How to Help Your Child Succeed on the Sat/Act: The Ultimate Guide for Parents to Sat/Act Success

Copyright © 2013, 2016 by Mark Richman.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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ISBN: 978-1-4759-5051-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4759-5052-6 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012917105

iUniverse rev. date: 08/11/2016

Contents

Introduction

Chapter One About the Author

Chapter Two Why I Wrote This Book

Chapter Three Beginnings

Chapter Four Supports and Tips

Chapter Five A Pupil Reflects

Chapter Six Reading Critically

Chapter Seven Mathematically Speaking

Chapter Eight Do The Write Thing (The Essay)

Chapter Nine Is It Sally and Me, orSally and I?The Grammar Section

Chapter Ten But What About the ACT??

Chapter Eleven The Circle of Success

Chapter Twelve Get Me A Tutor!

Chapter Thirteen Student Views

Chapter Fourteen Make Room for the Kid

Chapter Fifteen Parents Can Help Out: The Circle of (Parenting) Success

Chapter Sixteen That’s A Wrap: Putting It All Together

Appendix

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this book to my beautiful daughter Rachel and her lovely mother, my wife, Sharon.

Your Child Can Survive and Thrive on the SAT and ACT Exams

How To Help Your Child Succeed on the SAT and ACT will serve as your road map to ease you along the often bumpy, unpaved and pothole - filled highway to successful results on these important College entrance exams.

This book has helped thousands of parents greatly improve the SAT and ACT Exam results of their children. It can help you and your children as well.

Discover how easy it is to:

-Increase Scores In All SAT/ACT Exam Areas: Math, Grammar, Writing, Vocabulary, Reading Comprehension, Essay Writing, and Science. Through a unique combination of strategies, guidance, suggestions, networking, using both new as well as traditional techniques, your children will become motivated to study and will even look forward to their exam prep. They will be provided with opportunities for positive outcomes and the building of confidence in a framework of success and excitement.

- Manage Their Study Time and Preparation. Mr. Richman will supply you with a blueprint for successful exam preparation via a structured system of procedures that will answer nearly all of your SAT/ACT preparation questions and will cover nearly every situation that could arise in this critical exam planning.

-Build Pupil Self-Esteem. This book will help you gain the insight necessary to aid your children in increasing their self-esteem, so critically important to their personality development and exam success.

Introduction

You’re getting ready for college. The SAT or ACT is now on your radar screen. What to do? This book, authored by a veteran teacher and SAT/ACT tutor, will serve as your roadmap to help you navigate through the potentially confusing set of problems that many encounter in their how do we best prepare mindset. Remember, we will be discussing the SAT and the ACT. Nearly all colleges accept both exams.

Many go in to take the PSAT (Practice SAT) in grade ten or eleven (and even grades 8 and 9 now) knowing next to nothing about the SAT and ACT. This book will give you ideas on how to best prepare for these exams. It will suggest wonderful resources with which to consult from the literally hundreds of books out there. This book will put the test in perspective. It will expose you to the ideas, suggestions, thoughts, feelings, fears and experiences of current seniors who’ve already been through the whole process as well as the sophomores and juniors who are set to take the journey or who are already on the trip.

There absolutely are strategies and methods that one can and should follow in order to prep for the SAT or ACT, two of the most important tests in one’s academic life. We will show you how to maximize your potential, reduce your anxiety, enjoy learning, improve your mathematics, your writing, reading, and oral presentation skills. You are in a very exciting period of your life and we will help guide you through it!

This book, by a (very) veteran educator, will provide you with unique insight not appearing in most other SAT/ACT Prep Manuals.

Although mainly for parents (and most of the dialogue is directed to them), it can be helpful to teachers, students and tutors as well.

The Introduction to My First Edition ended right here. In My Second Edition, I add to my Introduction with the writing that follows. It has been prepared for the new SAT Exam – that began in March of 2016!

I always wanted to write a book on preparation for SAT and ACT. There is a great need for a book of this nature.

Approximately every 10 or so years, there arises a change in the exam - either SAT or ACT. Colleges still put a great deal of emphasis on exam results in their admissions processes.

I find that as pupils and parents approach the critical junior year in High School, there is a great deal of anxiety over the SAT and ACT exams: Which exam should one be taking? Should both exams be taken?

What is and when do we take the PSAT? What exactly is on these exams? How do we best prepare for these exams? Is there an essay? Can we or should we take these exams more than once?

These are examples of literally dozens of questions that are on the minds of rising juniors and their parents - and when new versions of exams are rolled out, the tension level multiplies by tenfold.

This is one of the main purposes of this revised version of my previous book: How To Help Your Child Succeed on the SAT/ACT.

In this new book we will try to ease your way through the bumpy path that leads to tension - reduction, eventual exam success and ultimately acceptance to the college of your dreams – or at least one that will help lead to happiness and success in life. In the ever – changing college – prep exam environment, it is essential that all concerned parties arm themselves with as much information as possible to succeed.

As of March 2016, the new SAT took effect. It will likely stick around for at least another cycle – perhaps another 11 or so years. The ACT is keeping their exam approximately intact – although they revised the essay – more about this later.

So again, the major purpose of this revised edition is basically to get you ready to take your junior (and sometimes senior) year college entrance exams.

I have all of my pupils take both the SAT and the ACT. Some do better on one exam – some on the other. Some do better on SAT Math, for example, and others on ACT Grammar. Some do better on one exam across the board.

Many colleges do that Superscore bit -They might, e.g., cherry – pick your best Math SAT from the several times you may have taken the exam. In general, with study, exam scores most often increase. At times, a plateau might be reached. However, since there is so much variation among colleges and individual pupil achievement, it is again, strongly suggested that pupils take both major exams – SAT and ACT.

Let’s look at some of the comparative details of the new SAT (2016 version) and the ACT. First let’s look at the Grammar (English, Writing, or Language) sections of these exams. In subsequent chapters we discuss the exact composition of this section of the exam. The new SAT (beginning March 2016) contains 44 questions in 35 minutes (four passages). The ACT gives the pupil 10 more minutes (45) and five passages, totaling 75 questions. The major point is that the SAT and ACT Grammar sections are quite similar. Pupils will need to know of the Standards of English Conventions (basic grammar and punctuation) as well as Expression of Ideas. Preparation here is basically similar: using Big Blue or Big Red – the Bible Prep Books for SAT and ACT respectively (again the color of these books may eventually change as exams evolve) and on - line sites to practice on actual questions.

Also, by using Barron’s (see reference section), pupils most effectively will learn the content on both exams. When students take both SAT and ACT exams, grammar scores can be compared in order to see which might be (partly or even in a large way) better.

Next, let’s compare the Reading or Verbal sections on the new SAT and the ACT. The reading sections will also be somewhat similar. Both no longer have very complicated vocabulary words. On the previous SAT, pupils needed to memorize lists of obscure words to raise scores. This is no longer needed. Vocabulary on both exams is more vocabulary in context" words. A word that might have multiple meanings is referenced. In context, people decide on the meaning. This is not as challenging as it previously was - in that, again, massive word lists no longer need to be studied.

The new SAT Reading Section will be 65 minutes in length, (including five passages on various topics and covering various difficulty levels). There will be 52 questions in this time. The ACT Reading, on the other hand, will be only 35 minutes long, also have varied content for passages and have 40 questions. Topics covered and difficulty level will be similar.

The ACT, with its much shorter timeframe (30 minutes less) with only 12 less questions, is still pretty much a rush game. If one reads relatively quickly, it should not pose a time issue. If one is a slow reader, one might not finish the ACT passages and would need to learn some salvage strategies.

SAT math will tend to be more of a grueling endurance issue than ACT, as one must focus for 30 minutes longer, although with the increased time spent, pupils will need to cover about 12 more questions. There may not be as much of a time crunch to finish (vs ACT), but, again, endurance and focus will be challenged. On the previous version of the SAT, the time frame was similar to this new version, but it was spread over three pieces of 20 or 25 minutes each - with breaks between sections. So here on the new SAT, it’s all presented more at once. In our text, we will delve much further into SAT vs ACT Math and all of the ramifications! Remember, we are still in the introduction!!

SAT reading versus ACT reading? Which one will you do better on? You basically will not be able to tell for sure until you actually take both exams. Often one might result in a much higher score. Try them both!

Next we look at new SAT versus ACT math. On the new SAT there are two sections – namely numbers three and four. Section 3 has 20 non-calculator math questions to be done in 25 minutes. On section 4 there are 38 calculator – active questions to be completed in 55 minutes. So, our new SAT total is: a time of one hour and 20 minutes in order to complete 58 questions.

On the ACT, there are two more questions for 20 less minutes (one hour).

Both exams would be considered more of an achievement type rather than (as on the older SATs) critical thinking motif. On both these exams (perhaps more so on the new SAT) pupils are asked to solve problems (often real-life) based on actual topics that they have (or will) learned in their High School Math classrooms. The actual topics covered on these exams are listed in comprehensive detail in Big Blue and Big Red. Many of these topics are covered in most ninth and tenth grade math classrooms. However, some topics may not be covered until 11th or 12th grade – and for some topics, not (covered) at all. Much is based on the class placement (level) at the home" school.

Students may still do well even without knowledge of every one of these topics, as the tests are both scaled (curved) so that one can get many wrong and still do reasonably well.

Pupils can learn those topics which they may not have had in their classrooms. How? Mostly by receiving tutoring, asking the teachers in school for extra help or by visiting sites such as Khan Academy.com. - which, as of 2016, is heavily involved in free tutoring services for the new SAT.

Again, pupils should take both exams to see which one might be better (in other words, they score higher) for them. On the ACT, calculators are permitted for all questions. Also, on the ACT math, pupils may find that there are many questions that can be handled more easily. Again, this is subject to pupil variation and may only be truly verified by taking both exams.

How to prepare for SAT/ACT Exams? Again the best suggestion would be to do every (or as many as possible) question in the two exam Bibles – Big Blue and Big Red. In addition, one should then go to the two major websites for these exams. Similar preparation should go into the Reading (Verbal) sections on both exams

The essays are in many ways similar but in several other ways quite different. We will cover the essay in major detail shortly!

Chapter One

About the Author

Mark Richman has been teaching for over 43 years. He worked thirty - one of those years in the NYC School System. His first twenty years in NYC were served on the middle school level at JHS 43 (nineteen there and one at JHS 62), in Brooklyn, where he performed as a math teacher and as Dean of Discipline. He then taught for