One of the most common mistakes that students make on the SSAT and ISEE is not reading the directions and questions carefully. While the sentence instructions may seem self-explanatory, they actually provide important information about how to approach the questions in that section. At the beginning of every section of the SSAT or ISEE, make sure that you read the section instructions carefully; nothing hurts more than missing a question because you haven’t read the instructions!
You should also be careful to read each individual question very carefully. Because the ISEE and SSAT are timed, it’s easy to rush through reading the questions, jumping right into solving them. However, students who read the questions too quickly often misread important information, miss part of the question, or misinterpret what the question is asking. On the SSAT and ISEE, every word counts!
Rather than rushing through the question, practice reading each question twice. The first time you read the question, ask yourself, “What is this question asking me?” The second time you read it, underline the important information to make sure you haven’t missed anything.
It’s easy to get anxious before a big test. Even when you’ve studied, practiced, and done everything you can to prepare, you might still feel nervous when you sit down to take it. That’s normal. Your nerves mean this test is important to you.
At Test Innovators, a big part of...
Meet Evan
We are excited to introduce Evan, one of our 2021 scholars. Through dedication and hard work, Evan achieved a 98th percentile on the SSAT!
Evan is an avid athlete who has played hockey since kindergarten and more recently picked up tennis. In addition to training for his athletic endeavors, he...
Families across the nation have become familiar with mandatory state achievement tests.
While some private school students remain fairly inexperienced with standardized testing, the majority of students, and certainly those in public schools, are all too acquainted with various achievement test acronyms.
Remember to take your practice exams in calm, non-distracting settings, get adequate sleep (especially the few nights before your test), and relax and breathe, both as your prepare and on test day.
As part of our mission to help students grow and gain access to quality educational opportunities, we award six merit-based scholarships every year to the Test Innovators students who showed the most improvement on either the SSAT or the ISEE. We are pleased to announce the 2021 Test Innovators Independent...
Start at least 6 months before your test date Not only are there a lot of words to learn, but giving yourself time to practice and use the SSAT vocabulary words you are learning will help their definitions stay with you.
Scott Duddy is the Director of Admissions & Enrollment Management at Dexter Southfield School in Brookline, Massachusetts, and brings with him 14 years of professional experience in the world of independent schools.
Test Innovators' education team recently ran webinars that answered our most frequently asked questions about these tests. If you missed the webinars, check out the recordings.
The day before the test, relax, read a book, get some exercise, and get plenty of sleep. In fact, you should prioritize sleep the entire week before the test as those earlier nights’ sleep will be critical.
On the morning of the test, wake up with ample time to eat a...
