To all math section pro's-Math Strategies!

Test Preparation SAT Preparation
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<p>All math section pros-please read! </p>

<p>I am trying to break the 700-800 barrier, and I was wondering if some people could reveal some strategies that they have used and that have worked well. I think I have realised that
the math section really isn't about understanding the math but more to do with speed and have a set approach to answering a question i.e. finding patterns and developing a general standard of approach. </p>

<p>On a slightly different note, is there a way I can find the domain and range quickly? </p>

<p>Much appreciated CC</p>

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<p>i hear ya man… what to do! am freakin out! give us some advice people! :/</p>

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<p>My approach to math is to think, logically, how I can find the asnwer. I don’t think of equations or mathematical rules. I just think of what I need to do to gethe the answer. If that makes sense…</p>

<p>How to find the domain and range qiuickly? Just think of what x and y values won’t work for the function. That’s your domain and range. It’s also nice to be familiar with all the general equations and their graphs.</p>

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<p>Don’t guess because the math SAT is designed to make the wrong answers look right. Only put down an answer you are entirely, 100% sure of! If you answer 18 questions right and leave 2 blank of every 20-question section, you are very likely to land at/near the 700 mark. Good luck! :)</p>

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<p>Any prep books in mind… study skills? I dunno why i didn’t do well in the actual exam altho I do well on prac tests… any advice??</p>

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<p>I didnt’ use any prep books. Mainly just the experiences and techniques I’ve learned in my past math classes.</p>

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<p>strategicfiasco,</p>

<p>If you understand that the SAT Math Section is not a math test but is a test of your ability to reason, problem solving, using math as the tool to determine your reasoning skills, then you are ahead of the game. The first 10 or 12 questions in each section are fairly easy, but please, do not rush through these. As has been pointed out many times, these questions are worth exactly the same as the harder questions at the end of each section. Always make sure that you are supplying the answer that you are being asked for. Do not give the value of x, if the question is asking for 3x. When the questions get harder, remember, they are testing your ability to reason. The odds are that the question is being posed in an unusual manner. Time to go Sherlock Holmes on it. Should I plug numbers in, should I back solve? What is the best way for ME to answer this question?</p>

<p>Without having more details on your performances to date, it is difficult to give you very specific help.</p>

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<p>Dr Chungs SAT Math has a lot of hard questions to tackle.
Barrons SAT has a comprehensive list of math examples/strategies.
Underline everything in the SAT Math Section and circle what the question is looking for so that you don’t make silly mistakes.</p>

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<p>Here’s a few steps. I would recommend getting a review other than the Blue Book for these at first so you can see how to answer the questions if need be.</p>

<p>1.) Take a practice section or two. Try to solve all of the problems. If you have absolutely no clue how to do it, skip it. DO NOT TIME YOURSELF. Take as much time as you need.</p>

<p>2.) Review all the questions. Check your answers. If you got a problem wrong that you thought you solved correctly, figure out why you got it wrong. Also note what it was testing, such as ratios, geometry, algebra, number properties, etc. See if there is a trend to what you get right and wrong. Are you getting all the algebra questions right, but only got 1 basic geometry question right? Just take note of these for now. Also see what type of problems you skipped, and figure out how to solve them. Count how many problems you missed due to careless errors.</p>

<p>3.) Work on whatever type of problem you have trouble with. Review the concepts as well. If you have trouble with geometry, review it. Maybe you need to check your theorems about parallel lines, or circles. Try to get to the point where you can answer any type of these problems that they give you.</p>

<p>4.) Take another practice section and repeat this process. Continue to do this until you can comfortably answer every problem correctly, still not timing yourself.</p>

<p>Only proceed from here once you can answer all the problems correctly.</p>

<p>5.) Take a practice section, but this time, only give yourself the time allotted. Do not go over this limit. </p>

<p>6.) If you finished, great! Review what you missed, if any. Figure out if it was due to careless error or if you didn’t understand something. If you didn’t finish, that’s okay! Figure out where you can cut down on time. Did you spend too much time doing basic math on your calculator? Or did you not use your calculator enough? Find ways to reduce the amount of time it takes you to solve each problem.</p>

<p>7.) Repeat this process until you can consistently get the score you want within the time frame, but if you’ve come this far, you might as well keep going until you can get an 800. :wink: At some point in here, you should start using the blue book so you get a sense of what the problems are actually like.</p>

<p>Overall, 700+ is only attainable if you know how to solve each problem. Typically, people scoring above 700 simply made a careless error or two, or ran out of time (but if you’ve been practicing, you shouldn’t run out! :wink: ). If you can’t score a 700, go back and see what skills you need to review. Graphing? Algebra? Slope? Circles? Whatever it may be, learn it and apply it. Math is the easiest section to improve on because once you know the concepts, you can apply them to any problem. Hope this helps! Good luck!</p>

<p>P.S./edit: I agree with underlining what the problem asks for. I jumped 70 points just by doing that, though it was barely shy of an 800. Still waiting for December scores, but hoping for the best this time!</p>

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<p>Read question carefully and find out what is an answer. That’s all about the Math section in SAT</p>

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<p>Thanks for all the advice.
I did two practice tests today but only the math sections and my main issue seems to be time. Sometimes I finish on time and get everything right, and other times I still get everything right but not within the timed conditions. So at the moment it seems I’m getting 750-800 when I give my self an extra 10 minutes meaning I know I can do the questions. However, under timed conditions sometimes I finish with one mistake i.e. one section and usually another mistake in another math section but then the third section I miss 3 questions as I run out of time. What do you guys think is the problem and how should I resolve it. In total I have done 6 sections not 6 tests all on math.</p>

<p>Cheers</p>

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<p>strategicfiasco,</p>

<p>When time is the primary issue, here is what I have my students do. Do 2 sections of the math, the 20 question multiple choice section and the 18 question section with the 10 grid-in questions. For the 20 question section, break the test into 4 parts of 5 questions each. Time how long it takes for you to answer each section. For example questions 1-5 took 4 minutes, questions 6-10 took 6 minutes, etc. If the section that took the longest is not questions 16-20 go back to the section that took the longest and examine the questions. Do you remember 1 question in particular that took a long time to answer? If there is, study that question, there might very well be a method to answer that question that is faster than the way you did it. Perhaps plugging in, perhaps back solving. I am just guessing here, but if you are comfortable with 10 extra minutes, then the odds are that you are working out every problem the way you were taught in school. You have to be able to answer some of these questions without resorting to drawn out mathematical computations. Let me suggest that you buy a book that emphasizes strategies, PWN the SAT is an excellent example but there are others as well.</p>

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<p>rinnster95 said:</p>

<p>“Don’t guess because the math SAT is designed to make the wrong answers look right. Only put down an answer you are entirely, 100% sure of! If you answer 18 questions right and leave 2 blank of every 20-question section, you are very likely to land at/near the 700 mark”</p>

<p>Well, I don’t agree about this. If you only answer when you are 100% sure, you will certainly be omitting questions that you had a good (though not 100%) chance of getting right. And anyone who has the ability to answer 18 right out of 20 is certainly more than 20% likely to get even the hardest questions right, thus likely to “out-earn” the guessing penalty.</p>

<p>So my advice to you is this: your practice tests make it clear that you are doing very well. But you still have LOTS of unfinshed blue book tests. Do them! Practice will make you faster without trying to be faster. There are so many repeated themes that you will surely pick up on. It sounds like, in terms of content, you are already rock solid. But yeah, also make sure you know the tricks. </p>

<p>One other thing: sometimes, a TI 89 can be a time-saver. (Yes, I know that you can get a 900 without any calculator at all…) For example, today in my SAT class we were going over that problem where x^2 = 4y^2 and y = 2x + 1 (or something like that). And while it is true that you can do the algebra by hand, or you can work backwards from the answers (a pain), I had a few students who laughed and said they just threw it on the ti89 and let the calculator spit out the answer. So I do think it’s a good tool to have and to know when to use…</p>

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<p>Thanks guys for all the help. </p>

<p>pmian57: That is a very good idea and I will put it to use on my next practice paper. I think what you are saying is key; that perhaps I am indeed resorting to a school way of doing a problem and it is taking too long. I realised this only now, and I am now beginning to finish papers on time. I think plugging in your own answers for the algebra solving the question at hand and then plugging the answers into the answer choices has worked really well and also starting at c and plugging the answers into the question are really the key strategies im using at the moment and are working wonders. </p>

<p>Thanks again</p>