To those of you who got 2300+

Test Preparation SAT Preparation
1

<p>Hi...i am in sort of a dilemma here because on a practice SAT test i recently took, i got a 580 on the Critical reading section.</p>

<p>i've heard that reading a lot of classical novels help to improve CR scores a lot, but since I am a junior i feel like that would just take up a lot of my time...</p>

<p>Do you think I should read classical novels while practicing with SAT exams or just do a lot of the CR tests?</p>

<p>Thanks :) </p>

<p>PS: i plan on taking the March SAT for the 1st time because i don't think i'll be ready by January :( </p>

<p>Also...can you please tell me what scores you got and how much of a score improvement you had between different test dates?</p>

2

<p>I really think the biggest boost to the CR score is achieved by finding a passage-question strategy that is best for you. I personally improved from a 630 CR (March 09) to an 800 CR (Oct 09, Nov 09) by reading one paragraph at a time and answering any corresponding questions. My low-600s score came from reading the questions beforehand and annotating the passage, which I know now to be a complete waste time. Worse yet, on that 600s score, I had a 19/19 on sentence completions a 34/48 on the passages due to 12 incorrect and 2 omissions (8-10 of those incorrect were from random bubble-filling after time was called). Thus, my reading comprehension was not my downfall, but my way of maintaining a connection between the passage and questions. I would advise the one paragraph at a time method if you need a strategy to begin with.</p>

<p>Yes, reading novels will help but not something that I did due to a lack of time. But the more you read the faster you become and the more you comprehend. </p>

<p>As for my scores, in November I had a 2350 (800 CR, 800 W 80/12, 750 M) and am hoping for a 2400 on the December test.</p>

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<p>just curious mifune, but why are you retaking a 2350?</p>

4

<p>“just curious mifune, but why are you retaking a 2350?”</p>

<p>He probably feels confident that he can improve his Math score.</p>

5

<p>mifune and anybody else…</p>

<p>what do you think about the following CR strategy: after reading a paragraph summarize it into one phrase next to the corresponding paragraph…and do that for all of them…then answer the questions</p>

<p>mifune, how many hours per day or week did you study for SAT’s?
I would really love to get 800 on CR :]
and what vocab books did you use?</p>

<p>(sorry for so many questions…i really appreciate ur help tho)</p>

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<p>mifune,</p>

<p>Do you read the questions before the passage when doing your paragraph method?</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>It’s definitely a good idea to summarize in your head as you go, but I would caution against taking up too much time writing notes in the margins.</p>

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<p>mifune, when u get the chance can u answer my questions please?</p>

<p>Also, i am open to comments from other 2300+scorers :)</p>

9

<p>

[Quote]
“just curious mifune, but why are you retaking a 2350?”</p>

<p>He probably feels confident that he can improve his Math score. [EndQuote]</p>

<p>Yes, that is exactly why I am retaking it. The 2400 is a personal goal of mine.</p>

<p>

[Quote]
what do you think about the following CR strategy: after reading a paragraph summarize it into one phrase next to the corresponding paragraph…and do that for all of them…then answer the questions</p>

<p>mifune, how many hours per day or week did you study for SAT’s?
I would really love to get 800 on CR :]
and what vocab books did you use?</p>

<p>(sorry for so many questions…i really appreciate ur help tho) [EndQuote]</p>

<p>I think it is advisable to paraphrase as you read. Just don’t write down your summary on the test due to time constraints. If you do take notes on the test, you are reaffirming your understanding of the text, but you will eventually need to reread the passage again for the sake of answering the questions. </p>

<p>I would say that reading one paragraph at a time and then answering the questions pertaining to that segment is both the most effective method of actively reading and conserving time. When I scored a 630 (which I am actually embarrassed to admit), I was so busy underlining, circling, writing, rereading that after 25 minutes, I still had 4-5 questions left blank. However, now I usually finish the CR sections in around 10-15 minutes through the above strategy.</p>

<p>I did not spend a large amount of time for the SAT. I did 12 practice tests, 10 from the College Board BB and the 2008-09 and 2009-10 CB practice tests (all taken between August and late October of this year). I did the Math section for all twelve but I only completed the CR and W for 8 of those. Math is not necessarily my academic weakness, but I tend to be fairly absent-minded and careless at times and an 800 in Math requires more painstaking attention to detail than mathematical ingenuity. I took three practice tests in one-sitting to emulate actual conditions. I took the other nine in about two or three sections apiece during my study hall in school and I would review them before going off to my next class. So in total, I spent around 50 hours spread over around two-and-a-half months studying for the SAT, excluding indirect study like studying vocabulary lists.</p>

<p>As for vocabulary books, I did not use any. I gleaned all my vocabulary from an electronic dictionary that I keep with me at all times. It has an SAT world list with about 1000 words or so. Some might argue that this method is just too passive, but I benefitted and I usually had the words memorized by just a couple runs through the list throughout numerous short sittings.</p>

<p>

[Quote]
mifune,</p>

<p>Do you read the questions before the passage when doing your paragraph method? [EndQuote]</p>

<p>I do not read them before reading the passage. I start each passage, including the short paragraph passages, by reading the first paragraph of the passage (or whatever seems to represent a complete though) and then answer the corresponding questions. When I see a question that relates to a new paragraph I will go back and resume reading the passage. So after about four or five cycles of this, I go back to answer any general questions such as those pertaining to tone, meaning, “How would author x respond to author y…?”, or any difficult questions or ones that span more than one paragraph.</p>

<p>Also, this method is also effective for the dual-passages section. Answer any questions you can at first and then go back and refer to what passages or statements the question asks you to. </p>

<p>In addition, be sure to answer the “general” questions toward the end. Circle them in your booklet and refer to them later. </p>

<p>Finally, while completing a passage, do not bubble in one at a time. This breaks your concentration. Only when you finish a passage should you fill in the entire set of bubbles.</p>

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<p>Mifune, are you saying that it’s more effective to circle in the answers to the questions in the booklet during the exam before recording everything in bubbles? Does it save time?</p>

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<p>^Yes, definitely. Focus on the passage first, then bubble in your answers after its completion. The main exception, of course, is when you are running into time trouble. In that case, bubbling one at a time may be warranted.</p>

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<p>@ mifune</p>

<p>i completely agree with your strategy! i do the same exact thing! it is presumably the most effective method i have so far found. </p>

<p>acutally, most SAT guide books will condemn this method. but i tried to find a new way of answering the question, because either it was hard to recall after reading the whole passage or it was to time taking to revert back to the passage (after reading) scouring for the answers. </p>

<p>on a personal note, i also sometimes just SKIM through the questions, NOT reading them, but just actually seeing the numbers (like line references) and quickly and roughly marking those lines in the passage. this sometimes helps, and sometimes doesnt. its still a good idea to do it because it wont take that much time (half a minute), you can easily spot the line references and you get an idea of when you should stop reading (after you go through maybe 3 or 4 of them? , for example).</p>

<p>anyways, thats it for now. i usually get 23 or 24 on the practice SATs. unfortunately, i dont predict more than 700 for my December SAT, because i got heavily pounded by
2 24-question critical reading sections (one experimental) in a row. :P</p>

<p>wish me good luck for june :)</p>