SAT Success

2013 - 2014

Objectives
Understand the SAT Learn the techniques for getting your best score Practice the techniques

Understanding the SAT

Content Structure Scoring

Content
Critical Reading
Sentence Completions Passage Based Reasoning

Math
20 Questions 18 Questions (multiple choice, grid-ins) 16 Questions

Writing
Correcting Errors, Sentences, Paragraphs Essay

Structure
All questions are NOT created equal!!
Some are Easy Some are Medium Some are Hard

How are the Questions Structured?

Every group of Math questions and every group of Sentence Completion questions can be divided into thirds by difficulty. For example:
Easy 1234567 Medium 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Hard 15 16 17 18 19 20

How are the Questions Structured?

Easy 1234567 Medium 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Hard 15 16 17 18 19 20

On the easy third, the average person gets all the answers right. The answers that seem right to the average person are actually the right answers On the medium third, the average persons hunches are right only some of the time. On the hard third, the average persons hunches are almost always wrong
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The Nature of SAT Questions

Remember: All Questions are Not Created Equal!!

Easy

Medium

Hard

Another Perspective on SATs Hard Questions

Scoring
The SAT is not scored like any test youve taken (from Kindergarten to present)
You are rewarded for right answers, but penalized for wrong answers

So, the way you approach this test is different from any other test youve taken

You try to get as many questions right as possible, as few questions wrong as possible, and omit the remainder of the questions
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Scoring
You dont have to answer all the questions on the Math portion of the SAT to get a good score:
To get a score of 350 400 450 500 550 560 600 650 700 750 800 You Need (raw points) 5 10 17 24 30 31 35 42 47 50 54
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Scoring
You dont have to answer all the questions on the Critical Reading portion of the SAT to get a good score:
To get a score of 350 400 450 500 550 560 600 650 700 750 800 You Need (raw points) 9 15 23 30 36 38 44 51 57 62 67

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Scoring
You dont have to answer all the questions on the Writing portion of the SAT to get a good score:
To get a score of 350 400 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 800 You Need (raw points) 13 19 26 32 38 45 51 57 62 67
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Techniques for Getting Your Best Scores

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The BIG Technique:

The Process of Elimination
Eliminating wrong answer choices
3. The capital of Afghanistan is (A) (B) (C) (D) (E) Paris Sydney Philadelphia Kabul Louisville

Remember: Finishing the SAT is not the goal -- getting the right answers is! 15

Guessing Technique
If you can eliminate at least one wrong answer choice then you should consider guessing.
For each right answer Ill give you one Dollar - $1.00 = 1 raw point For each wrong answer, you give me a Quarter

- $0.25 = 1/4 raw point

4. Xxxx ____ xx___xxx. (A) ????? : ????? (B) ????? : ????? (C) ????? : ????? (D) ????? : ????? (E) ????? : ?????

1. Xxxx ____ xx___xxx. (A) ????? : ????? (B) ????? : ????? (C) ????? : ????? (D) ????? : ????? (E) ????? : ?????

2. Xxxx ____ xx___xxx. (A) ????? : ????? (B) ????? : ????? (C) ????? : ????? (D) ????? : ????? (E) ????? : ?????

3. Xxxx ____ xx___xxx. (A) ????? : ????? (B) ????? : ????? (C) ????? : ????? (D) ????? : ????? (E) ????? : ?????

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Sentence Completions:
Technique for Getting Right Answers
One blank:
Cover up the answer choices Look for key words in the sentence Get a feel for the tone of the sentence (positive, negative) Write your own answer in the blank space before looking at the answer choices Uncover the answer choices one by one and deal with each in turn; circle possibilities, put a line through wrong choices

Two blanks
Cover up the answer choices Look for key words in the sentence Get a feel for the tone of the sentence (positive, negative) Write your own answers in the blank spaces before looking at the answer choices Uncover the answer choices one by one and deal with each in turn; circle possibilities, put a line through wrong choices Try to eliminate 1st or 2nd word that doesnt make sense
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Sentence Completions:
Technique for Getting Right Answers
1. While some dancers at the ball were as smooth as professionals, others were clearly still ---- in their movements. (A) graceful (B) able (C) agile (D) uncertain (E) despondent 2. Now that the factory has been ----, robots do most of the work. (A) accredited (B) isolated (C) fortified (D) inspected (E) automated 3. A ---- theme in the authors account of slavery is the degrading and ---- effect of the living conditions slaves were forced to endure. (A) recurrent . . soporific (B) pervasive . . dehumanizing (C) persistent . . innocuous (D) controversial . . demeaning (E) prominent . . alluring

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Critical Reading Passage Techniques

Read the italicized portion at the top Go immediately to the questions and, where applicable, identify where the answers are found in the passage. Read all of the first paragraph of the passage and the first two sentences of each succeeding paragraph Read the entire last paragraph, especially the last sentence of the paragraph. Use the Process of Elimination to answer the questions. (Remember: Easy Medium Hard)
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Easy-Medium-Hard Questions in Critical Reading

The Critical Reading Passage questions are all mixed up in terms of their level of Difficulty. Fortunately we know what the Easy, Medium, and Hard questions look like:
Easy There are 2 types
Main Idea (The primary purpose is . . . . The main idea of the passage is . . . ) Vocabulary in Context (As used in line 14, the word romantic most nearly means . . .)

Medium There are 2 types

Recognizing a paraphrase (Another way of saying something; a different way of saying the same thing. The correct answer will paraphrase a statement in the passage, not give a direct quote). Attitude, Mood, Tone (The authors attitude toward ___ can be described as ____; The tone of the passage can be described as . . . .

Hard There are 2 types

Inference (It can be inferred from the passage that. . . , The author mentions _____ to show _____. . .) Comparison questions (How does the information presented in Passage 1 compare with the information presented by the author in Passage 2?) 20

Math Techniques for Getting Right Answers

80-90% of all SAT math problems can be solved using one of these 3 approaches:
1. Use the formulas in the Reference Information Box 1. Backsolving Use the test answers
Example: If 44 is the average (arithmetic mean) of x, x, x, 35, and 65 then x = (A) 40 (B) 42 Notice that the numbers are in numerical order (C) 44 (D) 48 (E) 50

3. Plugging In Use your own answers

Example: The sum of four consecutive positive even integers is z. In terms of z, what is the sum of the two middle integers?

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

(z-12)/4 (z-6)/2 2z + 6 z/2 (z2 3z)/4

Notice the variables in the answer choices

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Math Techniques
100o

150o

xo

xo

xo

xo 4 r 1

xo s xo

yo xo yo

75o
3 1

xo

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Math Techniques
120o zo

zo
xo zo

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Increasing Your Math Score By 50 Points!

Your approach to the section with the Grid-ins will help you boost your math score by 50 points This section follows the rule of Easy, Medium and Hard, but in a slightly different way.
Easy 1 2 3 9 10 11 12 Medium 4 5 6 13 14 15 Hard 7 8 16 17 18

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Essay Technique
Take a sheet of 8 x 11 paper and on one side list works of the literature read in high school, together with what the major themes of each book. Short story, or poem were. On the reverse side of the paper, list 10 major life experiences (5 Good experiences and 5 Bad Experiences) and the lessons learned from each of these experiences. These items will provide examples you can use on any SAT essay
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Essay Technique
The Structure of the Essay
Introductory Paragraph
Agree or Disagree with the Prompt Give 2 reasons why you agree or disagree

Supporting Paragraph #1
State the first reason why you agree or disagree with the prompt Use 2 or 3 good examples to support your reason

Supporting Paragraph #2
State the second reason why you agree or disagree with the prompt Use 2 or 3 good examples to support your reason

Concluding Paragraph
Summarize by restating why you agree or disagree with the prompt and the two reasons you gave above
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Practice the Techniques

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Questions?

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