<p>There's only 17 days left until I take the SSAT... I'm really nervous! I've been preparing a lot the past two months. I used Princeton Review, Kaplan, and Petersons. I've been studying out of the SSAT Preparing and Applying too. How else should I study for it? How did you study for it? </p>
<p>I'm mostly worried about the essay. What should I do if I get a topic that I don't understand? Was your essay topic when you took the SSAT? Was the SSAT hard? How did you do on it? Is there anything that I need to know before I take it? </p>
<p>Angela…take a deep breath and search this forum for either SSAT, October SSAT, or November SSAT.</p>
<p>If you’ve been using those books to prepare, you should be fine. Were you not satisfied with your scores on your practice tests? You’ll find that some people did not prepare at all, some bought review books, and others got tutors/took classes.</p>
<p>Also, regarding the essay…find that Nov SSAT thread, where some people share the types of topics they encountered. The questions seem to ask you to state your position on something like “Do books that make you think more help you the most? Why?”</p>
<p>I think the schools look at those essays to see if you can construct an argument for your position, regardless of what position you take. Intro para, three to four supporting examples taken from your life, literature, or history, and a close. It’s just one component in the mix of your app. Don’t stress.</p>
<p>Agree with 7. On the spot brilliance is not nearly as important as good plumbing. Worry less about “being right” and more about constructing a short, tight argument.</p>
<p>What parts of the SSAT are you most concerned about (besides the essay)? For me, I’m not worried about the essay (can’t be any worse than essay tests in school), but I’m scared to death of the math section. </p>
<p>If you get a topic you don’t really understand, pick a way to interpret it, then form an opinion and stick to it. Write quickly but not illegibly. The essay doesn’t even actually count for your SSAT score; it’s just sent to your schools as a sample (and you’ll be sending them a graded sample too anyways, so even if you totally bomb it you’ll have your other essay to compensate).</p>
<p>Question 1: Is the essay timed? If so, how long are you given?
Question 2: I took the SAT in 7th Grade. I scored in the 85th percentile for the SAT, so should I expect some sort of correlation when I take the SSAT in December then once again in January?</p>
<p>well i didnt do so well on reading but if you need help with verbal ill be glad to give you some tips. never try to memorize the words, its hard to remember 40050504 words for a small section. what i did was just got over the verbal list read it once every day from the princenton reviewe and i think youll be fine. i got a 99 on verbal and i attribute it to princetons book!</p>
<p>@unique6: My D (currently in 8th grade) also took the SAT last year (as have many of the prospective/current BS students, I think), and scored the same percentile on the SSAT this year. So I think there is some correlation…but then again, I’ve read here that the SSAT can be quite different.</p>
<p>While not everyone agrees, I am a fan of students taking one or more complete practice tests under test day timing conditions so that you/your child is very familiar with the format of the test and also so you know what general percentile ballpark you are shooting for.</p>
<p>SevenDad- Thanks for the advice! I’ll search for the thread later. I took practice tests from three books. Lowest in reading. 5-7 wrong??? Is that bad? Well I’m trying to work on that right now but I only have two weeks left until the test. The worst that could happen would be that I blank out on the essay during the test and sit there for ten minutes. Hopefully, that’s not going to happen. I’ll practice on writing the essay, and we’ll see how I do on the real one. I’ll try not to stress BTW, what scores did your daughter get for the SSAT? I’m just curious. Sorry, if this is too personal, then you don’t have to share it.</p>
<p>ThacherParent- Yes, I’m pretty sure that’s going to help me… thanks!</p>
<p>heps1996- Thank you so much! That was relieving…I wish we could switch! I’m best at the math section, and not too great on the other two sections. I’m worse on reading than verbal. I’m getting better on verbal though. How do you do the reading section? Is there any way that I can improve on it? What scores do you usually get on the practice tests? </p>
<p>andoverhopefulx- You got a 99 on verbal! Seriously!? I would only dream of getting that… But since you said you attribute it to Princeton Review, I’ll read it once a day until the test. What tips do you have for the verbal section? I need tips really bad right now! Thanks!</p>
<p>@angela: There’s a semi-recent thread on the 2010 October SSAT test-takers/results somewhere around here…do a search or just check out the first 4 or 5 main pages…</p>
<p>The way I do the reading section is skim the questions first and then read the passage. Then I answer them as best I can and go back for specifics. An interesting piece of advice I got from my test prep book was to try to answer all of the questions for each passage before moving on to the next one, because you won’t have time to reread the passage later. The reading section does tend to have some questions that I feel are matters of opinion, and I can see why some people struggle with it.</p>
<p>My best practice test scores were: 722 reading, 752 verbal and 725 quantitative… So 2199 overall. Hoping to get about 2250 on the real test.</p>
<p>For verbal, I’ve been sticking vocab lists to the bathroom wall so I can read them while brushing my teeth :)</p>
<p>SevenDad-Thanks, I’ll look that up shortly. :)</p>
<p>heps1996-Haha… I did the same thing! I stuck sticky notes all over my house that my parents were getting really annoyed… I stuck them on the bathroom mirror too What grade are you in right now? I just want to compare scores… And thanks for the advice!</p>
<p>BTW, which practice test on which prep book was that?</p>
<p>SevenDad- Sorry, I looked the thread up and searched back, but I couldn’t find it… Do you have a link? What was the title? I found the November thread, but I couldn’t find the October one.</p>
<p>If you are looking for a good vocabulary book, look at Direct Hits Core Vocabulary for the SAT. Even though it says it is for the SAT (my sons used it for that), my nephew used it to prepare for the SSAT and thought it really helped him. He really liked the examples that illustrated each word. </p>
<p>They have just come out as eBooks, so you can see a sample for free on Amazon. This book and volume 2 have been very popular on the CC SAT prep forum for the last couple of years. Good luck!</p>
<p>@angela,
I got I think 7 wrong on reading and I got a good score. When you relax, the SSAT becomes much easier. The first time I took it I was really nervous and as a result I did okay.(84%) The second time I took it, I was very relaxed and my score went up to a 93%. And getting a lot of sleep in before the SSAT is key. I got 5 hours of sleep before the test the first time, second time I had 9 hours of sleep and I forced myself to go to bed early the week before the test.</p>
BTW, what scores did your daughter get for the SSAT? I’m just curious. Sorry, if this is too personal, then you don’t have to share it.</p>
How do you do the reading section? Is there any way that I can improve on it? What scores do you usually get on the practice tests? </p>