Math Section of the SAT Part 1

Video of me going over this post and how to study for the SAT Math section:

This week we will cover the Math section. Being that my PhD is in the history of freaking art, this is not my strong suit, so I’ve relied on some Youtube videos that even I understood, and I haven’t taken math in over a decade (and one day, if you so choose, you too will never have to take math again). The attached PDFS come from this book, SAT Prep Black Book: 2nd Edition, which I found after obsessively researching the best study book. I then proceeded to rip out every page of it, and re-arrange it into manageable sections for y’all!

Slacker Level: 15 Minute Review:

Read the first few pages of this packet to give you an overview: “Math Section Training Part 1” It introduces what the section is, and important aspects about how to do well on it.

Basically, the Math section is a mixed bag of all the math courses you’ve taken except for calculus, advanced trig, and advanced statistics. No one likes it, and no one really feels prepared for it at first, so don’t be intimidated. The College Board designed questions to cover basic math concepts, but in non-traditional ways.

As you read through the packet, be sure to take notes over pages 4-7ish in the PDF : Properties of Integers, Word Problems, Number Lines, Rounding, Basic Operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division), Squares and Square Roots, Fractions and Rational Numbers, Factors, Order of Operations (PEMDAS).

The Math section is primarily a test of your knowledge and application of math definitions and properties— meaning that there are patterns and “short cuts” to be found.

Failing all else, at least watch this 6 minute video going over the 17 essential math formulas found in the SAT— remember, the name of the game in slacker level studying is just familiarizing yourself with the types of questions so you don’t freak out on test day.

Chill but Serious Level: 45 min- 1+ Hour Review:

a.) If you really want to internalize the info: as you read ““Math Section Training Part 1” take notes on the most important take aways in a notebook that you can review the night before the test!

Hack: Just skim the document, and any section headers in bold represent a main topic covered, so write that down and a brief explanation of what it is so you don’t have to copy everything down word for word and it won’t take you for forever.

b.) Watch this 10 min video titled “SAT Math: Hard Questions, Easy Hacks.” Why I like it: she goes through an actual sample test giving tips and hacks.

Hardcore Nerd Level: 2+ Hour Review:

In addition to reading the Math section overview packet, also watch this video which is slightly longer than the Slacker Level video and therefore goes into more detail— don’t forget to pause and take notes over concepts you didn’t know/ had forgotten!

Note: this is just part I and it’s 19 minutes long, be sure to stay actively engaged by taking notes throughout! (remember, writing down things by hand legit helps your brain solidify that knowledge to use in the future)— this guy, The Organic Chemistry Tutor has a whole playlist dedicated to the Math SAT section, so you can browse his videos and watch the topics you are less familiar with.