The SAT is probably the most important test in a young person’s life. Getting a good score on your SAT will greatly boost your chances of getting into a good college. I do not wish to downplay the importance of your GPA or of community involvement, but let’s face it: the closer a certain number is to 2400, the better your chances are of getting a good education and a good job in the future.
SAT high scorers are made, not born. Getting a good verbal score means that you read a lot, and therefore have a good vocabulary. Getting a good math score means that you’ve been doing a lot of math lately, and acing the writing portion (known as the SAT II Writing back when I took it) is indicative of having a writing habit, which usually comes from enjoying reading. People who claim that the SAT cannot be studied for, or who seem to be natural high scorers, tend to have daily habits that are similar to SAT preparation. These habits are also conducive to general academic success.
It is the verbal and writing portions that I will focus on, because the general consensus is that these two are harder to study for than the math segment. I feel especially qualified to speak on these left-brain sections because I scored 800s on both of them without intensive studying. How did I do it? The key word is reading. As clichéd as it may sound, if you don’t read, you won’t succeed, at least not on your SAT.
Many teens today feel that they don’t have the time to sit down with a book. Yet many of these same kids have the time to play video games or use chat. These habits are not only idle, but they are destructive to your sense of language. During high school, while helping fellow students with their essays, I noticed that some had typed “ur” instead of “your/you’re”. When you’re in a testing situation, you won’t have a lot of time to proofread everything you write. You’ll save yourself a lot of time by getting into the habit of using proper English.
Moreover, it’s not really just how much you read, but what you read. Certain authors use SAT words gratuitously and write pretty interesting things. I’m talking about Vladimir Nabokov. He doesn’t write in English, but every translation I’ve read of his work contains at least 20 SAT words per page. If you’ve been following the Michael Jackson trial, you’ll love Lolita as well as Ada. Science fiction buffs hoping for high verbal scores should put away the anime and read the works of Brian Aldiss, Kim Stanley Robinson, and K.W. Jeter, most of which are as densely packed with SAT words as Nabokov’s novels. Dan Brown and his ilk are definitely not good for building your SAT skills.
Taking Spanish and Japanese for your language requirements are fine, but Latin and Greek will really help you build your vocabulary. Many English words, especially the highfalutin ones that the SATs include, are based on Latin and Greek roots. For example, library comes from liber, the Latin word for book. If your high school does not offer either of these great languages, you can find many internet sites that will help you learn. You don’t need to know a lot of grammar, just vocabulary.
Practicing writing is a great way to integrate new words into your vocabulary, as well as improving your command of language. If you have a crush, write a love poem for him or her. Challenge yourself by working on a sonnet or a pantoum, or liberate yourself with free verse. Change up the poem type each day. You don’t have to give them to anyone. If you have a blog, do not slip into internet slang. Write sharp, focused essays on the meaning of life, on partying, or about anything you like. A good thing to do is to write either an essay or a structured poem every day in your journal. Keeping a journal is a very good idea.
To boost your verbal skills, make sure that you read for at least 15 minutes a day, and that your overall consumption of media like instant messenger, video games, and TV is less than the amount of vocabulary-building reading and structured writing you do per diem. Reading and writing are fun! The most important thing is to integrate these intellectual activities into your entertainment, so that you don’t feel like you’re studying. Unfortunately, this is unavoidable with math, unless you cultivate a love for physics and engineering, neither of which I am knowledgeable about. Save your ‘studying strength’ for the math portion, and just slowly replace your electronic media consumption with literature. Good luck on your SATs, and I wish you the best of luck in getting into the college of your choice.
