I’m a rising senior and I’ll be taking the October SAT. For the first attempt, I didn’t study and had no practice which reflected in my score. I’ll give an overview of what should be done for each main section:
Vocabulary: Go through old/released official SAT tests and mark down words that are unfamiliar to you. Scanning through other lists such as ones by Barron’s, and Princeton Review are also helpful. What I’m doing for vocabulary is, I’ve bought flashcards. From this list of 200 words, I thoroughly look through and pull out words that I’m unaware of or don’t know the definition of, and find the definitions. Don’t just end it there…Study these words again and again and again until the SAT. Also when sitting for a practice test, after correcting the test, mark words that are obscure to you and find their definitions. Unfortunately, memorizing words and their definitions is the only way to crack the sentence completion portion. While practicing, read through the sentence and see if you can figure out if the blank holds a negative or positive word, and try to add in your own word. Uncover the answer choices, and the best way to go from there is mark off answer choices that won’t fit, and narrow down your options. If you don’t know the definition of a word, try to relate it to something else, or look at the suffix/prefix. It’s also helpful to learn the definitions of suffixes and prefixes. Remember, the SAT repeats many words in every test, so take this to your advantage and memorize as much as you can.
Math: To be honest, all you can do for math is practice…At the beginning of each math section, only basic formulas are given. There are certain formulas such as the distance formula, midpoint formula, slope formula, etc that can be memorized easily. After doing a practice test, figure out which math topics do you have the most trouble with/mistakes on, and work on those topics. Find problems from Level 1 through Level 5 of the SAT. Don’t fall into traps set up by the ETS, and read questions carefully. Plug in numbers, test answer choices, set up an equation…do whatever seems easiest and fastest way to solve. As you go further into the math section, remember that if you get an answer very easily, it’s most likely wrong. Figure out your strengths and weaknesses. Again, practice is the only way to crack the math section.
Reading Passages: Context clues! Reading passages are set up in a way that each question has specific context clues that allow you to choose an answer. Off the bat, there should be a few answer choices that can be eliminated for each question. For questions that refer so certain lines or a certain passage, underline those sentences so it’ll be easier to answer each question. It’s up to you whether you want to look through the questions before reading, or read the passages and then answer the questions. If you can narrow down to 2 or 3 answer choices, look back at the that section in the reading and find context clues. For dual passages, read through the first passage and answer questions based on it, and then read the second passage and answer questions on that and collaborated questions. While trying to summarize each passage, look for underlying details that can help you answer questions. With the reading passages, you got to interpret passages in the way that the ETS wants you to. The only way to understand the ETS’ ways is to practice.
Writing: The entire writing section, excluding the essay is based on English grammar. Learn the basic grammar rules and intricate grammar rules that are found in the writing section. Answer choice (E) should be the last option to turn to. Grammar rules can be found online or in SAT prep books such as the Blue Book, and Princeton. For the readings given in the writing sections, nothing much is to be learned…You just need to know basic English grammar skills and paragraph structure. Overall, it’s an easy section, but requires some learning and a great deal of practice.
Essay: You know how people say, “Step out of your comfort zone”, and “Be open-minded”? Well the SAT essay is formulated so there’s no point in being creative. As a matter of fact, the SAT dislikes creativity in the essays. The essay graders only have 1-2 minutes to skim through and read an essay, so you should be precise in your essay. Have a strong hook, and clearly state your thesis - Either you answer “Yes” or “No” in the thesis, but more elaborate than just saying yes or no, have strong supports to arch your thesis, and end with a brief conclusion. You should usually have two or more body paragraphs which include two or more supports. To back your thesis, you can use historical events/figures/ideas (Cold War, Civil War, India-Pakistan Partition, British Rule…), literature (Huck Finn, 1984, Life of Pi, Invisible Man…), or personal experiences. As a matter of fact, you can even make up stories and historical facts - Its not like the essay graders are going to look up whether JFK was born in 1917 or 1919. The more specific supports you give, the better your essay score will be. Don’t be repetitive, and don’t be personal with the reader. Be organized, use strong diction, use proper punctuation, stay on topic, be to the point, and stick to the formulaic structure. As long as you answer the prompt with specific examples, then you’re good for this section.
Well, I hope I covered everything…Good luck to everyone taking the SAT this October, and good luck to all seniors for college apps! Class of 2016 Rules!!!
