If you’re the parent of a junior in high school, you know the intensity and pressure associated with this much-feared school year. Like a rite of passage, the experience is discussed in anxious exchanges between initiates and known to unify parents in commiseration. So much stress! Such high stakes!! It’s clear that the experience is taxing on students and parents alike.

There is much to know as you navigate the situation.

First, all U.S. colleges and universities accept the SAT and ACT equally without preference, so if your child feels the SAT is outrageously difficult, check out the ACT! You may find a winner there.

Second, almost all U.S. colleges and universities allow you to utilize Score Choice‒ the system of choosing the test dates/results you’d like schools to see while hiding any you’d like to remain secret. As a result, you rarely need to feel that “This test is everything! Every school will see it!” You can take the test several times and only submit what you wish~ no worries.

Now, how might one best prepare? Here are three simple pointers.

1. Practice perfectly.

Perfect practice makes perfect. So don’t assume that simply by cranking out practice sections you will improve.

Start with guidance from an academic coach to learn perfect form: What does it look like to attack the Critical Reading section with skill and pace? What are the steps to locking down Grammar knowledge? What mindset and techniques are need to navigate the Math sections? Set a tone of excellence early.

2. Quantity time.

There’s no way around the fact that earning a dream score requires serious energy and emotional commitment. It also requires what every teenager seems to lack these days: time.

Fitting test prep around your typical commitments is a trick you need to pull off through careful time management and organizational skills. And improving scores requires hours of effort each week (if you want to catalyze the improvement process, a BrainStorm tutor is your best bet).

3. Test simulations.

There’s no substitute for full-length, real deal test run-throughs. It’s one thing to see improvement one section at a time at your kitchen table; it’s another to string those sections together in one big sitting at a testing center!

If you live nearby, remember that BrainStorm offers full-length test simulations every Saturday & every Sunday of the entire school year (@ 8am). No sign-up necessary! You can just rock up, take an SAT or an ACT, and receive your results with analysis within 48 hours.

If you follow these steps, you can find a cost-effective and incredibly effective system to increasing SAT scores.

This entry was posted in Brain Food, BrainStorm’s resource center for parents.
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