Greetings, autodidacts! This is Part One of a resource guide for those ambitious students who have decided to take matters into their own hands and self-study for the SAT. The books cost money. The rest is free and readily available on the internet.
This guide has four parts to it: General Info/Intro (this!), Critical Reading, Writing, and Math. I will present each part in its own separate post. As you can see, this is a work in progress!
Did I forget something? Let me know by leaving a comment or sending an email!
(2) INTERNET – LEARNING THE BASICS
(1) BOOKS
- An Official Must-Have: The “Blue Book”
If you can only purchase one book, then I recommend that you buy The Official SAT Study Guide. This book is published by the Collegeboard and offers the best practice money can buy (IMHO). The book shares some basic tips and strategies, but I use the book almost exclusively for its practice tests. The Official SAT Study Guide is also known as the “Blue Book” or “BB” for short. The most recent publication to date (2nd ed.) includes ten tests, while the 1st ed. has eight tests. Note1: The tests numbered 2-8 in the first edition are the same seven tests (in respective order) as the ones numbered 4-10 in the 2nd edition. Note2: Click here for the errata (list of corrections). Note3: Solutions and explanations can be found here.
  The Official SAT Study Guide |
- My Favorite Test Prep Guide
When I tutor a student, I use a test prep book alongside the Blue Book in order to cover key content, fill in gaps, and practice strategy. My personal favorite is Maximum SAT. There has been a great deal of debate over whether or not a person should use a book other than the Blue Book to prepare for the test. In my opinion and in my experience, a solid test prep book allows students to both master content and practice various test-taking strategies. I love Maximum SAT, because it provides students with an excellent base in each section of the SAT and encourages practice with real problems from the Blue Book (although it assigns problems from the 1st ed. and not the most recent 2nd ed.). I rely on these two books for the majority of the SAT test prep process, although as a tutor I also build upon the content and go beyond what is written in each book to help each student raise his or her score. I read as many SAT-related books and internet posts as I possibly can in order to enhance the help I give to each student.
 Maximum SAT |
- Other Solid Test Prep Review Books
If Maximum SAT just isn’t working for you, then there are other books you can try, including Barron’s SAT, The Ultimate SAT Tutorial, and Rocket Review. A wildly expensive (but also quite popular) prep book is Grammatix. There is a free PDF of it online, but I have a feeling that it would not be legal for me to link to it. In my opinion, these are the best overall SAT prep books, along with Maximum SAT. PR’s Cracking the SAT is good if you score in the low-to-mid-range.
 Barron's SAT |
 The Ultimate SAT Tutorial |
 Rocket Review |
 Princeton Review's Cracking the SAT |
- Blue Book Solutions/Explanations
If you plan on studying alone, then you will probably benefit from taking advantage of a few other resources. For example, you may want to invest in a comprehensive solutions manual so that you can understand how to solve problems that you got wrong (or only got right by chance). As much as I love the Blue Book, it fails in this respect. And the online solutions aren’t so great either. Lucky for you, there are a few books that fit the bill. Tutor Ted seems to be an internet favorite, but I much prefer the Ultimate SAT Supplement. Why? Well, the answers are much more detailed and will help you accurately pinpoint which kinds of questions you are getting wrong as well as which techniques to use.
 Ultimate SAT Supplement |
 Step-By-Step SAT
|
 Tutor Ted's SAT Solutions Manual |
- Section-Specific Books (Coming Soon to a Post Near You)
You should also consider purchasing section-specific books. If you are in a time crunch, then get the one that corresponds to your weakest section (Critical Reading, Writing, or Math). I occasionally use section-specific books with students, depending on how much time we have together, their progress, and their target score. In this guide’s remaining three posts, I will share the titles of my favorite section-specific books.
Not sure which section is your weakest one? Take a practice test in the Blue Book!
(2) INTERNET – LEARNING THE BASICS
Enough about books. Let’s talk about the internet and how it’s an amazing resource! Everything I talk about here is FREE.
- The College Confidential Forum
If you haven’t already, visit the website College Confidential (CC). One of the site’s main features is a popular forum frequented by hundreds of high schoolers and their parents. They ask questions and share information about many subjects, including the test prep process and college admissions. In high school, I was addicted to the CC forum and found it very helpful. Still, the forum can be overwhelming at times. Take any advice you read there with a grain of salt.
I recommend that you focus on this post, as it features the most helpful SAT-related posts: “Best of SAT Prep Forum & Facts.”
In particular, CC-poster SilverTurtle wrote an SAT guide is nothing short of amazing. Thank you, SilverTurtle, wherever you are. The guide is understandably lacking in the Math Section, but otherwise it is fantastic. Another CC-er, Xiggi, has a well-respected general SAT guide.
- Sparknotes
Next up is the Sparknotes Test Prep Website. Sparknotes provides just enough detail in each section to flesh out key SAT subject matter. This is a good way to learn some of the ins and outs of the exam and brush up on unfamiliar content. It amazes me that this is free!
- Dome SAT Review
Dome SAT Review features various online guides, worksheets, and practice tests aimed at increasing your SAT score. Everything is free, and some of the information is very helpful. Unlike many other online resources, this site shares strategies for specific question types.
- MindFish
MindFish’s section on SAT Prep is dedicated to teaching readers about each different type of SAT question. The site is informative, well-organized, and well worth a look. But beware: The website really wants you to sign up for a paid program.
- FamilyEducation.com
The FamilyEducation website is filled with annoying ads, but it features some helpful test prep tips for each section of the SAT. It uses excerpts from the Rocket Review book to help students build a foundation in each section.
- Blogs
Believe or not, hundreds of SAT blogs exist out here on the internet. I’ll refer to a few specialized ones in future posts, but for now here is a great one that focuses mainly on math, a fair amount on writing, and a little bit on critical reading: PWN the Sat. It’s written by an SAT tutor and is definitely fun to read.
(3) INTERNET – PRACTICE
- More Official Practice
If you have completed all of the questions in the Blue Book and are sick of revisiting old problems, then you can turn to the internet for even more CollegeBoard-sanctioned practice! Note: Most of the info below is from this super useful thread.
- 2007-08 Official Practice Test (aka March 2005 SAT)- Preparation Booklet for ’05-’06 & ’07-’08
- Pgs. 1-36 = practice/section&question explanations, Pgs. 37-83 = test, pgs. 84-87 = answers&scoring
- 2008-09 Official Practice Test (aka October 2005 SAT)- Preparation Booklet for ’06-’07, ’08-’09, & ’10-’11
- Pgs. 1-36 = practice/section&question explanations, Pgs. 37-83 = test, pgs. 84-87 = answers&scoring (2nd link)
- 2009-10 Official Practice Test (aka January 2006 SAT)- Preparation Booklet for ’11-’12 &’09-’10
- Pgs. 1-49 = test, Pgs. 50-54 = answers&scoring
You should know that the Collegeboard publishes a new SAT Question of the Day online everyday. You should also know that someone compiled a significant number of those questions into a searchable database. I’m not sure if it’s still updated, but this is a great way to practice even more real SAT questions: SAT Question of the Day Archive Search. If you click on the “Advanced” link under the search field, you can filter your search for questions by level of difficulty and by section.
- Comprehensive Math Solutions
This site offers both text and video explanations to the math section questions in the 1st ed. of the Blue Book tests (remember, 1st edition tests #2-8 = 2nd edition tests #4-10, respectively). There, you will also find some vocab lists, essay prompts, and test-taking tips. The Blue Book Blog also tackles explanations to the BB‘s math sections but focuses on the 2nd edition (currently the most recent edition).
- MajorTests.com
MajorTests.com has a few free sample tests that you can take online, with questions across each section.
- TestKicker.com
TestKicker.com is new and still adding content, but it offers free practice problems for you try in each section of the SAT.
(4) VIDEOS
- YouTube
Okay, okay, so I guess this technically still counts as the internet. Several users on YouTube have uploaded videos that teach SAT content and explain how to solve questions in the Blue Book. To be quite honest I haven’t watched many of those videos, so I encourage you to search around. Sometimes it’s just easier to listen to a human being explain something than to read it in a book.
- Khan Academy
The Khan Academy has explanations to the math section questions from the 1st ed. of the Blue Book (remember, 1st edition tests #2-8 = 2nd edition tests #4-10, respectively).
- ShowMe SAT
So far, ShowMe SAT has posted explanations for most of the questions (across every section) in tests 1-3 in the Blue Book. I hope more explanations will be up soon, because I think this is a great site.
- Mystery Tutor
One of the most controversial SAT tutors is Mystery Tutor. His videos are on YouTube, although his websites have all mysteriously disappeared (at least, all of the ones that existed under that particular persona). Generally speaking, viewers seem polarized in their opinion of him. I think that he often has great ideas, but I also feel that at times he misses the mark in a big way. See for yourself, if you’re interested. This website does a commendable job of organizing the videos, although it was created by a different tutor whom I assume is a Mystery Tutor admirer.
And that is it for now! Stay tuned for Part 2!
And seriously, let me know if I’ve failed to mention any other useful general SAT prep resources by leaving a comment or sending an email.
