<p>I'm usually good in math. I took Algebra 1 in 7th grade and now I'm in Calculus AB as a sophomore. I've always done well and have always passed with at least a 97 final average. I'm applying for a boarding school that requires you to take the SAT as part of the application process. Initially, I was confident on doing well on the Math section. But, then I realized that I didn't know how to approach the problems, mostly the medium and hard ones. I went to a tutor this week and I felt so dumb because even the easiest problems I didn't know how to approach. After he showed me how to do it, I knew how to solve the problem. I swear, he probably thought I was dumb. I want to show him that I'm really not and will be meeting him again next week. But, why? Why am I doing poorly on the Math section even though I'm generally strong in Math? It's frustrating me. Does anybody have any advice? </p>
<p>*By the way, I'm not trying to brag. I'm assuming that at least some of those who see this understands how I feel. I'm so used to getting things right the first time. But I know I'll overcome this, please help.</p>
<p>SAT math and (pre)calculus are pretty disjoint. You may have forgotten some simple rules/techniques/formulas you have learned in algebra or geometry. You should definitely review those, and try some harder problems. I particularly like AMC10-12 problems – even though they’re different and significantly harder than SAT problems, they really hone your problem solving ability.</p>
<p>I felt the same way this summer at barnes and noble, taking practice tests. I eventually got to a point where I would score 800 on math everytime. My tip is to review the math portions of sat prep books (i looked through pr and barrons) and do some practice tests! figure out what youre missing and restudy those topics.</p>
<p>SAT will try to trick you on some problems by throwing in answer choices that look right. Just make sure you read the problem carefully (perhaps more than once) and make sure you understand exactly what the question is saying before you attempt to solve it.</p>
<p>Maybe to get used to the wording, you could purchase the SAT book with the practice tests (or find it in Barnes & Noble) and attempt a few math sections. If you don’t understand what the question is asking, all the answer explanations can be accessed online at the college board website!</p>