of questions she probably encounters in school and have more to do with Critical Reasoning and Comprehension than Maths skills alone. This can be fixed with practice and not putting too much pressure on her to succeed early. </p>
<p>It’s good that she’s already tackling her SAT studies. I want to echo the suggestions on getting the Blue Book. You can also check out the assorted SAT advice on these forums (e.g. the ever-famous and rigorous @xiggi method, the “three journal method” I posted about, and much more). Since she’s such a great self-starter, she might be interested in some YouTube videos that walk students through the Blue Book. Most of them are bad, but some are worth a watch because they provide a good bridge between typical high school math skills and the arguably more specialized SAT math skills. If you want, PM me and I’ll send links to some I’ve posted that have proven to help.</p>