It’s hardly a revelation to say that planning is essential for high school students. Between extracurriculars, often-relentless class schedules, and the stresses of daily life, time management is crucial. The same holds true with preparing for standardized tests.
Beginning test prep during sophomore year provides students with a golden opportunity to prepare before the stress of junior year college applications. Whether your student will be taking the ACT or the SAT, the following tips will help them create, and follow, a balanced study schedule for their sophomore spring semester.
Determine Test Date First
Firstly, your student will want to pick an exam date. When selecting a date, think about the dates of known stressors like final exams or major arts performances or athletic events—anything that might keep your student from performing at their best. If a test date falls immediately before or after a major event, you might want to suggest that your student consider another test date.
(Not sure which test your student should take? Academic Approach can help. Set up a complimentary consultation with one of our directors today!)
Stick to the Commitment After Selecting a Test Date
Once an exam date is selected, it’s vital to make a commitment to it. Having the exam date as a strict deadline will make it easier to go all-in on committing to a plan of study. As your student crafts their SAT/ACT study schedule, the most important thing to recognize is perhaps the most simple: you can’t study everything at once.
Foundation of the Study Plan are Diagnostic Tests Results
A diagnostic test taken before your student starts studying, like the ones offered with Academic Approach tutoring plans, will give your student a specific and concrete idea of what they should work on. Do not skip this step. Diagnostic test results will help guide the decisions your student makes in developing their study schedule. Creating a step-by-step study schedule, especially for sophomore ACT/SAT preparation, is crucial.
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In practical terms, this might look something like your student dividing their weeks up by subject (e.g., two weeks for math, two weeks for reading, writing, and language, and repeat). Then, with that basic structure in place, they can fill in the details by identifying the subjects that most need their attention. Academic Approach tutors are experienced in doing exactly this, structuring a balanced plan of study, and guiding your student step-by-step, concept by concept, building on the knowledge your student already has to prepare them for the test.
Once your student has identified what they need to work on and when, it’s time to make sure they follow the plan, working on one concept at a time, studying and doing practice problems. Students benefit most if their study schedule is routinized—ensuring timing is one less thing to worry about.
Sophomore ACT/SAT preparation in particular benefits from this kind of routinization because it maintains structure and builds in time for deviations. ACT/SAT preparation, like all kinds of learning, is rarely linear. Your student will master certain topics and concepts quickly and will need to spend longer on others. Routinization (and beginning test prep sophomore year) means that there is time to address these needs as they come up.
After your student has started on their sophomore year test prep journey, they will want to periodically get an idea of their progress. The best way to do this is to take practice tests.
Practice tests offer a number of benefits: not only do they help your student practice under simulated test conditions—the best way to get them used to the real test—they also give your student a sense of what they’ve accomplished, help them gauge their progress, identify areas or question types that need attention, and, most importantly, see the benefits of their hard work.
Balance is Key for an Effective Study Schedule
Of course, it’s always important to make sure that your student’s balanced study plan is actually balanced. Be sure to remind your student to take time for self-care. Taking study breaks, taking time to do other things that your student enjoys, etc. refreshes the mind and makes learning easier. Building in breaks, whether it’s having a week off in the middle of a several-month study schedule or adding breaks to the middle of individual study sessions, is crucial.
Cramming is counterproductive and inevitably leads to burnout. Space things out! This is yet another reason why it’s so crucial for your student to craft an SAT/ACT study schedule well ahead of their intended test date and start college entrance test prep ahead of their junior year.
As your student’s sophomore spring begins, help them make the most of their time. By planning out their ACT/SAT study schedule and sticking to that plan, they will be better prepared to ace the test—and have an easier time doing it.