2010 February | WilsonDailyPrep Blog

Archive for February, 2010

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-28

ACTs can be better for people with short attention spans-it is 1 hour less! #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep010 #
This is a great article about the differences between the SATs and the ACTs. #collegboard http://budurl.com/testprep009 #
ACT is curriculum-based, while the SAT is more about reasoning/problem-solving skills http://budurl.com/testprep008 #
Want a new year's resolution you can stick to? Inc. your SAT score by 200 pts! http://budurl.com/testprep007 #
Anybody want to see the a comparison chart of the PSAT, SAT and ACT? #collegeboard #SAT http://budurl.com/testprep006 #
Taking the SATs as an adult is often less accurate in predicting academic ability.http://budurl.com/testprep005 #
QUESTIONS about the SAT timeline, fees, etc.? http://budurl.com/testprep004 #
This whole SAT process was soooo scary! WilsonDailyPrep is awesome! #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep003 #
SEE WHAT YOU SALARY COULD BE if you go to college vs don't go to college. #SAT http://budurl.com/testprep002 #
Quiz to determine your learning style- it could help you study better for the SATs. http://budurl.com/testprep001 #
A fun article on Yale's own "High School Musical" admissions video http://budurl.com/testprep054 #
http://budurl.com/testprep053 #
Here's a NY Times blog with some great info on college Early Admission figures this year #
Great piece on majors and job placement after graduationhttp://budurl.com/testprep052 #
Interesting student Op-Ed piece about recent college campus tourshttp://budurl.com/testprep051 #
Interesting article on the rise of Early Applications to colleges this year http://budurl.com/testprep050 #
Here's a link to a Fortune Magazine article covering recent SAT/ACT competition http://budurl.com/testprep049 #
ACT test dates don't coincide with SAT dates, so students may prepare/register for both. http://budurl.com/testprep045 #
COLLEG EBOARD GIVE ACCOMMODATIONS. See if you qualify. http://budurl.com/testprep048 #

Posted in SAT on Sunday, February 28th, 2010 | No Comments »

SAT Tips Now On Video

SAT tips and ACT tips that you are learning from this blog and beyond are now posted as videos. Laura Wilson will explain in her own words each tip and why it is so important to follow.

Tags: sat question of the day, sat test, test prep
Posted in ACT, SAT, WilsonDailyPrep on Monday, February 22nd, 2010 | No Comments »

Laura Wilson, founder of WilsonDailyPrep, describes her unique formula for scoring well on the SAT and ACT exams. WilsonDailyPrep focuses on teaching their students to study every day. Six questions, six minutes a day is their model for success. They even guarantee a 200 point increase for the SAT test! As a tutor for the past 20 years, Laura really knows what drives kids to study and stay on track for the SAT test. WilsonDailyPrep offers private tutoring, group lessons and a cutting edge online tutoring service that really works! If you would like to learn more about Laura’s unique style of studying for the SAT and ACT test, read about the interview printed in Westchester Magazine.

Tags: collegeboard, sat question of the day, sat test, test prep
Posted in ACT, SAT, WilsonDailyPrep on Monday, February 22nd, 2010 | No Comments »

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-21

Be aware of deadlines! Register early to get a seat at your first-choice testing site.http://budurl.com/testprep045 #
WilsonDailyPrep posted a new blog – Managing College Applications, Stress Free!http://budurl.com/testprep047 #
For success at school set realistic expectations. Aim to potential, not past potential.http://budurl.com/testprep045 #
WilsonDailyPrep is on facebook! Fan us!http://budurl.com/testprep045 #
http://budurl.com/testprep045 #
All WilsonDailyPrep users can now access their preps through facebook. #
Register for the ACT with writing! Many colleges will not accept ACT scores without writing.http://budurl.com/testprep045 #
Running makes you smarter! Get on a treadmill and increase your brainpower!http://budurl.com/testprep046 #
WilsonPrep students voted to donate a pair of llamas through the Heifer Foundation!http://budurl.com/testprep044 #
YOU CAN SHOW UP STANDBY at a testing site. Arrive early with a blank check. http://budurl.com/testprep043 #
Suck on candy during a test – studies show you'll score higher!http://budurl.com/testprep042 #
http://budurl.com/testprep041 #
ENJOY A BREAK after the #PSAT Don't forget testing options- like #ACT #
Always practice for the #SAT and #ACt under TIMED conditions. Check out the silent timer – excellent product! http://budurl.com/testprep039 #
Let us know how the PSAT went! Timing, vocabulary, etc… we want to know everything!http://budurl.com/testprep040 #
Improve Your Business Networking: Feb. 24, 2010: http://wp.me/pLrNU-1J #
Study vocabulary in the bathroom!http://budurl.com/testprep038 #
Freerice.com – vocabulary game helps you study while helping to end world hunger.http://budurl.com/testprep036 #
Score choice is becoming a complicated issue!http://budurl.com/testprep037 #

Posted in SAT on Sunday, February 21st, 2010 | No Comments »

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-14

Problems you may encounter at the #SAT or #ACT testing site! Be wary of bad proctors!http://budurl.com/testprep035 #
LA Times reports, "The College Board waives the fee for low-income students to take it 2x." http://budurl.com/testprep034 #
SAT prep isn't the only thing that gives an advantage to higher income families. http://budurl.com/testprep033 #
A description of what to expect on the ACT writing section. #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep032 #
Are the SATs actually helpful for a college admissions or should it become a extinct? http://budurl.com/testprep031 #
Did the SATs really shape America? #collegeboardhttp //budurl.com/testprep030 #
Check your ACT scores online! #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep029 #
Unless you were tired at the SATs, re-testing alone will probably not inc your score. http://budurl.com/testprep028 #
English grammar is very difficult and it helps to brush up on the rules before the SATs. http://budurl.com/testprep027 #
While studying for the SATs and applying to college, go play in the snow! #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep026 #
Take a look at how different colleges rank in different categories. #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep025 #
The SATs started in 1901, when 973 students took it. 60% applied to Colombia #collegboard http://budurl.com/testprep024 #
On the SATs, If you can eliminate even one choice, it is statistically to your adv. to guess. http://budurl.com/testprep023 #
SAT has stood for two different things in the past and now stands for nothing? http://budurl.com/testprep022 #
While studying for the SATs, I had a 15-min tutor every day to answer questions I had. http://budurl.com/testprep021 #
Training for the SAT/ACT thinking-marathon is like training for any marathon. http://budurl.com/testprep019 #
Increase your SAT/ACT score AND decrease world hunger. #collegeboard #SAT http://budurl.com/testprep018 #
I was nervous about the SATs, but I was better after idiot-proofing myself. #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep017 #

Posted in SAT on Sunday, February 14th, 2010 | No Comments »

SAT I difficulty level

Robert G asked:
Does SAT I difficulty level vary according to test dates?

There has always been rumors that SAT testing content is the easiest around november and january, and hardest around march. Is this just a myth or somewhat truthful?

Tags: Difficulty Level, Sat Testing, Test Dates
Posted in FAQ on Sunday, February 14th, 2010 | No Comments »

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-07

Do you know if you qualify for SAT/ACT accommodations? Check the list. #collegboard http://budurl.com/testprep016 #
The Need for Social Networking: http://wp.me/pLrNU-1C #
If you made a major mistake on the registration portion of your ACT test, you can fix it.http://budurl.com/testprep015 #
Did you know you can take the ACTs as many as 12x (but never more than one/day). http://budurl.com/testprep014 #
I struggled with grammar in school, until I got "English on English." Great for the SATs. http://budurl.com/testprep013 #
Mom would rather talk about sex than tutor her daughter for the SATs. Get someone to help! http://budurl.com/testprep010 #
I wish I knew this when I was taking the SATs – accomodations for people with disabilities http://budurl.com/testprep012 #
The ACT has "score choice" -meaning you decide whether to use the score? #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep011 #
ACTs can be better for people with short attention spans-it is 1 hour less! #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep010 #
This is a great article about the differences between the SATs and the ACTs. #collegboard http://budurl.com/testprep009 #
ACT is curriculum-based, while the SAT is more about reasoning/problem-solving skills http://budurl.com/testprep008 #
Want a new year's resolution you can stick to? Inc. your SAT score by 200 pts! http://budurl.com/testprep007 #
Anybody want to see the a comparison chart of the PSAT, SAT and ACT? #collegeboard #SAT http://budurl.com/testprep006 #
Taking the SATs as an adult is often less accurate in predicting academic ability.http://budurl.com/testprep005 #
QUESTIONS about the SAT timeline, fees, etc.? http://budurl.com/testprep004 #
This whole SAT process was soooo scary! WilsonDailyPrep is awesome! #collegeboard http://budurl.com/testprep003 #
WilsonDailyPrep IS A GREAT WEBSITE for info about test dates for the SATs and ACTs. #
@DASHCk Try one of these books for SAT prep. http://www.wilsondailyprep.com/study-guides/ in reply to DASHCk #
@jjanett Glad we could help. Check out this video for more tips – http://www.wilsondailyprep.com/blog/video-tips/ in reply to jjanett #
SEE WHAT YOU SALARY COULD BE if you go to college vs don't go to college. #SAT http://budurl.com/testprep002 #
Quiz to determine your learning style- it could help you study better for the SATs. http://budurl.com/testprep001 #

Posted in SAT on Sunday, February 7th, 2010 | No Comments »

SAT prep that really works!

Serious Practice for Serious Students:

WilsonPrep’s Recommendations for Supplemental Study Materials

Practicing for any big event is crucial for success. When practicing for a trombone recital, you practice on the trombone, not the piccolo. When practicing for a track meet, you practice sprinting and hurdles, not back flips off a diving board. Practice only makes perfect if it’s the perfect practice! Therefore, when practicing for the SAT or ACT, you need to practice real questions from real tests.

I recommend that all of my students looking for extra study materials visit their high school guidance offices. The guidance office should have available both a free ACT and SAT sent to them by the test makers themselves. If one test isn’t enough (and it never is!), I recommend the following books:

For the SAT:

WilsonDailyPrep Exclusive Math and Verbal Workbooks

With over 500 questions each, WilsonDailyPrep math and verbal workbooks provide the comprehensive practice you need to push yourself and your SAT scores to the next level. The books are divided into question-specific sections so that you can practice and perfect each SAT strategy. Buy now at WilsonDailyPrep.com!

The Official SAT Study Guide

Brought to you by College Board, The Official SAT Study Guide is a giant, bright blue book that not only details the test, but also contains 8 real SATs. Answer keys and score charts are provided, but detailed solutions are not. Students should be sure to look over the questions they missed and realize why their answer is incorrect. By applying the tips and strategies that the WilsonDailyPrep has introduced and reinforced daily, students will engage in deliberate practice when practicing questions and reviewing mistakes. Beginning this spring, the WilsonDailyPrep will host live chats that specifically reference the tests in this book.

The Official SAT On-line Course: www.CollegeBoard.com This online program provides students with an SAT question a day, as well 6 additional tests as well as worksheets. The online course is very similar to the Official Study Guide but it provides plenty of extra materials.

For the ACT:

The Real ACT Prep Guide.

A big red book made available by ACT.org, The Real ACT Prep Guide is available at any bookstore, or online. The book details each of the four sections of the ACT, and includes practice questions throughout the various chapters. At the back of the book are three actual ACTs, answer keys, detailed solutions and score conversion charts.

Tags: act practice test, act prep, sat prep, sat registration, sat test, sat test dates, tutoring service
Posted in SAT on Thursday, February 4th, 2010 | No Comments »

Mission Possible: A 25 minute Essay

Thousands of teenagers across the country will be sweating bullets this summer and early fall. Breaking a sweat has nothing to do with the heat -it has to do with constructing a well-written, proof-read, coherent, legible essay response for College Board. What might seem like Mission Impossible can really be Mission Possible: Crafting a well-written essay in 25 minutes on the SAT.

Writing a stellar, knock-your-socks-off essay in 25 minutes is difficult for an English professor, let alone a nervous teen. However, there are a few tricks up the sleeve of Laura Wilson, founder and president of WilsonDailyPrep, an online tutoring program. The key to SAT success is simple: practice makes perfect! Practicing essay responses will ensure that any student is prepared on test day. But how can you predict the essay question? How will you know what to write about? Laura Wilson’s solution comes from understanding the SAT inside and out. There are patterns found on the essay section -15 patterns to be exact. Heroism, community, conflict, wisdom and sacrifice are just 5 of these circulating essay themes. Students should practice writing essays with these 15 themes, so that on test day, they will have a pre-written essay response at the tips of their fingers -and number two pencils -to work with.

Knowing what to expect on test day takes a bit of the edge off. However, it doesn’t buy you too much time. And time is precious. Laura Wilson offers another helpful hint: Little Children Have Play Sets. This mnemonic device will direct essay writing, especially in high-stress conditions. Often students just ‘jump’ into the essay with no structure and no plan. Students need to take two minutes at the beginning and write down Little Children Have Play Sets on their test booklet. The “L” stands for literature, “C” for current events, “H” for history, “P” for personal and “S” for sports. These are the areas from which to draw supporting examples when writing an essay. So, take two minutes and formulate an answer, an answer with at least two concrete examples from either history, literature, current events, sports, or the student’s personal life.

It’s test day. You unveil the hideous monster of an SAT essay question, and immediately realize it’s a heroism theme. OK – you’ve written this before. You’re ready. You know you should put literary examples, historical examples and you had a great sports example! But you’ve forgotten! You can’t remember when FDR was president. What was the name of that book again? Tick tock. Tick tock.

The most important aspect of preparing for this essay and avoiding the nightmarish situation above is to not only have a pre-written essay prepared ahead of time, but to be an EXPERT with a few key examples. The real key to tackling your mission impossible is to know your examples down cold! How do you do this? Limit your focus. Choose a universal book: know characters, themes, plot. Just one book. This book should be able to address most of the 15 core topics (I recommend To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, or Lord of the Flies). And choose three moments in history – a war, a person and an era. Look over your class notes. Have these three moments carved into your memory. Just three, not an entire timeline! You should be able to fit your book and at least one of your historical moments into an essay. Then, top it off with some Children – current events. Where do you get the current events? You read Time and Newsweek three weeks before the SAT. And, voila! A perfect, 25 minute essay…Mission Impossible made Possible. No sweat!

Tags: act practice test, act prep, sat practice test, test prep
Posted in SAT, WilsonDailyPrep on Thursday, February 4th, 2010 | No Comments »

Test My Brain

Test My Brain is a cool website that provides information about your own brain while providing important research data to psychologists. This site has games of all sorts that result in feedback about your memory and other brain functions. Test My Brain aims to give worthwhile content to users to continue gaining more individuals for their research. The experiments, or games, are approximately 15 minutes long and covers everything from estimating numbers to recognizing faces. Try it!

Knowing how your brain works is interesting to psychologists but it is also information that can help you prepare better for the SAT test. If you know your test taking style you can improve it.

Tags: act practice test, sat practice test, sat prep, sat test, test prep
Posted in SAT on Monday, February 1st, 2010 | No Comments »

WilsonDailyPrep - Online SAT Prep That's Personal