Today in AVID 10 at Palos Verdes High School, Rob and SP introduced our first lesson for the Critical Reading section of the SAT. Training for the SAT can be very difficult, and for many students, the vocabulary component of the Critical Reading section can be extremely daunting.

In an effort to keep things simple, but at the same time teach students a new and complex concept, Rob decided to start the SAT tutoring with the “plus-minus-neutral” approach, a strategy that can help students eliminate incorrect answer choices by assigning a value or feeling of worth to the blank space, as well as each of the answer choices.

Students then practiced eliminating wrong answer choices and making educated guesses about which vocabulary words would and would not work in each sentence. The process was rigorous and slightly painful, but I think we all walked away from the experience with a new tool in our quiver of SAT strategies.

Here is an example of a question students will see on the Critical Reading section of the SAT. You will probably understand why training is the only way to attack a test that contains hundreds of problems like this:

1. Today Wegener’s theory is ____ ; however, he died an outsider treated with ____ by the scientific establishment.

A. unsupported – approval
B. dismissed – contempt
C. accepted – approbation
D. unchallenged – disdain
E. unrivaled – reverence

Please let Study Hut know if you need any tutoring or training for the SAT, specifically the Critical Reading section. We have excellent SAT tutors who earned great scores, went to top universities, and follow our streamlined approach to no-nonsense SAT training.

The week of finals for a number of local schools is finally upon us and many students are scrambling, studying and stressing to make that last ditch effort to either improve their grades or make sure to keep them up. With all of this last minute studying and cramming for tests students will often time resort to eating and drinking whatever they can to keep them going and continue studying. However drinking three Red Bulls, two trenta vanilla lattes, eating an entire bag of cheetos and a Chipotle burrito to make it through an all night cram session is not the best strategy for succeeding on finals and keeping your body functioning at peak performance. While it may taste good and keep you going for the day, after this week is over the students bodies will be screaming in utter dismay at the stress and torture that students put themselves through during finals. Because we cannot climate the stress from the actual taking of the tests on ourselves, we need to make sure that everything else happening to our body is making it feel good and strong. To accomplish this the students need to eat balanced meals throughout the day and limit the caffeine intake , especially eating some kind of breakfast each morning before the days of the test because you wouldn’t be able to drive your car without fuel so what would make it possible to use your brain without the necessary fuel.

Another major problem taking away from students ability to do well on finals is the increase in internet use. With all the new social media and internet sites like Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, etc. students have so many new things to distract them from their studies than there was even 5 years ago. While it may not be effective to completely restrict the student from the internet because there are so many useful learning and study tools, it would be extremely beneficial to even just deactivate ones Facebook for the week of finals or even better the week before through finals to keep focus on the studying as opposed to their social internet lives. Finals can be a stressful week for everyone from students, parents, teachers and tutors, but by taking necessary and beneficial steps in preparing we can make it a little easier for us all and hopefully earn A’s

Finals are the most stressful and overwhelming time of each semester. It was hard enough studying for each test the last couple of months, but how are you supposed to study for a test in every class covering everything you have learned! It’s a tall task, but it is manageable with the right tools and preparation. The tutors at the Study Hut are ready to arm you with the weapons necessary to conquer the dreaded week.

Probably the most important key to studying for finals is budgeting time. You have to have realistic expectations for each class and weigh the pros and cons of time spent studying for each class. If I have a C+ in math and need to nail my final to get a B, I’ll put more time into that class than in English which comes easy to me and I have a solid A. Once you decide how important each final is, now you have to make sure you set time aside for each, and work both diligently, and effectively.

A second key to studying for finals is simply knowing WHAT to study. Believe it or not, finals are usually far easier than the individual chapter tests. This is because on the final, the teacher is going to test the big concepts from each section, not the nitty gritty details like those tested in a chapter test. With the help of your Study Hut tutor, you can go through your old tests and assignments and realistically pick and choose what you must dedicate more time to studying.

So remember: Don’t panic, stay organized, take your tutors advice, and study diligently. Good things will come. Best of luck to you all.