1. Areas in Need of Improvement

• All Foran students take the PSATs during their freshman, sophomore, and junior years which provides wonderful practice for the SATs which you will take in your junior and senior years.

• The PSAT is paid for by the school district.

• Your junior year PSAT results are automatically considered for National Merit Awards at the national level.

• Additionally, the names of students who perform well on the junior year PSAT administration are provided to selective colleges which may begin to reach out to those students.

• Therefore, it’s very helpful to perform strongly on your junior year PSATs.

Creating College Board Accounts

• All freshmen are advised to create a College Board account to access their score report and other important College Board resources.

• As with any online account, it is important that you carefully note your College Board username and password in a secure location.

• **Students should be careful to use the same legal name for all of their standardized testing in order to avoid confusion and duplicate accounts.**

• The College Board notifies you of your freshman and sophomore PSAT results. However, it’s not just a matter of knowing what score you received. From those PSAT results, it is also possible to determine your specific individual areas of strength and weakness, and to increase your skills and understandings in preparation for your junior year PSAT and the SATs/ACTs which you will take in your junior/senior years.

You should ensure that your College Board account is linked to Khan Academy.

• At Foran, students often link their College Board account to Khan Academy during their freshman math class.

• Once linked, Khan Academy can provide a diagnostic printout of your areas of strength and weakness. Khan Academy will then suggest resources for additional practice designed to improve your skills as needed.

2. Use the Test Preparation Resources on the College Board Website

The College Board website provides many free test preparation resources including practice tests for the PSATs and SATs.

3. Use the College Board app for Daily Practice and to Take Practice Exams

The College Board has a free app (for Apple and Android devices) that offers you both:

1. A Question of the Day: Practice one question every day. (Questions may be reading, writing, or math.) The app gives a hint if you’re struggling with a question, and also provides full explanations for the answers.

2. Full practice tests (SAT or PSAT 10). Use a printed bubble sheet to record your answers, take a picture of the completed bubble sheet with your smartphone, and receive an instant score. Details are provided for each question and the scores are saved on the app so you can track your progress. If you have linked your College Board account to Khan Academy, you will receive personalized study tools to strengthen your areas of weakness.  

4. Use Foran’s Testing & Education Reference Center (TERC) Database

The TERC database provides test preparation resources for SATs, Advanced Placement, ACTs, PSATs, and SAT Subject Tests. SAT test prep resources include:

• An SAT Online Course

• An SAT Prep Guide (eBook)

• (3) Full Length Practice Tests with detailed answer explanations

5. Use the Learning Express Library Database Available Through the Milford Public Library

• The Learning Express Library database is available to Milford residents via their public library card number: https://www.ci.milford.ct.us/public-library/pages/library-databases

• The database includes SAT tutorials in reading, writing & language, math, and essay writing as well as SAT practice tests, and an SAT math practice eBook.

• Like TERC, Learning Express Library also provides test preparation resources for PSATs, ACTs, and Advanced Placement exams.  

6. Borrow SAT Practice Books from the Foran Library

• The Foran Library has a substantial collection of up-to-date test prep books for the SATs (as well as the ACTs, SAT Subject Tests, Advanced Placement exams, and PSATs), from publishers such as Princeton Review, Kaplan, CollegeBoard, and Barron’s, that you may borrow.

The ACT

• A student may choose to also take the ACT. This is a similar standardized test used in college admissions, but more widely used in the Midwest and California.

• The ACT website (http://www.act.org/) provides more subject oriented practice materials, online tests, and other resources to prepare for the ACT.

• It may be worthwhile for you to review some ACT practice questions to determine your comfort level with this test.