<p>My daughter has just begun her sophomore year, and has no idea of the college search effort in front of her. When do I start having her think about the SAT? Any advice on how and when I should have her to prepare would be welcome. I have no desire to get her stressed out about this, but I do want her to realize that it's coming and that she has to be prepared.</p>
<p>Have her take the PSAT this year. Then don’t have her start studying for it until end of the school year/next summer. Then have her take it again as a junior and hopefully shell qualify for NMS. After that, she should probably start studying regularly for the SAT. Have her take it that January so she can retake in the spring</p>
<p>You will get a variety of opinions here on that, I am sure. A few thoughts:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Some schools have their kids take the PSAT in 10th and 11th grade. So they have a couple of experiences with that under their belts before tackling the real SAT. AND, they have a PSAT experience before taking the PSAT for National Merit Semi-Finalist status (only the 11th grade PSAT counts toward that). Either way, your D is likely to have taken the PSAT in fall of 11th grade before taking the SAT.</p></li>
<li><p>Is there any likelihood that your D could be a National Merit Semifinalist/Finalist? If she is a very “smart cookie”, then that possibility exists. It is often worth some scholarship money (not as much as you would like, esp. at top schools, but typically a few thousand dollars). If you think she would be in the running, then in my opinion, some studying prior to the PSAT could be worthwhile (D2 is sitting at the counter in our kitchen right now taking a SAT math practice test in preparation for her 11th grade PSAT – her 10th grade score was right at the typical cutoff in our state for NMSF, so it seemed worth the effort).</p></li>
<li><p>Most students take the SAT for the first time sometime in the spring of Junior year. So… if your D is going to study or take a class, she should do so before that. Many students take the SAT twice. We have found it is useful to look over the dates the SAT is offered (you can see at collegboard.com, take a look in September of her junior year) and compare it to her activities schedule. Some activities have state tournaments in the spring, etc. that my D would not want to miss. We did the same thing with the ACT test, which D2 will also take.</p></li>
<li><p>Is your D possibly applying to schools that require SAT subject tests? If so, you need to determine which ones she will be taking, and check the dates when those are available as she enters her junior year. Some of them are NOT offered every testing date (eg, World History isn’t). So you have to be careful. We are pretty cautious, so we are trying to schedule the SAT early enough so D can take it twice in junior year if needed (with a big enough gap to allow for studying) AND two dates for subject tests (again, so she can retake if needed). Add in one sitting for the ACT, and you have a pretty full spring in junior year.</p></li>
<li><p>MANY kids do their second sittings for SAT and/or ACT in fall of their senior year. We have tried to avoid this, as it keeps the college list up in the air for too long. It is too hard to know what is a reach/match/safety if you haven’t finished that testing. That is very stressful. A lot of people do it that way, it just wasn’t for us.</p></li>
<li><p>You will find a lot of threads in the SAT testing forum about best ways to prepare. We have chosen “home”/self prep using books. And then the College Board blue book of SAT tests that you can just buy in any Barnes & Noble or from the College Board website (can’t get the title, it is in D’s hands right now and I don’t want to disturb her) :)</p></li>
<li><p>Her biggest struggle has been squeezing study time in junior year with the rush of activities and huge class load most juniors have. D2 took her math prep book on vacation with us in August and did an hour a day of work on it. She finished the math prep the week before school started, and now is taking a practice test (either math or critical reading, so about 1.5 hours of time) each weekend, and making flashcards of what she misses.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>I agree with VB if you can make sure she takes the PSAT this fall - talk to the school NOW - you’ll have a much better idea of how much prep you may need to invest in. If she looks like an almost National Merit Finalist it might make sense to do prep before next years PSATs. But most people will be fine doing test prep for taking SATs for the first time in Jan or Mar of junior year. If she’s taking any AP courses or pre-calc see if there are subject tests she might want to take in the spring in addition to the AP exam. (My kids really appreciated killing two birds with one stone.)</p>
<p>It is less stressful if your kid could be done with SAT I by Mar of Junior year, then focus on AP and SAT IIs in May and June. Depending on your school’s curriculum, it is also best to take SAT IIs as your kid is taking that particular subject. If your kid is taking biology sophomore year, she may want to take SAT II biology sophomore year. It is very stressful to take standarized tests senior year.</p>
<p>Watch out for the Biology SAT 2 test–the test may cover a lot more than the biology class that a sophomore would take. You may need a SAT 2 study guide to fill in the blanks.</p>
<p>You can have her take the test at home to see how badly she needs the preparation. I had both of mine take it cold in 7/8th grade for CTY and also the end of freshman and sophomore year to see that her scores are in the ballpark for the schools that she’s aiming for.</p>
<p>I think that you need to consider your student, and their level. The SAT and ACT only test up to a certian math level. So taking the test for the firsttime when done with those classes is a really good idea, especialy with super scoring. My son took Alg II in 8th grade. I should have had him take SAT in 9th, and the SAT II in 10th for that reason, but did not realize this.
Someone mentioned the PSAT and preparation. If she has ANY chance of making NMF, start studying and practicing now. This is something I regret not doing too.</p>
<p>My opinion:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Take the PSAT your sophomore year just to see what she is getting into.</p></li>
<li><p>Get the practice books and spend some summer time using them.</p></li>
<li><p>PSAT, again, junior year. This one counts for National Merit Scholarships (and maybe some other scholarships, my company would want those scores for their employee dependant scholarship determinations)</p></li>
<li><p>Some schools (like my kid’s school) will offer a full length “practice” SAT. It was offered by a company that then wanted to sell you their prep class but was nice because they only charged $10 for the test. They then had a session that gave you back your score, offered some test taking tips, and the sales pitch. </p></li>
<li><p>SATs for real junior and senior years.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Watch for when the scores have to be submitted by for the college apps, they do vary. Timing may dictate the order in which you take the SAT I and the SAT IIs for any senior year testing. Try for at least 2 attempts at each test unless you ace it the first time, then no need for a second try.</p>
<p>One item that was interesting from the “practice” SAT advice session. The test proctor provided the inputs. She said no one was really ready for the length of the test. SAT I is a really grueling test and everyone was getting real ancy about half way thru. If anything, that is a good reason for the “practice” test or, if no practice, a second attempt at the test.</p>
<p>Some kids seem to do well with the prep classes while others get borred with them. Your choice, your money!!</p>
<p>Our (public) high school norm is to take the PSAT sophomore year, and maybe an SAT if you are an overanxious overachiever. Parents are cautioned not to overtake the SAT without significant expectation of improvement. </p>
<p>Anyway, S1 took PSAT/ sophomore year, SAT in June of junior year/ summer tutorial class then SAT Oct. of Sr. . He worked through practice tests a few weekends prior to both SATs. All this, because he is not a “good tester” and he needed the chance to experience the tests with no stress about the results (knowing he could do it again). But I would not have put him through more, just to dent his confidence as he applied. </p>
<p>S2 took PSAT sophomore year, SATs in April/June of junior. No class, some online research about how to do various parts, some practice tests. He’s an able student and got excellent if not Ivy League scores, and he wanted it over with by Senior fall. </p>
<p>I know this goes against prevailing CC opinion, and I am new, but I question the wisdom of heavy use of classes, strategies, multiple testing. In our mind, it misrepresents what your child is capable of. I can send S2 to classes, etc… and pump up his score a little, maybe get him in the door at some place perceived to be more academically rigorous and more status-covered – a better “mention” at the picnics, parties…But then what? Now he’s in, and working his brains out, stressed and struggling, because he can’t pump up his academic performance 24/7. There’s a lot of talk about “good fit” but precious few parents are willing to accept that a “good fit” might not be the highest ranked school you can drive to. Just my two cents: most (not all) every additional SAT is saying “you are not good enough the way you are. try again”</p>
<p>My son is a sophomore who will take the PSAT this Oct and again in Junior year. It’s automatic at his school.</p>
<p>I was planning to have him take the SAT and the ACT at the end of his sophomore year in May. I figured that would give us a good idea if one or the other was “his” test and he would know which one to pursue in Jr year and whether or not a prep class was necessary.</p>
<p>He is taking AP World, Honors English and Pre-Calc. So I’m thinking his math skills should be where they need to be to be successful on the test at the end of 10th grade and his reading/writing is certainly getting a workout so far this year with his AP and Honors class so I’m thinking he’ll be ready on that end too although that would be his weaker area.</p>
<p>Anyway, what do you think? Mistake to have him try both at the end of this year? Or no? By then we’ll have the PSAT scores should we base any kind of decision on that?</p>
<p>My daughter took the PSAT junior fall, unprepared, which would have been unfortunate if she needed NMF money, since she didn’t do that well. She started with a tutor once a week for a month, took the SAT in January; did pretty well; worked for another six weeks, then took it again in March. Her superscore was good enough to stop there, so she could then study for the APs and SATIIs in May. Although she signed up for SATIIs in June, just in case, she didn’t need to take them. When she got her SATII scores in late May, she could do the happy dance of done, done, done with standardized testing (except for this year’s APs). All her friends, who had either not taken the SAT at all or had taken it for the first time in March, were taking it in June; this meant that the stressload that is April and May did not let up until mid-June, which was pretty awful for them. </p>
<p>Junior year is nasty enough, but Junior spring, in our neck of the woods, is horrendous; by studying in the fall, and taking the first SAT in January, you can take a little pressure off May.</p>
<p>(Obviously, not all kids are going to want to/respond well to/be ready for/need this kind of schedule, no matter how well it might work for some)</p>
<p>My experience is that the best time to study for SATs is over the summer especially if your child attends a competitive school. Junior year is very stressful without the added burden of SAT study combined with other homework, papers, sports and other activities. SAT study is very time consuming, especially if the study involves taking full practice tests (I think they should take at least one “full” SAT practice test to get an idea of the time and effort for a full test).</p>
<p>So, my recommendation is to work on SAT prep over the summer before Junior year and take the SAT’s in October or November of junior year. Based on these SAT results (which you’ll get in a matter of weeks after taking the test), your childe can then either take them a second time in January, and/or try the ACT in December. You will then have a very good idea of what schools may be “match” for your child, in order to plan college visits in Spring of Junior year. It is very hard to plan college visits without any early SAT/ACT scores. If the scores are still not satisfactory, there is another SAT test date in March, and ACT dates in February and April. </p>
<p>PSATs are really not necessary unless you think your child will score high enough to qualify for scholarship recognition. Taking a practice PSAT in sophomore year may give you an idea of whether your child may excel enough to qualify for a national merit scholarship by taking PSAT in Oct of junior year.</p>
<p>PAMom has outlined the best strategy. Also if your child will be doing SAT prep you can do the SAT prep class Aug/Sept of Junior year, take the PSAT in Oct and SAT in OCT/Nov and BE DONE. Don t bother with a separate PSAT prep. You want to leave spring of Jr year for SAT 2 exams.</p>
<p>I will make it extremely easy:</p>
<p>Most everyone starts too late and ends up having deep regrets about listening to the “common sense” of … yesterday. Nobody ever complained about finishing too early! </p>
<p>In a nutshell, taking the PSAT in 10th grade is smart. There is no need to prepare for this test with great fanfare, but it is a good idea to take one practice test to ensure this PSAT means something. It is acceptable to wait for the December/January results, but the preparation for BOTH the real SAT and the PSAT should start shortly thereafter. It is essential to use the few months before the 11th grade PSAT to prepare with the ambition of having the PSAT and SAT tests finished during the junior year.</p>
<p>The summer before the senior year is the LAST chance to work on preparing for standardized tests. It is NOT a good idea to have to work on applications and still working on testing requirements.</p>
<p>Fwiw, the most important element is to look at this as a long-term plan. It is not a sprint; it is a marathon. Investing 20 minutes a couple of times a week is much more effective than cramming or wasting your D’s time (and your money) in classes or scrambling at the last minute. All you need is to purchase the Official Test book from the College Board and work through a few SECTIONS a month in the beginning. Sections … not entire tests. The best 12-20 dollars you can spend now!</p>
<p>Question: my kiddos both took ACTs & SATs in 7th & 8th grade for talent search contests; a big part of it for me was that they’d be exposed to the test with “no pressure” thereby removing the mystique of the tests. Our HS allows them to take the PSAT in 9th, 10th & 11th (which mine did,) the PLAN in 11th and a faux ACT in the Spring of 9th & 10th before taking the state required one in 11th grade. Since they’ve been in a number of real testing situations already and tested well, I’m thinking there’s no real need to take a full practice test again, rather they should just review & the areas they could improve on.</p>
<p>Or should D take a full practice SAT or PSAT again before the October dates? I’m thinking it sounds like punishment ;)</p>