Advice for Math Sections

Question

The math section has always been pretty enough for me. I consistently score 750+ on English, but with math it seems like I miss so many due to dumb mistakes. There’s very few that I don’t understand, but I miss way more than I think I will during all of my practice exams. The thing is, when I look at the explanations, the answer seems so obvious, and it’s something that I knew before and just messed up on. How can I avoid making these small errors during the test?

Answer 1

Hello and thank you for submitting your question!

First, I would suggest identifying which type of error that you seem to be making. Is it conceptual (i.e. you do not know what skill the question is assessing), procedural (i.e you do not know the steps to take to arrive at the answer), or arithmetic (i.e. you are performing a mathematical operation and/or arriving at the result incorrectly)?

Once you identify the error(s) that you typically make, then you can focus on how to avoid this while taking the actual SAT. If it is conceptual, then perhaps re-reading the question after you arrive at the answer to ensure that you thoroughly answered it. If it is procedural, after you arrive at your answer, try an alternate method to obtain your answer (e.g. substituting your answer back into the original problem). Lastly, if it is arithmetic, use inverse operations to verify your answer -- or the calculator if you are working on that portion of the test.

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