The Top 5 SAT Land mines

Let's face it: the SAT test is littered with land mines seeking to lure

the unwary student into careless or panic-induced mistakes. This

underscores the fact that one of the best SAT preparation strategies

involves learning how to keep the test from beating you. Being able to

avoid the land mines separates the casual from the serious SAT test-taker.



1. THE DECOY

Profile: Whenever a simple calculation error or misinterpreted

term might easily lead you astray on the SAT test, you can bank on the

College Board's providing the appropriately enticing wrong answer.

Warning signs: sudden euphoria at finding an easy question; also,

wandering concentration or lack of focus.

How to avoid: maintain a steady pace; watch out for the units

asked for in math questions; check your work as you go and your answers

as time permits.



2. RIGHT AS WRONG

Profile: Just because an answer choice may be true does not mean

it is also the answer to a given SAT test question.

Warning signs: "please select the best response"; other aliases

include the words "most" and "least".

How to avoid: always remember that the definition of "best" is not

"that which can be proven true," but rather "what the question is

seeking," and often, "what is least arguable based on the information

provided."



3. THE LONG WAY & THE SHORTCUT

Profile: This perpetrator is characterized by an apparently

difficult question containing an easy shortcut. Even when/if an SAT

test-taker gets the right answer, he/she might have wasted a lot of time

on these deceptively simple questions.

Warning signs: questions which appear to be time-consuming;

depending on whether or not you understand the material, this may induce

false confidence or panic.

How to avoid: consider whether the question truly requires much of

your time (e.g., is it near the end of an SAT test section, where you'd

expect harder questions?).



4. ROMAN NUMERAL QUESTIONS

Profile: As if one layer of answer choices weren't enough, this

type of SAT test question throws two at you. First there's a series of

statements labeled with Roman numerals; below them the standard four or

five answer choices ask you to identify which combination of statements

is true based on the limited information given.

Warning signs: the Roman numerals, obviously; also, answer choices

such as "I and II only" or "II, III, and IV".

How to avoid: consider each Roman numeral separately, label it

True or False as appropriate, then use your markings to evaluate the

lettered answer choices; beware of choices that are only sometimes or in

some cases true.



5. "FIGURE NOT DRAWN TO SCALE"

Profile: This land mine is a variation on the decoy—the SAT

test-makers give you a figure designed to trick your eyes into seeing

the shape that leads to a particular wrong answer. As if to taunt you,

it even proclaims that the "figure is not drawn to scale."

Warning signs: a geometric form in which the correct answer seems

all too apparent.

How to avoid: circle the phrase "not drawn to scale" whenever you

find it, and draw a version of the figure that doesn't resemble the

shape provided, but uses the information in the question to better

represent the situation.



Take the time to watch for land mines and the extreme confidence or

panic that often accompanies them. "Know your enemy" is a sound overall

approach to SAT preparation, and that includes knowing when the enemy

has set a trap. With every land mine you avoid, your true confidence

will soar, and so will your scores.



For more information on how you can outsmart the SAT test, refer to our

website at http://www.satprepplan.com.



Bruce L. Smith is an experienced SAT content creator for

SAT test practice site