Learning SAT® by yourself?

[Ann Ton]

I want to take SAT next year, however, I don't know where to start. I have the official SAT study guide now. I'm also learning the 100 common SAT words but I don't know if learning words is a good way to start?

*I'm not a native speaker but I'm currently studying in Canada (I have studied here for 6 months) . I will be learning in grade 11 this year. I really want to go to an US college*

Any advices for SAT beginners?
Thanks in advance

[Hakan Can]

Hi everybody

[Mathwhiz]

I found a site: www.perfect800.com. They offer hundreds of free SAT Math questions, and you can sort by difficulty and question type, so you can really pick problems that work for you. They also have leveling up and challenges which give it a video game like feel. It's awesome!

[Starcatcher]

Yes, you definitely could learn the SAT by yourself as long as you have the right learning material and tools. To help the self-studying students to stay focused on their SAT preparation, StarCatcher created an online program called "SAT self training kit". It provides all the learning materials and tools that act like a private SAT tutor to help the students to study more efficiently, but at much lower cost (just at $399) . You may check it out at http://www.northstarelearning.com/sat-self-training-kit for more details.
I took this program last year and it helped me to scored 2310 for my SAT.

[Testguru]

I suggest you make use of the EZ Solutions SAT/ACT books and get the Official Guide.

[Delicia]

Dear Sir,

My native language is English. I am preparing for the upcoming GRE exams and in all excitement I registered for this program. However, in my opinion it does cater to my personal needs at this time. On that note I have not been doing the online assignments. I have already paid for physical tutoring which is very time consuming. Thanks for your deep concern but I am doing okay. On that note, please stop sending the online assignments.

Thanks,
Delicia

[Testguru]

Like I mentioned earlier, it's very much possible to ace the test by self studying - I suggest you make use of the EZ Solutions SAT/ACT books and get the Official Guide.

[Mattoneiljr]

I would suggest using memowiz, it's getting very popular and it is much better than all the word-lists and the dozens of pretenders out there...

You should also know the root words, some prefixes and suffixes...

[Em2375]

I have a couple of suggestions for independent Verbal Prep:

First, you need to set aside some time every day to study for the SAT -- it is not a test you can cram for.

Second, keep a running list of vocabulary. Try to read challenging materials on a regular basis, even 10-15 minutes per day, and make sure you write down every single word you don't know.

For an overview of the skills tested on Critical Reading, as well as some suggestions for how to study, I'd suggest you look at http://ultimatesatverbal.blogspot.com/p/how-to-study-for-sat-critical-reading.html

A review book such as Princeton Review or Barron's may help you understand the different kinds of wrong answer choices, but I would suggest that you not do the passages in those books -- very often you cannot use a strict process of logic to determine the answers, whereas the SAT is set up so that you can always reason your way through the questions. Use those books to understand how the test is put together, and then focus strictly on the College Board Guide.

For writing, start by looking at http://ultimatesatverbal.blogspot.com/p/sat-grammar-rules.html. It'll give you a good overview. You may want to get a copy of The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar. It covers pretty much every rule that shows up on the test, along with comprehensive explanations of each one as well as its application to the test. Plus it has a ton of exercises that teach you "clues" to look for to identify errors. For the essay, look at "Write the SAT Essay Right" by Laura Wilson and Amie Whigham. It has a ton of suggestions that are very easy to implement and has lots of examples of essays at different score levels.

[Prepst]

If you have the discipline to self-study, it's definitely more effective than shelling out thousands and signing up for prep courses. Do as many real tests as you can (blue book or 10real SATs). And review those you got wrong carefully and understand why you got them wrong. You have plenty of time to prep and improve you score.

Good Luck!