<p>I admit I am smart. I am studying the IB diploma which is renounced to be one of, if not, the hardest high school programs. And last year I have amassed 11A* for my gcse (general certificate of secondary education) (British) which was the most in the year.</p>
<p>I am an international student, a third culture kid and so English is my firstish language.</p>
<p>Long story short, I have done kaplans 12 practice papers, 5 Princeton review, and I am on my 3rd blue book past papers. I am gutted. For my first blue book I got 1980, second I got around 1900 and the third... I don't even want to mention it. The highest I got was 2030 on the Kaplan which is slightly easier!</p>
<p>What the f' is wrong with me?</p>
<p>I always make mistakes for the math section! I over complicate it and I barely have enough time (CR reading sections - I can't finish those; I leave around 2-3 questions). </p>
<p>For grammar, I know the basic rules I.e. parallelism when comparing, inappropriate antecedent ...etc. but there are a few that I do not know! And there is no book that explains every grammar error! It's not like chemistry class where you can study off a book.</p>
<p>I have learnt so many vocabulary words but there are always ones I don't know. That's the least of my concern, sometimes I can't even understand the passage clearly so miss out on big ideas.</p>
<p>Is there a remedy for this?</p>
<p>I'm taking the test in January (I graduate in 2015) and I really want to go to MIT. I have (hope so) the school grades but my SATs are not being friendly and I really want to cry.</p>
<p>I’m sorry to hear that you are struggling. I suspect that you would be seeing a score increase if you were to engage in exchanging papers with people to get different types of papers then the ones that you have. Then you would see all of the different types of questions on every topic, such as geometry. Then you can truly diagnose your weaknesses, do every problem on that topic, and then hopefully see some improvements.</p>
<p>Firstly, breathe. And mind your language. Secondly, as a third culture kid, IB, and IGCSE student, I can identify. I did, however, score with 800s on two out of the three sections, so here are a few tips that I found useful. Hopefully, they’ll help you out as well!</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Personally, I didn’t find full practice tests helpful at all. They made me restless and frankly, a little frustrated, so I never finished an entire test to the best of my ability. Instead, I did timed sections, and tried to finish ahead of the 20-25 minute time allotted with the least number of errors to give myself time to recheck. I went over the answers for every section after I completed it, and 2-3 sections this way before I gave myself a break.</p></li>
<li><p>IB Math should make SAT Math a breeze, but if you find yourself making careless errors, go over each and every practice test you’ve done so far, and identify errors that are repetitive. It’ll drill the question patterns into your head, so you’ll know exactly what not to do when a similar question arises on the test. I recommend the same for writing. The questions have a specific pattern, and if you review your old tests, you’ll be able to identify them with ease. I think thats the best thing to do, especially when you’re exhausted, and don’t feeling like doing the actual test.</p></li>
<li><p>For the CR section, the best thing to do is make notes! They don’t even need to be legible or comprehendible. Just scribble your thoughts in the margins so your thought process continues through the passage. Later, when you get to the questions, it’ll be easier to identify the answers, because you’ve probably already thought of the answers in your head when reading the passage.</p></li>
<li><p>Lastly, relax when you’re taking the test. Completely. Share a laugh with friends during breaks. Chew some gum. You’ll feel better without the pressure, I promise.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>This is what worked for me, so I really hope it’ll help you as well! Good luck for January!</p>
<p>If you plan to apply to MIT, SAT math should be a piece of cake for you. If you make careless mistakes, try to improve your concentration i.e. work without interruptions and without letting your mind wander. If you, however, find some questions actually difficult and sometimes don’t see the very simple solutions(almost all of them are one-liners) and “barely have enough time” therefore, then MIT may be just not for you. What is your intended major?</p>
<p>For CR, if you have time, read some books in English, but if you don’t(you test in January, you decide…) improve your vocabulary(some SAT books have very comprehensive word lists, also you can find some really useful vocabulary websites). The classic advice “get involved with the passage” is of utmost importance. Also, find the reading strategy that works best for(you can find it only if you keep practicing). Some books claim you should first read the passage, then the question, others claim the exact opposite. What worked for me was my own strategy: read two or three questions, look for answers in the text and so on. It may not necessarily work for you, so the most important thing is to find your own strategy.</p>
<p>For writing, practice until you ear tells you what’s right. Seriously. Finish the blue book writing sections. I don’t know a single rule that I was tested on the real SAT that wasn’t also in the blue book.</p>
<p>Also, I also recommend #1 from the above post. Good luck.</p>
<p>Hey great advice… What if I am done with the blue book? At this rate I’ll be done with 20 days left of my exam. There are no other books in my local bookstore. What should I do then?</p>
<p>@xxsatxx eh, smart and hardworking may be different but not as different as you may think. Brilliance is fruitless without hard work but handwork may yield well without brilliance.</p>
<p>Do you check your answers even the one you got correct without being 100% sure. For the grammar you can try “The Ultimate SAT Grammar” by Erica L Metzyer ( I think this is how it’s spell) . SAT Math is easy but a bit tricky. They could give you an equation and ask you for x+2 instead of x. And x will be an answer choice. You do not need to know all the words to be good at CR passage based. I am a french native speaker and I can get all correct in an CR section and I probably know less words than you. You should read carefully. Check the answer choices. Sometimes just one word make one answer false. And for CR play the devil dont look for the right answer. Look for why an answer is false and pick the one you could not debunk. And as someone said , dont waste your time doing one complete practice test. Just do one or two TIMED sections regularly. And check your answer, by check I mean see why you get it wrong. And if a CR question look the word at vocabulary.com they have good explanation. You will probable dont forget the word since whenever you see it you will remember the question you got wrong and therefore remember its meaning. For the grammar I think if you know all the rules some practice will help you. For passage editing read the whole passage even if it’s in the writing part it requires some reading skills. And read two senteces before the line they gave you and the sentences after.
And finally, KEEP CALM we are young we are not supposed to stress that much. Do it as a game you already at 1900’s you just need concentration and CONFIDENCE.</p>
<p>Hi, my case is a bit different from yours because I was stuck at the 2200s range, but I doubt that the strategy/approach to your case is different from my case.
First of all, like the previous posters have said, you need to have a 100% grasp on the vocabulary, or at least 99%. (Review a few days before the test also)
Second, if you keep on solving practice tests but never go over them and repeat them and analyze them and memorize them, you are never going to improve. For the writing section, I handwrote every single question I missed on a notebook. After a few tests, I would go back and solve them. Then I would list the reason why I thought my answer was correct, and the correct grammar rule. Then you just have to memorize those types of questions because, I assure you, the same types of questions will show up again and again. If you’re stuck on a few questions, go ask your English teacher. He/she will be of great help.
For math: I agree to this so much. I am the most creative error maker in math EVER, and to improve this I would 1)go over answer right after solving problem 2)go over questions and answers after solving whole section (e.g.what is the question asking for?) 3) Check AGAIN. This saved my score a couple of times.
For CR: It’s hard, really hard, to tell someone how to solve CR Qs effectively. The only thing I can say is that everything you need is in the passage, and that you must keep an extremely objective mind. I can’t teach it to you, but after practice after practice you may obtain it. Remember. READ the question. In the passage, skim if you may wish, but grasp every single word because every single word MATTERS. I don’t know how much more I can emphasize this.
Peace out.</p>
Secondly, as a third culture kid, IB, and IGCSE student, I can identify. I did, however, score with 800s on two out of the three sections, so here are a few tips that I found useful. Hopefully, they’ll help you out as well!</p>