Prep for ACT and SAT

[Helen in OH]

How effective was it to prepare for the ACT and SAT. Did it affect your child's score? I have a son finishing 8th grade. What are some suggestions to help prepare?

 

Thanks-a-bunch,

 

Helen in OH

[Brigid in NC]

I think test prep is worthwhile -- but how much depends on the age/grade of the youth. If your ds has never taken an SAT or ACT, I'd suggest a practice run-through (not all at once) covering each of the sections of the ACT -- so he will know what to expect. I don't see the need to do much more than that in 9th. I would think the purpose in 9th would be to gain overall testing experience.

 

My dh has found the English, Reading, and Math sections of the ACT to be fairly similar to the SAT. The Science section is quite different, however. If your ds is a fairly good test taker, and you want to help him with extra preparation, I'd focus on helping him understand how to tackle the Science section. It's less about science, and more about "data interpretation." Speed is essential to do well in this section. So the more familiar your ds is with the format, the better.

 

In 8th/9th there is still so much that is to come in material to be covered in high school. The 9th and 10th grade years are really the best prep you can get -- getting all the necessary math under his belt, and upping the quality and rigor of the literature he reads.

 

Here is what my 11th grade ds used to practice for the science section this year:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ef7rX...eature=related

(There are 7 or 8 of them, and this is the first)

 

Here is the link for the ACT practice test that the speaker refers to:

http://www.act.org/aap/pdf/preparing.pdf

 

All my ds's scores improved this year (another year of school under his belt!), but his science score improved significantly because he focused on prepping and practicing for this unusual section.

 

Good luck!

Brigid in NC

 

p.s. By the way, when you sign up for the ACT (or after) you have the option to pay $16 for the actual test booklet. You receive an answer sheet with all your youth's scores, and all the correct scores. We did that the last two years, so when my ds began to prepare this year, he retook the last two years' tests. Nothing like the real thing for practice! Also helps to see where the "holes" are and continue to be!

[Kareni]

My teen took the SAT this past March, and I do think that some test prep was helpful.

 

For the past few years, she's been doing the SAT question of the day.

 

See: http://apps.collegeboard.com/qotd/question.do

 

Prior to the test, she worked through the Chalkdust SAT Math Review which she said she found valuable.

 

See: http://www.chalkdust.com/satrevrev.html

 

There's no substitute for lots of reading of all kinds over the years.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Christi/NC]

My son used the Real ACT prep book with 3 ACT practice tests in it. He felt like it prepared him well for the test. He took it for the first time in April as a 10th grader.

 

Christi

[Helen in OH]

Thanks a bunch for your help in regards to ACT/SAT testing. It has helped to think through when to have my boys start taking the tests.

 

Helen in OH

[sweetbaby]

We have THE REAL ACT PREP BOOK also. It was written by the test makers of the ACT.

[mysterious_jedi]

My mom made me study tihe SAT for 3 or four vacations! :eek: I did well on it though, so I can't really complain. I did the math stuff straight out of a prep book. I got really bored with the English stuff, though. :closedeyes: It's mostly vocab. Sometimes I would play word power at the reader's digest website instead.