The practice SAT will take place on Oct. 11, for juniors and sophomores, and for juniors it determines if they qualify for the National Merit Scholarship. Most students dread this day, but to make it a little more bearable, use these tips and tricks.
The PSAT consists of three separate sections: reading, writing and math; with the math section consisting of two portions: a non-calculator and calculator portion.
A tip for the math section: do the grid questions first. Usually, those questions appear at the end of the test and take up the most amount of time, considering they do not have answer choices. Doing them first saves people if they need to guess since it is much easier to guess on a multiple-choice question than on a grid one.
The most helpful trick for the reading section: when running out of time with one passage left, do not read the entire passage. Instead, read the beginning sentence of each paragraph to get the main idea of that section, then go straight to the questions. This saves time and ensures that you finish the test within the 60 minute limit.
Revising and editing cover the majority of the writing and language section, if anyone struggles with English, their efforts should focus on the reading section. Since people use language and grammar in their daily lives, the writing section comes easier.
The calculator portion of the math section will have harder questions, however, most people tend to have a harder time with the no calculator section, since they receive no help. So, if anyone struggles with math, practice the no calculator section.
A trick for the math section, always underline or circle what the question asks for. This saves time and allows for complete concentration on what the questions want.