Which PSAT/SAT Practice Test book to use?

[Renaissance Mom]

I want to approach SAT prep by giving one section per day of a practice test followed the next day by a diagnostic review of incorrect answers. The Amazon reviews of various practice test books are all over the board. What have any of you used and been happy with recently?

 

Princeton Review? http://www.amazon.com/Practice-Tests-Edition-College-Preparation/dp/0307944816/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1357744197&sr=8-3&keywords=sat+practice+tests

 

Kaplan? http://www.amazon.com/Kaplan-Practice-Tests-SAT-2013/dp/1609780507/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1357744197&sr=8-6&keywords=sat+practice+tests

 

Barron's? http://www.amazon.com/Barrons-SAT-Practice-Tests-Sat/dp/0764147234/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1357744197&sr=8-4&keywords=sat+practice+tests

 

Mc Graw-Hill? http://www.amazon.com/McGraw-Hills-Practice-Tests-PSAT-Sats/dp/0071583173/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1357744197&sr=8-2&keywords=sat+practice+tests

 

College Board? http://www.amazon.com/The-Official-SAT-Study-Guide/dp/0874478529/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357744197&sr=8-1&keywords=sat+practice+tests

 

It needs to have full length practice tests with good, accurate, understandable answer explanations. I'd like something that has a PSAT practice test with answer explanations, too, so we could do one of those before that particular test.

 

Many thanks!

[readwithem]

The best one is the one your student will use :)

 

I would take your student to a bricks and mortar store, find one of those comfy chairs, and load her up with several different books to peruse.

 

We ended up with several books, the "blue book" put out by the College Board has actual questions used on previous tests. And Princeton Review seemed to be a good fit - not as challenging as Barrons but more user friendly.

[JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst]

FWIW...Khan Academy has videos that correspond to the College Board Official SAT Prep book.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

FWIW...Khan Academy has videos that correspond to the College Board Official SAT Prep book.

 

 

Do they have anything other than the math sections now? It was only math last time I looked.

 

I do like the big Blue College Board Official prep book. I found one at a library book sale and actually cut it apart. The book has several versions of full exams. So we were able to simulate the 3 hour test scenarios or do each section and discuss a piece at a time.

[JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst]

 

Do they have anything other than the math sections now? It was only math last time I looked.

 

 

No, they don't have any vocab or reading comprehension. Wouldn't it be great to have someone analysing each reading passage and going over it though! I suppose another option would be quizlet. They have a section for test prep lists and have both PSAT and SAT lists available. Keep in mind that it is user created material.

[Melanie]

My son took all the tests in Barron's SAT (one section at a time), then worked through Barron's SAT 2400, then took about half of the tests in The College Board book under test conditions. We were very pleased with his PSAT scores.

 

Barron's SAT has full length tests. The questions are more challenging than what you'd find on a real SAT, but there are explanations for all test questions.

 

Barron's SAT 2400 does not have full length practice tests, but the entire book focuses on the hardest questions on the SAT. Again, all questions are explained. This book was by far the most helpful to my student.

 

The tests in "the blue book" are the most representative of the real SAT, but there are no explanations for the test questions. (I think they might be available online, but we didn't check.)

[Sebastian (a lady)]

My son took all the tests in Barron's SAT (one section at a time), then worked through Barron's SAT 2400, then took about half of the tests in The College Board book under test conditions. We were very pleased with his PSAT scores.

 

Barron's SAT has full length tests. The questions are more challenging than what you'd find on a real SAT, but there are explanations for all test questions.

 

Barron's SAT 2400 does not have full length practice tests, but the entire book focuses on the hardest questions on the SAT. Again, all questions are explained. This book was by far the most helpful to my student.

 

The tests in "the blue book" are the most representative of the real SAT, but there are no explanations for the test questions. (I think they might be available online, but we didn't check.)

 

Khan Academy video explanations of each math question from the "blue book".

[JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst]

 

The tests in "the blue book" are the most representative of the real SAT, but there are no explanations for the test questions. (I think they might be available online, but we didn't check.)

 

There is an online answer component. If I recall correctly you (the student not the parent) need an account with the College Board website to access the information. I believe the information on how to access this information was included in the text.

[creekland]

We've found Princeton Review to be the closest to the actual test (any test from AP to SAT) and Barrons to be the best at focusing on the harder questions for any test. Those are the two I go to instictively now - with no regrets.

 

Kaplans is absolutely the worst in our experience. I sincerely regret buying it and will probably burn it rather than selling it or donating it to our school. We only bought the ACT version, so perhaps the others are better, but I'm not wasting money hoping.

 

Then, of course, there are old tests in the college board books that are great for practice.