Day before SAT instructions
If you’ve prepped yourself for this test at all, now’s the time to wrap it up and relax.
NOTE: If you haven’t done any prep whatsoever, the only prep you should do the day before the test is read all of the directions a couple times through, including the provided math formulas. You don’t want to waste any official test time doing this. You’ll find directions at the beginning of each section of a practice test. Don’t take a practice test this late! Just memorize the directions then follow the ‘night before’ and ‘day of’ plan below.
Day before (cut-off 6pm):
- Review items you’ve memorized (directions, formulas, special triangles, etc)
- Practice only easy and medium difficulty SAT problems (if you attempt hard problems this close to your test you are likely to stress yourself out). You’ve done a great job preparing by this day, there is not much more you will accomplish by trying to learn new things.
- Review vocabulary that you’ve already memorized – don’t try to learn new words at this point.
Night before:
- Gather your items to bring to the test: admissions ticket, ID, pencils (with decent erasers – we’ve all used those ones that just smear – imagine the horror on test day!), calculator with fresh batteries, a watch with stopwatch feature that does not beep, high-energy snack, directions to test center, and whatever else you need. No matter what the weather is like, bring clothing as if it’s going to be super hot AND super cold in the room (dress in layers).
- Go out to dinner, watch a movie or do anything that will get your mind off the test. Go to bed at a decent hour and DO NOT stay up studying. The most important factor this close to your test is how much rest you get. If you can’t sleep because the test is on your mind, count sheep, listen to Enya — do whatever it takes to distract your mind so you can get some rest! When I was in high school I went night skiing the night before my SAT (good idea) but stayed until they closed (bad idea) and didn’t get to bed until 1.
Morning of test:
- Do your normal before-school ritual — shower, workout, music . . . whatever. If your ritual is to jump out of bed at the last minute and run out the door – don’t do that on the morning of the SAT!
- Eat breakfast whether you usually do or not.
- Practice a handful of EASY SAT questions (just 5-10 minutes worth). Don’t even check your answers! You’re just trying to get your brain going so when the test starts, it’s not the first problem you’ve seen!
- Plan to arrive 30 minutes before the test. I’ve heard stories of students going to the wrong testing center. Don’t make it stressful by having to run yellow lights. Leave early!
- Don’t listen to any advice from other students as you chat before the test (“hey, I heard the answer (D) appears most on the test” or “My SAT class said you should guess if you can rule the answers down to blah blah blah”). You’ve got a plan – stick to it!
I’ve never heard a successful adult quote their SAT score (although you will meet some losers in college that will — don’t be one of them). This test will be over in a matter of hours and you’ll wonder what the big deal was all about.
Remember, the SAT is nothing more than a test. Your job is to stay cool and do your best. That’s it! Your future is unwritten, regardless of your SAT score.
Regards,
Jason McDonald
P.S. Remember, if you don’t do your best, there are still several test dates as options even for seniors. So, seriously, don’t sweat it. Now that the pressure’s off, go kick some butt!
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