Welcome to "Get Ready for SAT Prep: Reading and Writing!" Let's talk about how this course works with our SAT Reading and Writing course to help you succeed.

###What's the connection between the "SAT Reading and Writing" course and this "Get Ready for SAT Prep: Reading and Writing" course?

Think of this "Get Ready" course as a bridge to SAT and PSAT/NMSQT Reading and Writing skills: here, you can learn and practice the same kinds of questions, but with texts that are less complex than what you'll encounter in our SAT Reading and Writing course.

Here's the key difference:

  • The SAT Reading and Writing course covers SAT Reading and Writing skills at the SAT level. We separate skill practice into three categories: "Foundations" (the most basic questions), "Medium" (slightly more challenging questions), and "Advanced" (the most challenging questions). Together, these three categories span the range of difficulty that you'll encounter on the SAT.
  • The “Get Ready” course covers the same SAT Reading and Writing skills, but with practice at a more introductory level. The format, style, and topic areas are the same, but the difficulty level is lower than what you'll encounter on the SAT. This means that the texts are generally shorter or more straightforward than the texts in Foundations-level practice.

Important note: This “Get Ready for SAT Prep: Reading and Writing” course is not meant to prepare you directly for the SAT. Rather, it prepares you for our SAT Reading and Writing course, which then prepares you for the actual test.

Also note that the article and video lessons for both courses are the same, as they're important resources for every difficulty level! In other words, those articles and videos are there for whenever you need a refresher on the key strategies for a given skill. What differs is the practice (meaning the exercises, unit tests, and course challenges).

The only exception is the "SAT Grammar Practice" unit at the end of both courses. That unit contains the same lessons and exercises — so if you work on those exercises in either "Get Ready" or the SAT Reading and Writing course, your mastery progress will transfer over.

###Who should use this course?

This course is perfect for you if:

  • You're in 10th grade and want to get an early start on SAT prep.
  • You scored below 500 on the Reading and Writing section of a recent PSAT/NMSQT or SAT (either a practice test or the real test).
  • You're finding the "Foundations" lessons or practice questions in our SAT Reading and Writing course too challenging for a given skill, or you’re struggling to achieve proficiency.

If you're taking the SAT within the next six months, we recommend that you start with the SAT Reading and Writing course and only use this course for skills you find particularly difficult. If you’re learning and growing in the SAT Reading and Writing course, then stick with that! In that case, you should continue preparing for the test by trying to master all the skills at all three difficulty levels: Foundations, Medium, and Advanced.

###How to use both courses effectively

####If you're a 10th grader:

Master this "Get Ready" course first. Follow these steps:

  1. Read the articles and watch the videos in each lesson. Stick to the order in which they appear.
  2. After you've finished the lesson's articles and videos, do the exercise at the end. This will help you identify both your strengths and the areas where you still need practice.
  3. If you miss questions on the exercise, go back and review the lessons for that skill. Once you think you have it down, you can attempt the exercise again to check your understanding.
  4. If you master a skill in "Get Ready", then you’re likely prepared to move onto the same skill in the SAT Reading and Writing course at the “Foundations” level.

This gives you plenty of time to build a strong base before 11th grade. Note that even if you’re ready to move onto the SAT Reading and Writing course at the Foundations level, you may want to save that course for when you’re ready to begin your actual PSAT/NMSQT or SAT prep.

For more guidance on when to start preparing, read about creating an SAT prep plan.

####If you're preparing for an upcoming PSAT/NMSQT or SAT:

  1. Start by taking a practice SAT on College Board's Bluebook app.
  2. Begin with the Foundations level in the SAT Reading and Writing course, starting with the skills you got wrong the most on the Bluebook practice test. You want to focus extra on the skills you missed the most questions in, but not only on those skills—ideally, you should leave enough time to learn and practice every skill. For each lesson, read the articles and watch the videos, then do the exercise at the end to check your understanding. When you finish a whole unit, take the unit test, which combines multiple skills.
  3. Once you master “Foundations”, keep going! To fully prepare for the SAT or PSAT/NMSQT, try to master the skills at the “Medium” and “Advanced” levels too.
  4. Don’t forget to take more practice SATs on Bluebook at regular intervals throughout your prep journey!

####If you need help with specific skills (AKA question types):

  1. Identify exactly which skills are giving you trouble in the SAT Reading and Writing course. You’ll know you need extra help if the Foundations exercises are too difficult.
  2. Find those same skills in the "Get Ready for SAT Prep: Reading and Writing" course.
  3. Read the articles, watch the videos, then do the exercise to check your understanding.
  4. Once you’ve mastered a skill in “Get Ready”, go back to the SAT Reading and Writing course and resume prepping at the “Foundations” level.
  5. Once you master “Foundations”, keep going! Again, to fully prepare for the SAT or PSAT/NMSQT, you’ll want to try to master the skills at the “Medium” and “Advanced” levels too.
  6. Again, don’t forget to take more practice SATs on Bluebook at regular intervals throughout your prep journey!

###Your step-by-step path to SAT success

Remember, the "Get Ready" course is just the first step in your SAT prep journey. The SAT Reading and Writing course is where you'll learn to tackle actual SAT questions at all difficulty levels. For more information, read all about the SAT Reading and Writing section and how to use Khan Academy’s SAT Reading and Writing course to prepare for it.

Ready to dive in? You’ve got this!