Over the course of 15 years in the test prep industry, I’ve learned that there are two key elements to how you should go about choosing your Digital SAT and ACT test dates.
1) You should schedule your tests well ahead of time.
2) You should pick your dates while weighing several competing factors. And one of those crucial considerations is the importance of keeping up your energy and progress over the course of what will likely be 2-3 test sittings.
As my previous posts have noted, there are many reasons to take a break from the Digital SAT or ACT before jumping back into it. Those valid reasons include finals, summer activities and travel, and other time-consuming life events.
But once you’ve taken one of those much-needed breathers from test prep…how do you find the discipline and the energy to reconnect with your test-taking regimen? That’s what we’ll tackle today.
If you feel unexcited about the idea of putting your nose to the grindstone after really unplugging during winter break, rest easy: I’ve found that even the most dedicated students occasionally go through periods where they have to dig deep to find the will. And today I’m bringing you the tips that have helped my students to get back in the saddle and achieve the amazing scores they were hoping for.
Article Contents
B. Tips for getting back into test prep
2. Don’t beat yourself up if your score has gotten lower.
3. Double up your prep (for 2-4 weeks).
4. Return to your normal pace of studying.
5. Should you keep taking mock tests?
C. Conclusion
Watch this post as a video:
1) Get back into SAT/ACT studying with a mock test.
Chances are that certain concepts, facts, or problem-solving strategies faded from your memory while you were having snowball fights, hitting the beach, or spending time with family.
If you’re prepping for the ACT, in particular, your ability to move quickly enough through the test might have taken a hit—an important factor on this fast-paced test.
So, today is the day to take an honest look at your status with a mock test. You need a real assessment of how you’re scoring post-vacation: which lessons are still fresh enough to be useful to you, and which material you’ll need to review.
2) Forgive yourself if you score lower than before.
It’s quite normal for your mock test score to have taken a bit of a dip while your mind was elsewhere. I've seen students come back from holiday 3 ACT composite points or 100 Digital SAT points lower!
Yes, it might feel disheartening to have taken a step backwards instead of forwards, but don't be too hard on yourself. The fact is: if you learned it once, you can relearn it much more quickly…and because our retention of a given fact/idea/strategy increases with repetition, the knowledge is likelier to stay put in your brain this time around!
3) Catch up by doubling up.
Now that you know where you are and where you need to get to, it’s time to catch up with a temporary mini-sprint. I recommend spending your first 2-4 weeks back at your desk putting in TWICE the amount of effort that you were putting in prior to break. If you met with a tutor once a week before, meet with them twice a week to get back in the groove. Drill twice as many weekly problem sets to refresh your memory, even on topics you learned a while ago. And use your incorrect answers from your most recent mock test to make a Things to Remember List. This will set you up to relearn all the concepts that fell through the cracks during your time off.
If this sounds unpleasant, don’t worry: this accelerated pace doesn’t have to last forever. Because next, you get to….
4) Return to your normal pace of studying for the ACT or SAT.
Once you feel yourself getting back to your pre-vacation competency, lower the intensity back down to the pace that you’d been at before break started. We want you to be able to sustain your progress without burning out before your next test.
5) Should you keep taking mock tests?
It’s impossible to overstate how much mock testing can boost your score! (That’s why I so ardently encourage my students to use them.) But remember that it’s not enough to just mindlessly take mock test after mock test; you also have to process your results the right way if you’re really going to boost your score. So be sure to thoroughly review each test you take and use it to add your problem areas to your personal Things To Remember List.
Conclusion
If you’ve ticked off the five steps I just listed out, you should be back in “go” mode and operating at your best in no time! This five-step plan works wonders for my one-on-one tutoring students, and it will do the same for you.
If you’d like some extra guidance but are more of a DIY learner, check out my at-home study bundles, which give you everything you need to ace the Digital SAT or ACT on your own!
