Getting to know the SAT as summer pastime

008(2).JPGPractice is part of SAT success

SAT scores = destiny? Of course not. But my SAT scores were so lopsided that I believed they kept me out of the schools I thought I wanted. Nearly perfect verbal; let's not talk about the math. 

My family and I never considered a tutor, and I don't even know if there were test prep courses then. So I just struggled -- and no matter how many math practice tests I took, I was doomed. In my case, it was because I had such a poor grasp of math fundamentals.

Do prep classes help? And are they worth the cost? Some teens do gain about 100 points in their scores, many do not, according to this article by the Fiske Guide people.

Still, we thought it couldn't hurt for our daughter to get more familiar with the tests, so she enrolled in a 2/hours a day, 2-week session at the Newark Academy.

Here are a few basic tips she picked up that you might want to pass along to any test-takers you know:

In general, when answering multiple choice questions, cross out one or two responses that seem blatantly wrong, then guess guess. In math grid-ins (blanks where you provide the answer), you are better off guessing than leaving it blank. No points are taken off for a wrong answer.

With critical reading, keep returning to the passage (no need to memorize it) but be sure to annotate it. Before looking at choices, try to answer in your own words.  Make sure the passage supports your answer.

In the writing section, just 25 minutes, take 2 minutes to plan before writing.  Put special focus on the thesis sentence and first paragraph; make sure there are clear transitions from one paragraph to the next. In grammar questions, again, cross out what's wrong first -- and be on the lookout for problems with tense, number and dangling modifiers.

Was the session helpful in terms of scores? We'll know later.  Meanwhile is glad she took the course and has a better understanding of the kinds of questions she'll face, and how to attack them -- even if it took away a chunk of summer freedom.

What has been your experience with prep classes?  A help, or a waste of time and money?