<p>DD got her composite score -- 29, first time. She did great on all parts, except for the science (only 23). She and her peers that took the test on the same day said the science was brutal (these are smart kids too!) She said the whole science section was interpreting graphs and data, and nothing like the practice tests. Any tips?</p>
<p>Yeah, in general it seems like a lot of people have trouble with science. I’ve seriously never met someone who has thought it was easy; however, I think a high 20’s score should be achieveable for your DD. The best way to improve on the science section is just to take practice tests. On my first ACT I got a 25 on the science (28 composite). After taking about 5 practice science tests in the two days leading up to the second time taking the ACT, i ended up scoring a 28 (31 composite), which I was happy with. So basically, if it’s possible for me to improve my science 3 points by just taking a few practice tests, your DD could probably raise her science by more than a few points by studying more extensively and taking plenty of practice tests.</p>
<p>I just took the ACT, and I got a 36 on Science. Basically, it’s testing how well you can look at tables and graphs and use them to answer questions, so it doesn’t matter whether or not you actually know anything about science. Therefore, my strategy is to ignore all the written portions and the tables/graphs and simply skip to the questions. Then, I look back at the table the question references and find the correct answer. This allows me to save time (if I remember correctly, you have 35 minutes and 7 sections, giving you only five minutes per section, or not nearly enough time to actually read through everything).</p>
<p>The tricky section is the one with the two or three selections of people who suggest different explanations for the same phenomena. The reason this section is tougher is because you actually have to read it in order to answer the questions. However, if you do the other six sections quickly enough using my method, you should have plenty of time to try to answer the questions in this section.</p>
<p>I hope this helps.</p>