Studying for the SAT takes planning and resources.  Strategies for SAT studying vary depending on which topic you choose to focus on first.  Nova Press’s SAT Prep Course can help you tackle the reading, writing, and math portions, helping you to hone your strategies for SAT studying.

Nova Press’s SAT Prep Course book is divided into three main sections: Reading, Writing, and Math.  But before tackling these, you should focus on the Orientation that precedes these main content areas.  The Orientation answers questions about the purpose and format of the SAT, suggestions on pace while taking the test, information on how it is scored, and the benefits of skipping vs. guessing.  It also addresses the ordering of questions, ways to narrow down answer choices, and a suggested study plan.

The reading section focuses on reading comprehension, critical reasoning, sentence completions, vocabulary, and etymology and includes vocabulary drills.  Strategies are outlined to improve reading comprehension, including categorizing of questions to six main categories and a Three Step Method to help you focus on the pertinent section of the reading selection.  It includes an emphasis on pivotal words, which may change the meaning of a sentence or excerpt.  The section on critical reasoning will help you improve your understanding of passages where multiple points of view are presented.  It will assist you with determining the premise of each view and discover the viable conclusions.  It also addresses the difference between inductive and deductive reasoning.

Important strategies for SAT studying include narrowing down which vocabulary to learn and ways to learn it.  Nova Press’s SAT Prep Course book provides you with two lists:  one with the recurring words from past SAT tests and a more extensive list that includes good possibilities for words that could be included in the future.  The words are listed alphabetically, and the longer list includes short matching quizzes.

The etymology section helps you to learn the origin of words, which can help with determining and remembering the meaning of words.

The writing section can help you understand how the essays are scored, review grammar rules, gives you suggestions on how to improve sentence and paragraph structure, and gives some drills to help you process what you learned and narrow down what you should review.

The math section will help you a review concepts you may have studied earlier in your school career.  It includes sample questions with detailed explanations on how to determine the correct answer along with strategies for SAT math studying.

Nova Press can help you with finding strategies for SAT studying.  Everything you need is in the Nova Press SAT Prep Course.

Originally posted 2012-03-12 20:56:57.

So, you’re studying for the GMAT.  You’re specifically worried about the GMAT reading section.   How can you improve reading comprehension?  Where can you get practice excerpts and learn some techniques to help you on test day?  Nova Press has the solution.  The Nova Press GMAT Prep Materials offer a variety of ways to get ready for your big test day.

The GMAT Prep Course book offers sections on math, logical reasoning. reading comprehension, and writing assessment, just to name a few, along with hundreds of GMAT-style questions along with solutions.  The verbal section includes specific methods to approach GMAT reading, questions to ask yourself when reading about a topic in order to glean the most information, and exercises with detailed explanations on how to achieve the correct answer.  It helps you to look out for pivotal words that might alter the entire meaning of a text and ways that the authors could be trying to trick you with these words.  It draws on earlier suggestions to help you develop a “Three-Step Method” for handling GMAT reading comprehension.

Another concern with GMAT reading may be the logic questions. Nova Press offers solutions on how to get to the bottom of these questions, by helping you to understand what to look for when determining a premise, conclusion, or just following the reasoning of a statement.  It also focuses on the difference between inductive and deductive reasoning and how these effects your answer.  It addresses many of the techniques that the test writers use to throw you off when trying to determine the correct answer.  The book includes a large number of practice questions, followed by answers and explanations.

It’s possible that your concern with preparing for the GMAT reading centers around the section on sentence correction.  The Nova Press GMAT Prep Course tackles pronoun errors, subject-verb agreement, misplaced modifiers, the use of adverbs, and more.

Nova Press GMAT Prep Course can help you focus on ways to improve so you no longer need to worry about GMAT reading.

Originally posted 2012-03-09 13:01:32.

Have you ever thought to yourself, “I’m just not a math person?”  If so, the math section of the ACT could seem like an insurmountable obstacle.  Rather than give up and just hope that you do well enough on the Verbal section to make up for your  math score, try studying with the Nova Press ACT Math Prep book!

The Nova Press ACT Math Prep book outlines specific techniques you can use while taking the test.  It works through example problems, talking through how to get to the right answer for each one.  Then it gives a set of questions for YOU to try on your own.  The answers with explanations are in the section immediately following, should you need help along the way or just want to make sure your answers are right.

Need a review of concepts you learned earlier in your studies?  The Nova Press ACT Math Prep book includes a section of “Math Notes” that reviews the basic concepts of fractions, square roots, and geometry.  If you need a more in-depth review, later chapters go into greater detail about each concept.  It also explains methods you can use to answer each type of question.  If you are still struggling, there is a section devoted to “Elimination Strategies” to help you narrow down your options.

Whatever level of math review you need before taking the ACT, the Nova Press ACT Math Prep book is the way to go.  It covers geometry, coordinate geometry, fractions & decimals, equations, exponents, algebraic expressions, logarithms, trigonometry, and more!  Don’t get intimidated and give up.  Instead, get the Nova Press ACT Math Prep book and get to work.  If you’re willing to put in the work, you can master the math section of the ACT!

Originally posted 2012-03-07 20:36:06.

If you’re looking for a cool analogy practice test, you may not need it.  While the SAT, ACT, and GRE all used to have sections devoted to analogies (cat is to dog as ….  Well, you get the idea), all tests have been revamped to exclude this section.  Rather, the test may utilize reading excerpts that contain analogies or may have writing prompts that can be best answered with analogies.  Regardless, you can get the practice you need for any and all tests with Nova Press’s test prep books.

For each test, a section (or sometimes an entire book) is devoted to the verbal and writing requirements.  Whether you need to build your vocabulary, review grammar and/or punctuation rules, or develop your writing style, we have steps you can take to improve your score.  The writing sections contain prompts, some with sample responses while others are for you to practice your writing.  Rubrics are included so you can evaluate your own writing based on the same criteria the test-graders will use.

The reading sections contain many sample excerpts and questions.  The beginning ones include explanations on how to arrive at the correct answers.  Later excerpts and questions are left for you to figure out on your own, though the answers are given in a later section for your reference.

Don’t stress about finding a cool analogy practice test!  Instead, work towards developing your own writing style and incorporating analogies.  Or work on recognizing the meaning of analogies in reading excerpts.  Either way, work with Nova Press to achieve your best.

Originally posted 2015-12-07 00:41:43.

Nervous about the ACT style questions?  Nova Press has you covered!  Whether you want to add variety to your “transitional word” vocabulary, vary your sentence structure, or work on your figurative language, the Nova Press ACT Verbal Prep Course can help.

The writing section of the ACT can seem very intimidating.  If you’re nervous about your writing abilities or what “they” are looking for in an essay, going into a test to write an essay you can’t prepare beforehand may seem overwhelming.  Rather than go to pieces, practice writing essays before you go into the test.  Choose topics based on the news, something you read for school, or ask someone to give you a topic.  It could even be something goofy, like “What is your favorite TV show?  Discuss the pros and cons to the plot line of a typical episode.”  Then go back and read through your essay, using the Nova Press ACT Verbal Prep Course to direct your attention to specific weaknesses and strengths in your writing.  You can take multiple passes through, focusing on a different area for improvement each time.  When you’re done, pick a new topic and write another, keeping in mind the areas you fixed on your previous essay.

Or maybe you’re worried about the reading questions.  The Nova Press ACT Verbal Prep Course can help you improve your reading comprehension with their reading samples, directed questions, and specific reading methods than can increase what you get out of your first and, if needed, second readings.  It gives you techniques for identifying the type of question being asked and ideas for where to look for the answer in the reading excerpts.

Whatever part of the ACT style questions is making you apprehensive, Nova Press can help!

Originally posted 2012-03-05 19:23:30.