<p>The math on the ACT is just designed to trip you up. I’d suggest working different problem types and become familiar with how to do them, so if you see a problem like them on the real thing, you’ll have a plan to solve them.</p>
<p>Since you like math so much, I’m guessing you’re familiar with how to write programs on a calculator. You could throw in a few like the midpoint formula, distance formula, and the quadratic formula to help get through a few simple problems without fear of a simple mistake. </p>
<p>On some problems, it’s much easier to backsolve. It’s easy to tell which problems you can do it on, and it can save you time. Here’s an example:</p>
<p>The ratio of men to women at a party is 3:2. If there are a total of 120 people at the party, how many of them are women?</p>
<p>A. 36
B. 48
C. 72
D. 80
E.100</p>
<p>Try out C. 36*5=180, so you know this isn’t the right answer. Any number greater than C wouldn’t work since that would only give bigger answers, meaning you can knock out D and E. That leaves A and B. We only have to plug in one more answer. If it works, then it works. If not, then the other answer is correct by process of elimination. </p>
<p>B.24*5=120. B works and is the correct answer. </p>
<p>Lots of practice helps. If you feel stuck, try filling in stuff you can figure out. Write the equations of lines if you need to, put in angles and lengths even if they don’t directly answer the question. Small things might help jog your memory. </p>
<p>If you can’t remember a formula such as the area of a trapezoid, break the figure into smaller shapes like triangles that you can solve, then just combine them all at the end. </p>
<p>Pace yourself accordingly. If you think a problem is going to take a bit of time, then skip it. If you don’t know how to do it, skip it. Since the easiest questions give you the same number of points as the hardest questions, there’s no point in going in numerical order the ending up having to guess on questions you know how to do because you don’t have enough time. </p>
<p>If there are questions that call for multiple equations, put them in your graphing calculator and that can help give you more information. A lot of them ask where they cross or “which graph represents the equation?” Problems like that are easy once you just see the problem. </p>
<p>As you do practice problems, remember the tricks and patterns you see. If it requires a formula you didn’t know, learn it, write it down, or even put it in your calculator, so if it comes up again, you’ll be ready for it. </p>
<p>Come up with simple shortcuts to help yourself power through the problems faster.
Ex. Simplify: (X^2+6X+9)/(X+3)</p>
<p>There are questions like this all the time. Even if you don’t know how the top part factors, more likely than not, one of the factors will cancel with the denominator, so you can try (X+3)</p>
<p>(X+3)(X+3)/(X+3)=(X+3)</p>
<p>that one was pretty easy, but when there are bigger ones, it can help save time. Little tricks like this can not only help get to a correct answer, but can also save you time.</p>
<p>Look at your subscores and see which things you’re missing the most on. It can help you see where you need to focus your attention the most. Also, be sure to look at the problem and what it’s asking for. It’s a common trick for them to have multiple step problems and have the answer for the first half of it. That way you forget about the other half when you see your answer is there. </p>
<p>Most problems can be solved pretty easily if you know what they are asking for. You can graph the equation to match something, use X sto-> to solve things, or even write programs to solve it. (A lot of people will flame about this one on CC.) A calculator is only good if you know how to use it though. </p>
<p>The multiple choice aspect of the test can be used to your advantage. So just practice up to become more familiar with the test, pace yourself on it, and work carefully. Of course, this is easier said than done and comes with time. This isn’t as much a math test as it is “how many of our traps have you seen before?” Hope this helped a bit.</p>