<p>The BB is obsolete. Those questions just don’t represent how the test has evolved over the last few years. Furthermore, many are recycled from the red book which is ancient history. I’d suggest getting QAS tests from 2012 onwards. </p>
<p>@Czeska I saw many math problems on the november SAT that were straight from the blue book and the reading and writing were probably a bit easier than in the blue book.</p>
<p>@Chrysanthemum14 I wouldn’t count on Barron’s being the best overall…the blue book was much more helpful and relevant to the SAT than Barron’s. I just used the blue book for math, but I do own Gruber’s. I guess it is helpful for a math cram. I would suggest direct hits vocab lists for vocab and barrons for reading rather than erica meltzers…I read erica meltzers but it was virtually useless. </p>
<p>I’ve purchased the Blue Book for my SAT prep, but I also have two critical reading books lying at home. Has anyone tried Barron’s SAT Critical Reading Workbook (13th edition) or Kaplan’s Critical Reading Workbook (4th edition)? How accurate were they, and did they help?</p>
<p>Also, considering the fact that in my senior year, I’ll be taking the new SAT, should I take a different approach to my SAT? I’ve heard some say that the new one has been ‘downgraded’ CR-wise, so over-prepared using the old SAT books would be better… right?</p>
<p>Math seems to be upgraded to studying intensively with that seems to be my best bet, along with the Blue Book and maybe incorporating math practice up until Pre-Calc, which I’ll be taking in junior year, next year.</p>
<p>Oh, and is The Essential 500 any good? I’ve checked out the preview and it definitely seems helpful, but I was looking for some advice from someone that’s used it…</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Hello!</p>
<p>can anyone give characters and important tips about these five SAT prep books?</p>
<ol>
<li>College Board 2. Princeton Review 3. Barron’s 4. Mc Graw-Hills 5. Kaplan</li>
</ol>
<p>Not really a book for the entire test, but there’s this awesome Android app for SAT vocabulary: <a href=“https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pcn.android.sat”>https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pcn.android.sat</a></p>
<p>It’s from the same creator of Painless GRE, which has been there for a while and got good ratings. My brother survived the GRE by that.</p>
<p>Could someone please offer advice on the best book(s) to use in all four parts of the SAT, or help me to narrow down my list? I currently have the BB that I use specifically for practice tests, as I think the methods for solving the problems are much harder than they need to be. I also have the Direct Hits series for vocabulary and will buy the 500 words once I have completed the DH. I would like to get prep books for math, critical reading, writing and the essay. I would prefer to only buy one book for each subject area as I am already overwhelmed with the amount of study material and don’t want to get confused by all the different strategies. However, I would buy more than one if no book completely covers the subject. Below I have listed my approximate SAT score as well as my goal and the books I am considering. Please let me know if you think my goals are attainable with around three hours of studying a day and ten months until I take my last SAT. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>M - 550 (goal 770+)
CR - 500 (goal 700+)
W - 450 (goal 720+)</p>
<p>In no particular order.</p>
<p>Math:
- PWN the SAT: Math Guide.
- Dr. John Chung’s SAT Math.
- 28 SAT Math Lessons to Improve Your Score in One Month - Advance.
- 320 SAT Math Problems arranged by Topic and Difficulty Level.</p>
<p>Critical reading:
- The Critical Reader.</p>
<p>Writing:
- 2nd Edition, The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar.
- The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar Workbook (Volume 2).</p>
<p>Essay:
- PWN the SAT: Essay Guide.</p>
<p>Is the second edition of “The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar” an improved version of the original? Is buying the complementary workbook necessary?</p>
<p><a href=“what do i do to get a 2150+ on sat??? - Test Preparation - College Confidential Forums”>what do i do to get a 2150+ on sat??? - Test Preparation - College Confidential Forums; pls respond someone plssssss</p>
<p>Im taking the SAT in January so I have a little under 4 weeks to prepare for the SAT. My first time taking the SAT although I have previously taken the PSAT and some random prep courses my scores were:
CR: 680-700
Writing: 590-610
Math: 570</p>
<p>Would like to get a 700+ on each section</p>
<p>Any suggestions of prep books that are concentrated in improving certain sections? I already have the BB and its working pretty well, but I want to drastically improve my score. For writing I was thinking about picking up “The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar: Erica Meltzer”, for reading I believe Essential 500 is recommended.</p>
<p>Math is where the problem lies. I heard Dr. John Chungs SAT Math book is extremely helpful for those who are scoring in the 600-650+ range, however I’m not at this point. Should I still pick up Dr. Chungs book and hope for the best or try Barron, Gruber, PWN the SAT etc. I need to brush up on basic concepts but also want to tackle the harder problems so I can achieve the higher score. I’m in AP Calc AB as a junior and Im doing fairly well (got an 88ish in the class) but when it comes to the math in the SAT im in the dark. Any suggestions on 1 or more books that will both brush up my basic concepts and help with the harder problems would be greatly appreciated!</p>
<p>Any suggestions for books that will improve my score drastically is greatly appreciated! I have a pretty solid foundation for reading and writing, took AP English; yet when it comes to the SAT I completely bomb it Trying to stay away from Kaplan and PR. </p>
<p>Thanks in advance!!</p>
@karate17 have you gone through the BB and looked at what problems you missed and how to do them? My S has Chung and gave up on it and he has been scoring around 760 on the BB tests. He found that by going back and looking at what he missed he has made simple mistakes and should have scored higher. He also has the Critical Reader and likes it a lot but he just started it is only about a 1/3 of the way through it and has not taken a practice test since he has started it. One other piece of advice I would give to improve your writing is, when you get back to school see if you can get an English teacher to agree to look over your writing. If they will, find some SAT released prompts online and practice writing, then have the teacher look it over and give you advice on how to improve it. My S has been doing this (I teach at his school so it wasn’t hard to find a teacher to do this) and his writing has gone from a 61 (translates to a 610 despite also doing well in AP English classes) on the writing on the PSAT to averaging 750’ish on practice tests (regraded by an online SAT prep program). Tell the teacher you are taking the SAT on the 24th and ask if they would be willing to do this twice a week until then, but once you take the SAT make sure you thank them. I most likely wouldn’t bother with the Essential 500 just due to time, instead, just get to know all the vocabulary on the BB practice tests.
You can also get the College Board SAT Question of the Day App! It gives you a new question every day that alternates between M, CR, and W. And it’ll give you pretty clear explanations for every problem. Besides studying off of review books, I found that the app was a quick and easy way to get in some extra practice and exposure to questions that are very similar to the ones on the actual test.
My advice:
-Get the Blue Book
-Get boxes of Flash Card (I own Barron’s and Princeton Review)
-Get “The Princeton Review” book (this is definitely closest to the real exam)
-Read for fun. Like read classics and advanced literature to develop speed skills and vocabulary. The more you read, the easier the SAT will be for you.
@imaginethis Yes that app is an amazing resource.
What’s the best SAT prep book(s) for giving my scores that final shove? I’m doing SAT practice tests from the Blue book but my math scores aren’t the greatest (700 range) and I keep getting dragged down by the level 5, and sometimes 4, questions. I’m looking at Dr. Chung’s, Barron’s, and Pwn the SAT right now. Also, what’s recommended for writing in general? My scores are still relatively high in writing but not high enough I suppose.
@bringit1 You should definitely read “Grammar Smart,” which is published by the Princeton Review. It’s a great book on grammar not just for the SAT, but for life.
As for math, I highly recommend “The Princeton Review” SAT Premium edition with 8 practice exams. It only covers what you need to know for entire SAT.
I don’t know about Princeton Review SAT premium edition the above poster said. I have a feeling that it will have similar problems as the “Cracking the SAT”, which in fact is not bad but maybe insufficient to improve Math scores.
^Your advice to use the PR practice exams is inconsistent with a lot of other advice on this site to only use official College Board tests or practice problems
Hi,
I got my SAT results today and I scored embarrassing 1540 points (570 in maths, 470 in CR and 500 in reading). I had done 2 timed practice tests at home before and I got 1850-1950 in them, so my result shocked me massively. Math has always been my strongest subject and I expected to score a minimum 690 on it. Can’t understand how I managed to get 21 questions wrong.
To the point: I am planning on taking the SAT again on the 6th of June and in the fall of my junior year, and I am going to put much effort in preparing for it. How much do you think I could improve my score in the next test? Could you recommend SAT Prep books? Especially for CR. I have Princeton Review but didn’t find it quite instructive.
I am extremely grateful for replies.
^IMHO, the best way to identify SAT prep books is to review the old posts in this thread!
haha I did that but seems like a lot of people have different recommendations.
I am thinking about purchasing Dr Chungs for math, Erica L Meltzer for grammar and The essential 500 for vocab. Does this look okay?