<p>I am taking the SAT in around 20 days for my first time. I have bought countless books; I completed Gruber's Math Workbook. I've even taken several math practices. I can't even break the freaking 600 mark. </p>
<p>I'm jealous of all the CCers on here who say, "omg, help me break 750, like omg."</p>
<p>I have NO IDEA how you even get to 600. How are you guys so good at this.</p>
<p>I do have to say that I got to 590 just now on a practice test. But, my efforts seem futile (DH V1). What can I do to get to that upper "bar" of testing.</p>
<p>Btw, I've only broken 600 on writing lolz. I have about the same score on CR (I think ;D).</p>
<p>I would just love some of your good advice (like you in the 2100 club... YOU know who YOU are haha)</p>
<p>I can really advice because my math skills manifest effortlessly.I got 800 twice without practicing the section.but i think u can improve by learning concepts rather than just memorizing examples.Dont know if dis helps.</p>
<p>Hard to advise without a little more detail. You are not mathematically clueless – 590 is respectable. But you probably are not fluently comfortable with algebraic thinking like a kid who cruises to 770 (and then posts a should-I-retake thread).</p>
<p>I recommend two things: 1. Slow down and let a few more of the hardest questions go omitted. You can stil get mid- high 600s that way.</p>
<ol>
<li> Review the material and also learn the classic tricks. If you don’t know how to make up numbers for variables to avoid algebra, you are really missing out on cheap points.</li>
</ol>
<p>That 590 – was it a college board test? And in each section, which ones did you omit and which did you get wrong? If you are getting really more than a handful wrong (say 5 or 6), then you are going too fast and answering questions that are above your score zone. </p>
<p>BTW, that’s what irritates me about all of the “Should I guess” threads. The point is, you should know the layout of the test and be using a strategy that does not cause you to need to guess more than 2 or 3 times on the whole test. If you find yourself guessing more often than that, you are in too deep. If you are using your time properly, to guess or not to guess should not be a major issue. (And on those two or three times, I say do it. You’ve invested the time and you are well-prepared test -taker, working on problems that are within your “zone”. )</p>
<p>pckeller: Thanks for the great advice. The test I took most recently was from Gruber’s Math Workbook (the 2nd practice test). I am fairly mathematically fluent, however I make dumb mistakes. I didn’t realize that not guessing helps. I forgot about that. </p>
<p>But it’s so dumb how I don’t even realize that there are 12 not 9 of something… At least that’s what happened to me on the practice test when I was making a probability prob. I forgot to count all the items… and I left out 3 things. That’s a dumb mistake.</p>
<p>Sometimes I just can’t ‘think’ math, and get confused. I like your idea of reviewing material… I’m gonna use my Barron’s for that… since Gruber’s seemed a little to ineffective. The problems were basic.</p>
<p>You should really consider switching to college board practice tests. When you practice, part of what you are doing is reviewing material, but easily as important is that you are practicing time management and in a sense calibrating yourself – learning how hard to think as you approach different questions, based on their position in the test. NONE of that happens when you practice with non-college board tests. In fact, you can easily “mis-calibrate” yourself.</p>
<p>omg yes yes yes!!!
I took the BB test #3 on math!!!</p>
<p>I took your advice on omitting hard q’s!!!
And ended up getting just 2 incorrect (more omitted, but 2 is only -0.5 so it doesn’t count :D)!!!
GUESS WHAT I GOT!!! ;DDD</p>
<p>…a 660!!! I’m so enthralled and elated!!
haha ILY</p>
<p>Well, alright. I’m glad it worked. It often does – I teach an SAT class, and sometimes students really resist this approach until they actually try it for themselves. It doesn’t work when you are aiming for 770, but there are plenty of people walking around with 570s, still rushing through the sections and then beating their heads agains the hardest questions.</p>
<p>But of course, it doesn’t count until you do it on game day. So you still have to keep practicing. Also, it’s smart to go back over the ones you omitted to see what you could do with unlimited time. In particular, look for problems that are vulnerable to the making-up-numbers-for-the-variables approach. That way, on the real test you will recognize them quickly and steal those points.</p>
<p>Right I see what you mean. For example, adding up the exterior angles of a triangle when given 2 interiors.</p>
<p>I have a question, are there explanation for Test 3 online? I can’t find any Khan Academy ones that cover new book test 3. Do you know any of them?</p>
<p>Well, on the ones I got wrong, I didn’t guess. I was rather sure that I was correct. If I knew that I was going to get them wrong, then of course I would’ve omitted them. That would’ve been about 20 points higher.</p>
<p>But of course you didn’t KNOW you would get them wrong! And the odds were surely better than 1 in 5 that you’d get them right – you just scored 660 for the second time in a row! </p>
<p>Also, I find that most people only remember the ones they guessed wrong on. No one seems to be haunted by the memories of the times they were not completely certain, but answered a question and then got it right. This asymmetry in how we look back on things causes people to over-emphasize the down side of guessing. You should NOT have to guess too often – but not be afraid when you do.</p>