My students often ask me for last minute advice on what to do the night before the exam and the morning of the exam. Here’s what I tell them:

After dinner, collect the things you’ll need on test day:

1) Your SAT Admission Ticket
2) Your Student ID or Driver’s License
3) Several #2 Pencils (with good erasers!)
4) Calculator
5) Watch or other timepiece
6) A good snack! (the test is very long; you will need a snack)

You may also want to decide what clothes you’re going to wear on test day. Remember to dress in layers, because you can’t control the temperature. The SAT test room will most likely be either warmer or too colder than you would prefer.

After you have collected your things, be sure to relax! Watch a movie, talk to a friend on the phone, or go out for a walk. Do something to take your mind off the test.

Here’s my advice on bedtime: if you’re in the habit of going to bed around 11 o’clock, don’t go to bed at 8 o’clock the night before the SAT test. If you’re anything like me, you’re going to wind up starring at the ceiling for hours feeling frustrated. Rather, you should aim to go to bed about 1 hour before you normally would on a school night. Also, remember to set you alarm early enough so that you comfortably have time to get ready for the exam. You don’t want to create a time pressure situation for yourself. There’s going to be enough pressure during the actual SAT exam.

The Final Step:

In the morning, you should remember to Check Your Brain!

After breakfast, take out a test prep book and do the first two questions of each of the three sections. After a few easy math, writing, and sentence completion problems, you’ll realize your brain is still working and everything is going to be OK. Don’t check the answers….just do the problems. I don’t think the first problems you do on test day should be the real ones on the SAT exam.

Hopefully this advice will help you maximize your SAT test score. Good luck, and remember to stay positive!