SAT prep for 7th Grader

[Anonymous]

My 7th grader is taking the SAT in January as part of the Johns Hopkins CTY program. For others whose kids have done this what kind of prep, if any, did you do? I am not focused on improving his score or anything like that, I just want to make sure he is familiar with the types of questions, test taking strategies, etc. so that it is a positive experience. Any good resources out there that you can recommend?

[Anonymous]

My advice - do what my parents did with me when I took the SAT as a 7th grader for the same program. Just tell your child that it's impressive that they qualified to take the test as a 7th grader and you are proud of them regardless of what score they get. Then let the score fall where it may.

[Anonymous]

You might want to buy one of the SAT prep books and let your child look at it. No big deal. BTW, our daughter qualified last year and participated in the Duke TIP program (similar to CTY, but the creative writing class offered sounded more interesting to her). It was one of the best experiences she's ever had!

[Anonymous]

We bought a test prep book and my husband went over the types of questions with our children (we've done this twice). The books had mini tests at the end of each section which we graded and then discussed. We kept the review low key (20 minute sessions) but did have each child practice taking a full test at home first. The SAT verbal sections are 'tricky' so we definitely found them worth reviewing. We did not think a test prep class was appropriate - too scary and full of high schoolers. Of course we told them the scores did not matter in the slightest and just to breathe deep and feel proud that they were picked to take a high school test. Both kids qualified for CTY (the eldest enjoyed several summer programs - the younger was smart enought to refuse 'summer school' as he quickly identified it). Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Thanks - great advice from all!

[Anonymous]

The more times a child takes the test, the higher the score. Not sure how it is done now but you might want to look into and discuss with them how it is scored - whether it's better to guess or not.