Here is a list of some useful resources for SAT and ACT study.
SAT Prep New York Blog Check out my new blog! I keep it updated with news about testing and college admissions, study resources for high school students, and more! Your comments and feedback are welcome, too.
collegeboard.com - the organization which administers the SAT. Their website has all the official information about the tests including dates, fees, etc. I do not recommend their tips for the test or any of their official study guides: You can be sure that they are not going to give away any secrets! However, you can get general information about what sorts of material is on all of the tests.
ets.org - parent organization of the collegeboard. They write the SAT and also all sorts of tests, not just for college entrance.
act.org - The alternative test to the SAT is the ACT. Some students score higher on this somewhat more straight-forward test of academic achievement. Check out sample questions and see which colleges accept this test.
princetonreview.com - The Princeton Review has tons of resources on their site ranging from info on the tests to study tips to college choosing information and links. Even if you just study at home with one of their commercially available texts, there is online help for you on their site.
kaptest.com - Stanley Kaplan, the original SAT prep king, helped thousands of kids get into the college of their dreams. Starting as a lone tutor in his parents' basement many years ago, he eventually developed this huge test prep company. They also have lots of links and info at their site. (Dont forget to take a look at how expensive the courses and tutoring services are at these two test prep companies compared to Boston Academic Tutors™!)
fairtest.org - the anti-SAT organization, with lots of research and links to support their contention that the tests are unfair and less than useful as a tool to predict success in college.
fastweb.com - college financial aid and scholarship central. Once you input all your personal data and sign up, they will bombard you with scholarship info on a regular basis.
11 Practice Tests for the New SAT and PSAT (Princeton Review Series) by Princeton Review
Any Collegeboard publication that includes REAL SAT tests is useful for the practice tests, themselves. I would not follow their strategy advice, though. For that, follow the companies who make their living by beating the SAT, not making it!
Cracking the NEW SAT by Adam Robinson. Adam Robinson is one of the founders of The Princeton Review who has recently spun off his own competing test prep business, as well. By the way, you don't need to pay extra for the version of any of these books that includes a CD-ROM. Since you will be taking a paper-and-pencil test, you will probably do best to prepare the low-tech way with a book and a pencil.
Kaplan New SAT (Paperback)
Kaplan's PSAT
Tips for book buying:
Check out the prices and reviews on Amazon.com for best prices and for ideas on what is popular and what other students think of the books. Also, don't leave your text buying to a month before the SAT. You will find area bookstores sold out of the best/most popular texts. For students studying for the SSAT or ISEE tests, be aware that the big test prep publishers such as Kaplan, The Princeton Review and Petersons recycle their texts - word for word! - from one year to the next, so you might want to buy last year's text online for a good discount over the "new" edition. SAT prep books also tend to be mostly recycled material. Just make sure that your textbook applies to the new SAT, from 2004 on.
A number of publishers offer new and classic novels which feature SAT-level vocabulary, highlighting and defining the words so students don't have to run to a dictionary every page. It is a great way to build vocabulary while enjoying a story.
Kaplan's classics collection includes: The Scarlet Letter, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Wuthering Heights, The Tales of Edgar Allan Poe, Frankenstein, The Ring of McAllister (Simon and Schuster Publisher)
The Wizard of Oz Vocabulary Builder, by Mark Phillips, A. J. Cornell Publications 2003
(This book is conveniently 365 pages long, making it ideal for planned long-term study: Read a page/day for a year.)
Simon's Saga for the SAT I Verbal (Paperback) by Philip Geer
Vocabulary Cartoons II: Building an Educated Vocabulary With Sight and Sound Memory Aids (Paperback) by Sam Burchers, Max Burchers, Bryan Burchers
Podcasts
Got an iPod? Podcasts are a great new way to learn on the go. A number of websites offer free SAT vocabulary podcasts for download. Here are some good links to get started:
The Princeton Review vocab minute podcasts (all free, junior and senior levels):
http://www.princetonreview.com/vocabminute/default.asp
Get the lyrics here:
http://tprvocabminutelyrics.blogspot.com/
Hip-hop SAT vocabulary podcasts (a couple freebies on website):
http://www.flocabulary.com/vocabularysample.html
Grammarbook.com
Students can try the interactive quizzes, using ABCD multiple-choice which is very close to the SAT style of questions (and close enough to the ACT question style). There is also a section on rhetorical usage which is very helpful for writing the essay and for the less straight-forward grammar questions on either test.
Big Dog Grammar Drills
Fun, interactive, well-organized grammar drills.
Notorious Confusables
Check out this website for two great pages of "Notorious Confusables": homonyms that are often confused. Cute illustrations and interactive.
College Goals College Goals is an experienced college admissions and higher education consulting practice. Their experts work with students anywhere in the world, guiding them through the college search and application process.
Acing the College Application: How to Maximize Your Chances for Admission to the College of Your Choice by Michele A. Hernandez, Ed.D., Ballantine Books. Ms. Hernandez has made a career out of getting top students into top schools, charging upwards from $10,000 per student for her elite college counselling. The book is a good place to start if you haven't got Michelle to personally guide your student.
The Fiske Guide to Getting into the Right College by Edward B. Fiske - I include Fiske here because he has some good points to offer on the overall college choosing and applications process, but I do not agree with his contention that the SAT can be just as effectively studied for without formal prepping. My personal results with students and the collective results of schools like The Princeton Review prove him wrong on that count.
Colleges that Change Lives by Loren Pope - Pope really hates the Ivy League and other top prestige schools, but if you can forgive him that, he has done his homework and presents a very compelling case for under-recognized colleges in every part of the country that accept a wider range of achievers.
The Insiders' Guide to Colleges by Yale Daily News Staff. This is the one that really gives you the low-down on what it is like to live and study at many of the most popular colleges and universities in this country.
U.S. News and World Report annual guide to colleges, available year-round at bookstores such as Barnes & Noble.
