By Admin, BuyLocalBG.com, BuyLocalBg@gmail.com/
Monday, October 27th, 2014 12:00 PM CST
It’s that time of year when high school students are preparing for their ACT exam. Here are a few of our favorite strategies students learn when they attend a Bluegrass Learning ACT prep class:
- General exam tip: The ACT is a formal test, therefore it is very predictable in how questions and answers are structured. The test is written in active voice syntax. That means the questions and answers are written in the shortest, most specific way, with the most important information coming first. For example, If you get a question asking about the character Jon, the correct answer might be “Jon ran the race”. If you see 1-2 answer choices written in passive voice, like “The race in which Jon ran”, those answers are almost always incorrect.
- Science test: The biggest concern our students have when they come to a class is running out of time on the science test. Here is our number one tip to speed you up and improve your ACT science score: Before you look at any questions, analyze all the graphs, tables and charts. Understand what is being measured then annotate the high points, low points, and where the largest changes occur in the data. Mark on the test and denote the data trend. Is it increasing, decreasing, constant or varying? If it is a line graph, circle anywhere the lines cross. If you do this data analysis BEFORE going to the questions, you have answered at least 50% of the test and you haven’t even had to read any of the passages! This tip will save you A TON of time and will help you finish the test.
- Reading test: Know how to annotate well and mark up the passage. Circle proper nouns, italicizied phrases and anything in quotes. If you see a list of items, things, feelings or actions, write “List” in the margin. There WILL be questions about these things and if you have it marked, it saves you time and allows you to finish the test.
- English test: Don’t be afraid to select “No change”. That is the correct answer about 5-6 times on each ACT test. They often bunch those up with 3-4 consecutive questions having a correct answer of “no change”. It’s psychological warfare! They are trying to get you to second guess yourself.
- Math test: The other three sections of the ACT are not really content tests. Math is different. You must know formulas and standard algorithms. If you are currently taking AP calculus or any other high level math class, you MUST brush up on what you learned in Algebra 1 and Geometry. Many high achieving students come to us because they are disappointed with their ACT math scores. They took basic classes 2-4 years ago and have forgotten much of the material the ACT tests.
We hope that helps! If you would like to learn many more great tips and strategies about the ACT, we would love to have you join us for a class. We meet at local high schools on Saturdays leading up to each ACT test. Our classes are taught by Mr. Steve Patton, a retired Kentucky high school teacher. Our next series of classes begins on November 8th at Greenwood High School. Register early! We only accept 20 students in each class. You can see all dates and register for classes by visiting www.bluegrasslearning.com or by calling us at 270-925-2148.
