SAT Advice

AVT

USAFA 2015
10-Year Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2009
Messages
372
Hi, I am a candidate for the class of 2015.

I am very strong academically by being in the top 3% out of a class of 422 with all Honors and APs.

I took the SATs in Nov and got a 1710 w/ 570 CR, 580 M, and 560 W.
I then had a class from Sylvan and raised my scores to 1930 in March w/ 600 CR, 700 M, and 630 W.
I took the test again in May and got a 1920 w/ 590 CR, 700 M, and 630 W.

My class helped me a lot in M and W, but not much in CR.

Does anyone have any advice on how I can improve the 50 points in CR to at least be above average?
 
I would concur.

The SA's all "super score." They take the best and highest. They also have a "formula" that determines for them which is a better score: ACT or SAT. And they're going to give you EVERY benefit they can!!

So...try the ACT and STILL keep after the SAT if you can afford it financially. You can NOT hurt yourself, it can only help!!

Steve
USAFA ALO
USAFA '83
 
Your verbal score will be increased by an increased vocabulary. We liked "Wordly Wise" (use the top two-three levels) By the time you finish all the exercises you will have a good grasp of the words, better than just straight memorization. This is a pretty cheap way to increase your vocabulary skills. They aren't flashy, but they get the job done. After those you could try Jenkins Vocabulary--popular with homeschoolers also.

Some memorization of latin roots could be helpful if you haven't had much exposure to different languages--Spanish and French help to some extent also.

To do well in college, a large vocabulary is pretty much a necessity--as well as excellent grammar skills. Do yourself a favor and learn as much as you can now! The other thing to remember is sometimes they have to soak in awhile before you see those scores go up. Figure out your last possible SAT test you can take, and take that one. My d's didn't really improve until the fall of her senior year, and they had a huge improvement (we had almost given up) She did a lot of vocab (I offered her a financial incentive, BTW) It wasn't until she got to the academy and she found out she was getting the highest grades in her English classes ---she really was just OK in HS writing skills.

I tell people that the English score takes the longest to bring up--so consistently doing those workbooks will pay off. However a great vocabulary is one of the quickest ways you can stand out as a cadet and officer in your everyday conversations. HTH
 
I also agree about the ACT. My son had a lower than he wanted SAT CR score (he tends to be a slow reader and that was the issue with the SAT) but on the ACT he got 34 in English. He is now a Basic at USAFA - Good Luck
 
In the short term, go with the above suggestions.
In the long term, read! Being well read offers huge advantages in both knowledge and communications. Also, studying foreign languages tends to make people think more about their own language. Being able to recognize and use the right words for the job is very benefitial.
It is a lifelong commitment. From what I've tried, it seems to be worth it!

Good luck, and good job on improving that math score!
 
Try the ACT at least once.

my psat 165- pretty bad even for a 10 grader (58, 51, 56)

3 months later, took the act

act- 28= 1890 (by conversion) math 31, english 28, reading 27, and science (i really don't like act's science) 26

i did take 10 act practice test and use several test prep books by princeton review and kaplan b4 taking the act

likewise i did the same with psat (did badly)

obviously i was better suited for act


doesn't hurt to try act
 
What actually raised my CR score a lot was practicing the multiple choice portion of the AP Lang test. For some reason it helped me a lot more than actually studying material designed to improve the CR portion of the SAT.
 
Thank for all of your suggestions.
Wordly Wise sounds interesting, did you mean grades 10, 11, and 12?
Fortunately, I have 6 books to read this summer for AP classes this year.
 
Wordly wise is available through online bookstores or sometimes locally at Barnes and Noble. However, the higher levels might be hard to find. The publisher is at www.epsbooks.com for direct ordering. The top three levels are levels 7, 8 and 9. (don't bother purchasing the answer keys or tests) (get someone to check it for you or do it yourself) It look likes they're about $12.20 for each level. My daughter never got beyond level eight and she got 700 on the CR. I still have the level nine here. The format is 30 lessons of about 17 words each lesson. They average 500 words per book or level. It's pretty intense--but if you can add 2,000 words to your vocabulary that's significant. (that would be doing 4 levels) You learn the exact meaning of the words as you do the workbooks.

A lot of the local private schools incorporate Wordly Wise into the English curriculum. The new Wordly Wise 3000 books have more writing sentences for the exercises which probably appeals more to teachers.

I like the original Wordly Wise --seems more efficient to do it on your own, and there isn't a lot of busy work.

For the reading you really need to get beyond the small amount they assign in high school- I would get some of the Norton Anthologies cheap at thrift stores. British Lit or American Lit is always good for vocabulary. Write your new words on your bookmark and look them up at the end of each stopping point. Joseph Conrad also comes to mind for interesting vocabulary. If you like the author or story- then go to the library and get more by that person, or read the whole book.

If your library has access to the Teaching Company lectures via CD or DVD, pick some you like, listen to the lectures and read the books. They have many different literary themes depending on what you like- Mythology is excellent, and they have some from different eras. (these are highly rated college professors teaching these subjects if you're not familiar with them) The website posts reviews of the different courses----www.teach12.com In the back of each course there is a bibliography with even more books that you can look up!

Also reading a lot of history books or cultural geography will help you with vocabulary also. (go to thrift stores or university bookstores for the sale tables where things are discontinued and usually only about $3!) I find it cheaper than library overdue fines. Both of my kids usually read one of those rolling file carts filled with books every week. I won't say they choose the best literature, but I guess it helps at some point. My older d. said some of the AFA classes had hundreds of pages assigned a day to read, and it still wasn't easy for her, even with all her reading and vocabulary and Latin background. HTH
 
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You may also want to check with your local Middle or Junior High School. Many schools use this program in their reading programs.
 
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