It’s totally normal to feel nervous on the day that you wake up to finally take the SAT or ACT. But it’s also totally possible to then calm yourself down so you can actually grab the score you’ve been studying so hard for. Here are my ten expert pointers for a Test Day morning that sets you up for success.
Does the class of 2022 need the SAT or ACT?
The class of 2021 has had their college process upended by Covid-19—including schools going temporarily (or even permanently) test-optional. But what about the class of 2022? If you’re a current Junior, you probably have some questions about testing and college applications in the age of coronavirus—and lucky for you, I’ve got expert answers.
Perfectionism Hurts Your ACT Score
Perfectionism will cost you points on every section of the ACT. Let me show you how, so I can show you how important it is to avoid this tricky mindset problem.
Top 5 Ways the SAT and ACT Math Sections Try to Trick You
Time and again, I see very smart students make the same types of missteps on the SAT and ACT Math. That’s because the test-makers ARE sometimes trying to trip you up. This post reveals the five most common, trickiest stumbling blocks that the ACT or SAT Math section might throw your way…as well as the strategies you’ll use to clear those obstacles from your path so you can reach that stellar score.
When You Wake Up Sick or Distracted on Test Day
No matter how much you've studied for the SAT or ACT, sometimes unlucky things happen when you sit down to take the test. Whether you wake up sick or distracted on test day, here's how you can best prepare yourself for the unexpected when it happens to you.
Answering SAT Evidence Questions
Evidence Questions can account for up to a THIRD of the questions on the SAT reading section. That’s a lot of points in the balance—not to mention that this question type can be quite tricky and time-consuming to answer if you don’t have a strategy. Fortunately, once you read this blog post, you will have one!
Should You Guess on the SAT and ACT? (And If So, How?)
If you’ve taken a few SAT or ACT practice tests (or even a round or two of the actual test), you may have found yourself running out of time on a section or two. What should you do when you don’t have time to actually think through those last few questions? Will it help or harm your score to guess—and if you should guess, what are the smartest strategies for doing so? This week’s post has got you covered.
Avoid These Three Common Mistakes For a Winning Testing Timeline—And Winning Test Scores
Avoid these top three mistakes I see all the time in my work as an elite test-prep expert and your road to the doors of that dream school will run a LOT more smoothly.
The Testing Timeline: The SUREST Path to the ACT and SAT Scores That Open Doors
So you want the best possible SAT or ACT scores you can get, huh? AND you’d like to stay sane while achieving them, so you can enjoy that dream school when you get there? Your road map to navigating the overwhelming, stressful testing and college processes needs the SUREST tool to success: a Testing Timeline.
The Right (AND WRONG) Ways to Use SAT Practice Tests
Real SAT practice tests are a finite resource. Let me explain why that matters…and how to make the most of the valuable practice tests you have!
Understanding The Curve: Don't Pray For An Easy Test
Think an easy test means you can expect the score you want? Not necessarily. In fact, an easy test can make it harder to get the score you need! Let me explain.
The ACT’s New Extended Time Policies: What You Need To Know
The ACT is changing its policy on timing for National Extended Time students. I’m walking you through exactly what this means for you if it affects you—how it changes your test day and whether it changes your test choice.
SAT II Failproof Study Plan: Math Level 2
SAT IIs got you down? No need to worry! Here's a handy plan. In this post, I'll walk you through picking the right level for you, and map out a plan to show Math Level 2 who's boss.
SAT II Failproof Study Plan: Math Level 1
People often push the SAT II Subject Tests to the bottom of their list, so if you don't have a plan to deal with yours...you need one! So here's mine, starting with the big question: Math 1 or Math 2?
Stepping Up Your Math Confidence: The Girls' Guide to Fearless SAT & ACT Math
High school girls often lack confidence in their math abilities, and that can do serious damage. Here are my top tips for firing yourself up for fearless math!
Nailing the SAT Essay Part I: Sloppy Success vs. Perfect Mediocrity
So many of us women – at any age – suffer from feelings of having to be “perfect”, whatever exactly that is. I, for one, started feeling this way in middle school – gotta love puberty! - but the quest to be perfect exploded in high school. In the top-ranking public high school in the country – Talented and Gifted Magnet in Dallas, Texas – I was taking 8 (you read that right) concurrent AP classes my Junior year, and obsessing about getting 99’s across the board on my report card. I was a little “cray”.
Luckily for me, my misplaced desire for perfection had definite endings – the end of the grading period, the end of the school year, etc. Also, luckily for me, my course-load was math/science/computer-heavy, where there is an end to every problem and you just have to get there.
But what do you do when you’re writing an essay, and there are infinite ways you could craft your words, infinite examples you could utilize, infinite combinations of sentence structures and ways to weave your argument?
That, my friend, is when you need to chuck this need for perfection out the window… ESPECIALLY if you are writing a timed essay on the SAT or ACT!!
See, even though you might not have experienced it yet, in the “real world” (outside of school), it’s fairly impossible to be “perfect”. There will always be someone more skilled, smarter, prettier, faster, stronger, more “successful”, and wealthier than you.
If you wait until you’re “perfect” before you submit that report/manuscript or audition for that part, you’ll be waiting a long time - possibly forever – before you follow your dreams.
And if you wait until you think you have the “perfect” essay written in your head before you put your pencil on the paper and start writing it, time will be called before you finish your introduction!!!
In my experience tutoring and coaching countless high-schoolers for the SAT and ACT, the biggest essay obstacle I’ve seen is when the student just wasn’t able to finish her essay in the designated time: 25 minutes for the SAT and 30 minutes for the ACT. (Or more, if you have extended or double time.) That’s when you see essay scores of 2 or 4 out of 12 possible points.
Sadly, the test-graders only see what’s on the page. They will NEVER see the beautiful thoughts in your head, or your gripping stance on how history repeats itself unless we can innovate as a society. Therefore, your job is to get your thoughts on that page so that they can be graded. And whatever will be, will be.
In general, if you can just write and finish the 2 pages you’re allotted on the SAT (or get 2 pages written on the ACT), you’re looking at a safe score of 8+ out of 12. While not phenomenal, this is waaaaay better than a 2, and could mean the difference of 100+ points on the SAT Writing section!
So, if this is you, and you are paralyzed by a need to be perfect, you may be wondering how you can go from never getting your thoughts on the page and scoring a 2 – to letting go and getting a solid 8 that can be built upon.
It’s easy: practice being sloppy!
For the next month, I want to you try the following exercise, which I learned from Julia Cameron’s “Morning Pages” and adapted to get results for teenagers prepping for the SAT:
Mental Mastery Technique #1: Practice Sloppy Success
1) Get a blank sheet of computer paper.
2) Set the alarm on your phone for 5 minutes.
3) Start writing! Your goal is to completely fill up the page in the 5 minutes before your alarm goes off.
That’s it! However, here are some helpful hints, as this seems way easier than it actually is:
- Keep your pen moving and write whatever pops into your head. If you are blank, write “blank” until something pops into your head.
- DO NOT erase or cross out anything! Not even a misspelled word. You need to get used to not being perfect for the sake of this exercise.
- Don’t worry about perfect grammar, complete sentences, or “stupid” ideas. This is an exercise in getting your thoughts on the page without censoring.
- Don’t read what you wrote. You even have my permission to throw away the sheet of paper afterwards.
I’ve gotten amazing results for my students with this practice, sometimes in as little as a couple days. Why? For several reasons:
- No more over-analysis-paralysis! Something actually gets written!
- By writing whatever comes up, you are releasing feelings of test anxiety and other emotions onto the page, so it no longer takes up your valuable head-space.
- You are shifting the focus of what you’re trying to accomplish: finishing as opposed to being perfect.
Please help yourself and give this a try. Right now! After all, it only takes 5 minutes. Then post your comments below to share the results you get.
Very Important: Can you think of a friend/classmate who’s suffering from writer’s block on the SAT or ACT essay? Share this post with them – you might just save their score!
