My quest for the 36 has begun. I need help though.

Test Preparation
1

<p>I want the 36, seriously. I need to get the best preparation possible and I need help from all of you here. I know it is a long shot but I am willing to throw everything I have at making this score.</p>

<p>First of all, I plan on taking the October test. I want to be fully prepared for this test date. If I feel that I am not fully prepared I may wait until the December one.</p>

<p>I have been using a reading software known as EyeQ. It is supposed to increase reading speed and comprehension. It teaches you to do this by block reading. I am starting to recognize multiple words at a time, but I am not comprehending them. I seem to be learning speed reading though. If anyone else here has used this program please let me know anything you know about it.</p>

<p>Also, on average, for those of you that have made a 36 on the reading part, what kind of reading speed, in terms of wpm, would I need to be able to read everything in the time given and answer all the questions? Does only scimming and reading questions first also work to get a 36 on this part?</p>

<p>I also need help on grammar. Grammar is something I am not strong at. When I take grammar tests I usually just choose what sounds correct. as we all know, that doesn't work all the time. I want to know the best book and/or software that could teach me the grammar I need to know. I know that if I study the right material that I can become great at grammar. I just need to know what to use as I don't want to waste any time.</p>

<p>math is something I am very good at. Math seems to come very easily to me. However, complex math stuff, like complex trig and whatnot, can be hard to remember. What kind of prep could I do? softwares, books, whatever that can teach me what I need to know.</p>

<p>Science is another section that I hear is mainly based on your ability to read the information and graphs they provide you and apply it to the questions. This would go back to me using the EyeQ program to increase my reading speed and comprehension. I am open to anything though. Can any of you guys who make 36's here tell me what I would need to prepare myself for this part.</p>

<p>Last, but not least, is the writing section. This is the section I care the least about, since it isn't factored into the composite. I am only doing it because some colleges I want to attend make it mandatory. However, I want to know how to write the perfect essay in the 30 minutes they give you. Please, give me any information you know.</p>

<p>The best ACT Prep books, please give them to me. Anything else is very appreciated. I mean anything. I am willing to go all out here for the 36. I seem to pick up things very quickly and have a good memory after I absorb it and take it in. This doesn't actually translate into my long-term memory, but if I continue to review it it should stay in my head for a long time. </p>

<p>Please any and all help is appreciated and needed.</p>

2

<p>I got a 35 on reading and I am actually quite a slow reader. To me, speed reading is not absolutely necessary, but hey, it couldn't hurt. Comprehension is much more important.</p>

<p>I also got a 36 on science, and for that I'm not sure what to say....It mostly comes from experience in science classes. I would just take science practice tests to get used to understanding graphs. Understanding graphs is pretty much all the science section is; reading speed doesn't matter that much.</p>

<p>Also if you could post any previous scores you have that would help many people's assessments.</p>

3

<p>For the ACT Reading, you don't really have to read carefully. Most of the questions are in the context of the sentence, and those can be answered by reading the questions, then the sentence. The "general idea" ones can be done by skimming through the passage. Usually, you can eliminate one or two in a few seconds, as have little to do with the passage. If you skim carefully (oxymoron, heh) enough, you can get the answer in at most, a minute.</p>

<p>For the English section, just borrow any ACT test prep book from your library and read the grammar section. You probably already know most of the rules, and the book will go over any of the trickier ones. Acting on your gut can get you through most of the time, but if you want a 36, just read a book. There's no need for buying software or going to prep courses.</p>

<p>Science is similar to Reading in that you don't really have to read the passage or examine the diagrams and graphs carefully. I would recommend reading the introductory paragraph, though, since you want to know the purpose of the experiment, how it was set up, and any other useful data. When you read the question, they will direct you to the graph(s) or diagram(s) needed to answer the question. If you know how to read a graph, then it isn't too hard to get through the questions. </p>

<p>A note on science: recently, the ACT has been including questions where you need background knowledge on the subject to answer it. Yes, the knowledge is usually rather basic, but if you don't have a grasp on the core subjects, you could have trouble on the section. On my test, they had us identify the stages of mitosis, something that I had not gone over when prepping. Luckily, I took AP Biology and knew them very well. Other questions need you to analyze the data and to make deductions based on context. On the same test, I also had questions where you needed to know about viscosity and acceleration. Since viscosity isn't something you normally learn in school, you needed to seek out the definition and units of measurement from the graphs and data.</p>

<p>Really, any ACT prep book will do. The only section that it will be useful for is English, and all books will provide the same information, more or less. I think I used Princeton Review. The most important thing is not to read about strategies or practice speed-reading; doing as many practice tests as you can and making sure you go over the explanations. By the way, I got a 36 composite, with 36 on English, Reading, and Math, and a 35 in Science.</p>

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<p>First of all, I'm not quite sure why you are making it your goal to get a 36. In all honesty, the difference between a 34, 35, and 36 is only pure luck. Getting anything above a 32 is 99th percentile and should not be taken as an insult.</p>

<p>So basically, in order to get a 36, your best bet is to follow the general strategies to taking the test. I was lucky and didn't actually study for the test, but still scored the 36. I was thinking about putting out a "how to" guide for scoring high with the least amount of effort, but I've been way too busy working my minimum wage job all summer =P.</p>

<p>Anyway, I'm about to go grad party hopping, but I'll give you a condensed version of what to do.</p>

<p>1) Take practice test. I took the ACT in 7th grade, so I used that as a practice test (but you should probably use something more recent).</p>

<p>2) Identify which area you did worst on. If that is:</p>

<p>English- Get the princeton review book and read the section on it.</p>

<p>Math- Try to review math as best as possible. Maybe try the princeton review book. (Make sure you know matrices).</p>

<p>Reading- One thing I always do on standardized tests like this is... I skin the questions first and look for any line numbers. I then underline those lines to pay special attention then. It works for me. You have enough time to read carefully, but make sure you read fast enough. Even skipping 4 questions will guarantee you don't get a 36.</p>

<p>Science- Despite what everyone says, I think it's better to read the introduction before the questions. The science section is actually pretty simple and I think that with a good science background, you can get through it with at least 5 minutes left. If you don't read the introductions, you'll feel like you don't know what's going on and you may spend a few minutes trying to figure out exactly what the graph means, even though it says it blatantly five lines above.</p>

<p>3) Take more practice tests. In all honesty, reading a bunch of books on the subject is nothing compared to doing practice tests. Getting used to the questions will help a lot.</p>

<p>**Remember, my suggestions may not work for everyone. The point of taking multiple practice tests is to fine tune your strategy before the big day.</p>

<p>But also remember, getting a 36 involves a good amount of luck. Maybe you're very very into paleontology, and there's a reading passage about a famous dig that you already know a lot about. Or maybe you just finished going over photosynthesis is biology and the science section asks for the equation. Maybe you'd've forgotten it if it'd been a few years. They could have just as easily asked for the innermost layer of the Earth or the equation for finding resistance given voltage and current.**</p>

<p>Oh and if you have a long term significant other, have them break up with you at 11pm the night before. Cry all night and then go take the test. That's what I did =P. Worked out well.</p>

5

<p>I used Eye Q a couple of years ago, and returned it after a month of use. To tell you the truth, its a complete waste of time. Don't buy it. Considering the fact that you're taking the ACT in december, you would probably not benefit from the ridiculously expensive "miracle" program. I may be wrong but i think the majority of users pretty much label EyeQ as false advertisement. Once you buy it, you pretty much have to stick to these 20 minute sessions each day if you want results-i did just that for about a month and cried when i came to the realization that i got ripped off. </p>

<p>If your looking to blowoff some money and time, i guess you can try it out.
If you do decide to buy it, remember not to agree to their suggestion of a pack of "relaxation" music CDS that are guaranteed to help you reach all types of nirvana. I still have the set because they only allowed me to refund the eyeQ program. Bastards. Im not sure if they still do that but you can never be too safe. Those guys are evil. </p>

<p>good luck!</p>

6

<p>Well, quix, I pirated EyeQ for free, since I wasn't about to pay 300 dollars for a program I am unsure about. I found that doing all 12 sessions, once or twice a day does make you start to recognize multiple words at a time. However, this goes against everything the software creators advice. If you were only doing one session a day that might be why it never worked. tbh though I can't comprehend anything when I see multiple words, but I do recognize them. Whether or not high speed imaging really works or not is a mystery, but I will keep using it as it seems to help my ability to scim information quickly.</p>

<p>So, for english all I need to do is review PR and I will know everything I need to know? Sounds great!</p>

<p>For math, I saw some guy dramatically increase his math score on the act by practicing sat 2 math tests. He said after doing many of these his mind adapted to tricky, difficult math problems and the act was a breeze.Do you reccomend this type of prep?</p>

<p>Also, I hear barron's is overkill, but I am just wondering if it would help as I am not averse to being overly prepared. I'd rather be overly prepared than not prepared enough. </p>

<p>Also, for science, could you give me like a list of general science terms that I could go over to make sure I have some basic knowledge of all the little things I may have forgotten that they may put on there? That would be nice.</p>

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<p>YOU GOT IT FOR FREE?! DAMN YOU!
I had to pay an extra 30 dollars for shipping AND was forced to keep the 60 dollar disc add ons!</p>

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<p>There is a really good ACT prep book made by the ACT makers..the name has escaped my mind at the moment (might be The Real ACT or something similar)</p>

<p>It uses actually ACT questions and is really helpful.</p>

<p>I went through it and got a 35. Basically if I got one more question right on the English part, I would have gotten a 36</p>

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<p>it is The Real ACT Book....also known as The Red Book.</p>

10

<p>I got a Petterson's ACT Test Prep BookDisk from 1999. Is that ehlpful at all?</p>

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<p>Bump. Bump.</p>

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<p>Bump. Bump.</p>

13

<p>Well is that Petterson's CD good?</p>

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<p>i am also questing for the 36. i got a 28 without any practice so i have a lot of work ahead of me. btw i heard just reading a little everyday can really help your reading and english score.</p>

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<p>Not really. It does help, but its not going to increase your score by 3-4 points or something like that. Maybe a couple here or there.</p>

<p>And if no one responded about the petterson's book, what do you think it is like?
Either it sucks so much that no one bought it, or it isnt worth mentioning.</p>

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<p>i kinda meant in conjunction with everything else, lol.</p>

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<p>At a 30+, reading books isn't going to help you. I don't know what your score is right now, but I doubt that reading will help you much if any at all. There are better ways to study instead of spending hours reading books. 1-2 hours studying will help far more than even 10-20 hours of reading. You should only read if you are still at a lower score so that you can get a feel for when sentences are right and when they are wrong.</p>

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<p>well be reading a lot my score jumped from a 28 to 32 into reading so it did help</p>

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<p>D received a 36 last year on 2nd try (first try was a 34). Now, I would have been happy at that but she wanted a 36. Last year there were 0.03% of scores at a 36 (around 435/1.4 million test takers). How did she do it? She took multiple practice tests, carefully reviewed only what she got wrong or didn't know, made up review cards and studied those. Maybe spent 10 hours or so. Science is more about reading graphs and interpreting data, not the actual science; grammar checks about 10 rules (see practice books), and math is pretty clear. I am also involved in admissions at a selective college, and really - no difference at 33-36.</p>

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<p>I got lucky the first time i took it and got a 36, but my hardest section was the science, and i got a 35 in that. I have no science background whatsoever, but my tutor told me just to treat it like a reading comp section and read everything VERY CAREFULLY. I used the ACT read book and did like 6 practice tests.</p>