<p>frazzled1 -
corranged's thought that "Could she be over thinking the questions?" was indeed my son's difficulty, and result in his missing the 'easier' questions. Once he could see the pattern of the errors, he could deal with them.</p>
<p>The writing component is about writing to spec, not writing for the ages. Again, understanding what is expected, and practicing a bit can help.</p>
<p>At the risk of suggesting a contribution to cb, your daughter could register for January, but only take if if she fells really 'on' that day.</p>
<p>The PSAT is short enough that I think results can be somewhat inconsistent and non-predictive. My son got an 80 on the PSAT math the first time he took it, and a 74 the second time. SAT math scores were 760 and 770. His writing score on on the PSAT was 74 the first time, 80 the second, and he got 690 both times on the SAT. Meanwhile his Verbal score on the PSAT was 73 and 76, while he got 800 both times on the SAT. I don't think there's any way to really know how she'll do on the SAT without taking it. I would encourage though looking at the booklets to see if there appears to be any pattern to what she gets wrong, and to confirm it with a practice test or two (or at least parts of one) from the Real SAT books.</p>
<p>If she is overthinking the answers, the front section of Princeton Review books does give great strategies--a list of do's and don'ts. I made my boys read it and highlight the verbal section because I had a feeling they thought they knew better. Hhhharrumpf.</p>
<p>I would get a tutor for the CR/Writing, and shoot for the March or May test dates. She can retake in OCt after a summer of more work if those scores are not so hot. For RD, you can take up to January of the following year, for some schools, for a third take, if necessary. Why go now, when you know that the CR needs work?</p>
<p>My son had a similar drop when he took the PSAT from soph to jr years. It was within the range of high/low that they post, however, as your D's is. She may have just scored on the higher end of her range as a sophomore, and on the lower/mid range this year, even allowing for growth. </p>
<p>also the PSAT is not always an indicator of SAT scores. The SAT has become a marathon in endurance, and sprinters can find themselves not doing so well on it. THere were some really disappointed kids last year who did not meet PSAT driven expectations when they took the Jan/March SATS. After a summer of taking directed SAT courses and tutors, they did bring up the scores that fall, but it was a disappointment when it occurred. That longer time period and essay has thrown a real curve ball in the process for some kids. January is practically here, I would not take it so soon., for sure.</p>
<p>Is studying vocab really worth it? It strikes me that the utility of vocab lists diminished considerably when analogies were dropped. Seems to me that a wide variety of reading materials (scientific articles, news stories, Atlantic Monthly, Nat'l Geographic, various periods of literature) would be more productive.</p>
<p>I would second the one section at a time method -- DS did one PSAT verbal section (alternating between CR and Writing) 2-3 times a week for 3-4 weeks before the test. This was 20-25 minutes tops at any given time. What was most useful for him was analyzing the error patterns. Once he figured out that (i.e., he needed to work on idioms), he was in great shape.</p>
<p>He will probably take the SAT in the spring. Expect the same process to happen again, with the focus on finishing the essay in the alloted time. For this year's PSAT, he sat down and did the entire practice test in one sitting (for endurance) the weekend before the real thing. Didn't look at any testing stuff afterwards.</p>
<p>frazzled1, Now is an excellent time to plan out when your D is going to take any SATII subject tests. SAT and SAT II subject tests can't be taken on the same test day. Is she taking any AP classes this year? If so, suggest she plan on taking subject tests in thoses subjects in May, when the material is fresh from preparing for the AP tests. June is also a good time to take subject tests in non AP subjects, as the material will be fresh from finals. Suggest she plan no more than 2 subject tests a day, and check now to see when language tests are offered. Our son took Latin in HS, and the Latin subject test was only offered in June or Dec. Since he needed to take it in June [ Dec would be too late for EA decision], he scheduled his last attempt at the SAT test in Oct.</p>
<p>I received so much helpful advice on this thread that I thought I'd post an update and single out what I thought were the most effective suggestions for helping my d improve her test performance, knowing that others will be in the same position soon enough. Her performance improved by a total of 80 points on the March SAT, and by 200 points on the May retake. Her superscore is 710 CR, 770 M, 730 Writing (10 essay); best single seating is 700 CR, 770 M, 730 Writing. She couldnt be happier! What helped most: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>corranged and ohio-moms suggestion that she might have been reading too much into the CR questions. When my d read corrangeds statement that every answer will be found in the text, a bell seemed to go off in her head, and her performance improved immediately.</p></li>
<li><p>Doing 2 short section practice tests from the Blue Book each week usually CR and Writing, occasionally Math. This took about an hour she never did manage to squeeze out any more time.</p></li>
<li><p>As carolyn suggested - reviewing where she went wrong on the psatextra, and reading the answer explanations. </p></li>
<li><p>Taking a full-length practice test under test conditions.</p></li>
<li><p>Omitting the questions she just plain had no clue about (I think 2-3 CR and Writing questions on each test day).</p></li>
<li><p>Reading the essay samples on the CB website to get an idea of what kind of essay gets a 4, 5, or 6.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>One other thing she did that is quick, free, and an effective way to become familiar with the test format: the Official SAT Question of the Day (available daily via email).</p>
<p>Heartfelt thanks to all of you for your terrific advice I know it made a big difference to my d!</p>
<p>Thanks, Marian! She'll be taking the Latin and US History tests on June 2nd. None of the schools on her current list require more than 2 SAT IIs. Most only recommend them or consider them if submitted. This marks a big change from when my first two ds went through the testing process - they both took at least three, including a math and a science.</p>
<p>
[QUOTE]
The CR really surprised me and is the source of most of my concern. Her score went down from last years PSAT, when she had a 64. She is an avid reader for pleasure with a rich vocabulary, and receives high marks from her English teachers for insight
[/QUOTE]
</p>
<p>Check to see why kind of questions she missed and then you can go from there. Questions range from easy to hard and from main point to author's opinion. Using my son as an example, we found out he got every easy question wrong. After going over them, he learned that sometimes the obvious answer is the right one and that not all questions are trick questions. She just needs to better understand what the questions are designed to test. A couple hours going over sample SAT questions should do it.</p>