If your child was NM scholar/finalist, how did they study for it?

[iluvmy4blessings]

My daughter is taking it this year in 10th but the real deal will be next year. Is it possible to study for this and make the cut off? Can hard work make this happen?

[Barbara H]

Is she a bright student who tends to score very high on standardized tests? If so, I'd start with a sample test and see how she scores. Then, Google and find the cutoff for your state for last year. The cut off varies quite a bit by state. If you see she's in the ballpark, yes, I think it can be worth while to do some preparation. Look for any weak areas on the test, such as math skills, and try to strengthen them. Take another sample and see how she does.

 

Our son received a National Merit scholarship. He did some SAT prep and found that was good prep for the PSAT - it felt so short and like a breeze after being prepared for the SAT.

[MomsintheGarden]

Our dd was a NM Scholar. She is an excellent test-taker, and usually scored in the 90th+ percentile in all subjects of the Stanford test she took in the lower grades. Since we knew she had a chance to score well on the PSAT, we had her study for it in earnest beginning in early August of her junior year. She studied the McGraw-Hill PSAT book, took its practice tests, and took the official PSAT practice test.

 

HTH,

GardenMom

[Musicmom]

Our ds was a National Merit Scholar also. He is also bright and always scored high on the Iowa Basics.

 

He studied the McGraw-Hill PSAT book in preparation for the test in 10th grade (started in Sept, which was a little late--Aug would have been better), took 2 or 3 of the 4 McGraw-Hill practice tests (I remember I wanted to save at least one for the next year) and the official practice test. This work seemed to really pay off as there was quite a jump from his first diagnostic test scores to his scores that year on the actual test.

 

Also, the McGraw-Hill had great advice for developing college level reading skill and studying vocabulary, which we then implemented through the rest of 10th grade.

 

The following year, in 11th grade (again starting in Sept) ds reviewed the McGraw-Hill book and the Kaplan book (just for some fresh material), took the remaining McGraw-Hill practice test(s) and one of the Kaplan tests, reviewed the official practice test, and reviewed his test booklet from the previous year (be sure to get that back from the school after the test--you can usually pick it up in December after the scores come out.) He also had a bunch of test experience under his belt (SAT II's and the ACT) from the spring of 10th grade, so he was pretty seasoned and his PSAT scores jumped even higher.

 

He also found that the hard work prepping for the PSAT was good prep for the SAT, which he took in December of 11th grade. Except for the essay writing, he didn't do much extra SAT prep (was kinda "prepped out" at that point), and his scores mirrored the PSAT almost exactly.

Edited September 9, 2011 by Musicmom
Clarification