Five days.

That’s right, juniors. If you’re reading this on April 2, you have five days until the ACT. For some, this may be your first time taking the test; for others, it might be your second, third, or fourth. Either way, your nerves may be kicking in. But don’t fret—the ACT isn’t that scary! 

Today, I’ll be giving you my personal rundown of ways you can prepare for your ACT. Some of these will be personal advice, things I did, and others will be things I wish I knew going in. This is a long list, but trust me: the more knowledge you have about the ACT, the better prepared you’ll be.

This year, they also made some small changes to the test, meaning the number of questions and time per section have changed. Don’t worry—these changes are mostly to your advantage! You now have more time per question in the English, Math, and Reading sections. 

To the underclassmen: use this test as your “practice run.” You get two PreACTs, so use them wisely! Try your hardest, but also use them as a gauge of your test-taking skills. Your tests won’t follow the exact format of the juniors’ version, but you can still use the test as practice. My advice is specific to the juniors, but maybe you’ll pick up a few ideas along the way.

Disclaimer: This is my personal advice, meaning that these pointers are what worked for me. You know yourself far better than I ever will. Do what works for you; my tips and tricks are merely suggestions.

Let’s dive in!

The days leading up to the test:

Don’t be too hard on yourself. Your teachers will likely be doing the OnToCollege ACT Prep course with John Baylor, but don’t be dismayed if you don’t do as well as you want. Continue to take these practices seriously, but don’t let them consume your sanity. In my personal (keyword: personal) experience, I often found that OTC problems are generally slightly harder than the problems you’ll find on the ACT, especially in the sections of reading and science.

Have peace of mind. Being anxious about the test won’t help you; it will only hurt you. Let yourself relax and take your mind off school. With the long weekend, don’t dwell on the impending doom of the ACT; instead, take time for yourself and do things that make you happy.

The night before:

Lay out your things for the morning. Being frazzled will hurt you tremendously, so have your items laid out, ready to go.

Go to bed early. I know you’ll want to stay up late, but resist temptation; you’ll need to get up early, which leads us to my next tip.

The morning of:

Wake up at the crack of dawn. I’m sorry; I’m not a morning person either, but trust me here. Set your alarm for 5 a.m. That way, you are fully awake and aware by the time you get to school. DO NOT wake up past 6:30; give yourself at least an hour and a half to ease into the day.

Eat breakfast. No, seriously. I never eat breakfast, and I’m saying this—so PLEASE eat breakfast!! Even if it’s something very light, have something in your stomach as “fuel” for your test.

Get to school early. I recommend trying to get to CHS at least 20-30 minutes before you’re supposed to be here. The lines in the hallway get long, and you’ll want to take it easy before the test starts. If you get there late, shame on you.

What you’ll need (and want):

• Several good pencils. I’m not kidding—the more, the better. Call me crazy, but I brought six Ticonderoga pencils, and it was well worth it. Make sure each pencil has a nice, big eraser, and triple-check that it’s sharpened and ready to write!
• A calculator. Don’t do the math section without it; that would be self-sabotage! I have more about this in the MATH section below!
• Your student ID (or driver’s license). The school legally can’t let you in the room without some form of ID, so be prepared.
• A snack. You might not want it, but bring it anyway—just in case. You can eat during your break to get a little bit more fueled up.
• Your water bottle. Keep in mind you can only drink this during the breaks and lunch, but if you want something to drink, it’s a good idea!
• Your lunch, if you’re not getting school lunch. You have a built-in lunch break, so bring food that you want to eat—treat yourself!

And don’t forget: LEAVE YOUR PHONE AT HOME OR IN YOUR CAR.

THE TEST! – Let’s break it down into each section!

English – 50 questions, 35 minutes

This is my personal favorite, and the best way to start the morning (I’m also a grammar nerd, so take that statement as you will). The English section consists of 50 questions to complete in 35 minutes. Most questions focus on grammar and basic English structure, while a few will ask about the passages you are reading. Here is some advice:

Read it out in your head. Think about what makes sense as you are speaking. Don’t make hasty choices because you’re skimming; ensure the writing flows and makes sense.

This is a fast-paced section; don’t overthink things. Grammar is important, but often the choices are quite apparent. Make sure you’re working quickly; there’s not much time per question.

Focus on the 4 Cs: complete sentences, consistent, clear, concise. It’s always best to make sure that the sentences are full ideas, they follow parallel structure, make sense, and aren’t clunky. Remember what John Baylor taught you!

Don’t second-guess DELETE or NO CHANGE. The ACT gods love to mess with your head. Truly think about what it’s asking, and think about what’s best for the sentence.

Math – 45 questions, 50 minutes

Woohoo! You’ve finished English, and it’s now time to pivot to your more mathy side. Here, you have 45 questions to solve in 50 minutes, leaving you with not quite a question per minute. Here are some tips and tricks to get you through the Math section.

Have a calculator. As I said previously, not having a calculator is basically asking to fail the math portion. Your math teachers will be lending them out, so take advantage of it. There is no reason not to have a calculator on ACT day.

Use your pencil and paper. Chicken scratch writing is good; not writing anything is bad—really, really bad. Even if it helps you visualize something, don’t be afraid to write something that will help you get the answer (even if it seems stupid!).

Remember math formulas and notations. The ACT will not give you these, so know these before walking in the door. Some good ones to know are area, volume, trigonometric ratios/identities, statistics/probability terms, and different notations. Chances are, your math teacher has already shown you a “cheat sheet” of these!

Know the different vocabulary terms for numbers. Numbers may seem simple; they’re not. Don’t confuse the terms real number, rational number, integer, and natural number (and anything alike). I fell victim to this trap on the ACT, so take it from me: know the difference!

Use your calculator to its fullest potential. They are incredibly strong, powerful tools. Don’t underestimate their capabilities. Take time to learn the calculator’s functions inside and out, so that you are ready to use it to help you solve all your problems!

Graphing calculators are amazing. If you’re in a Pre-Calculus or Calculus class, you have a graphing calculator. I cannot stress this enough: USE IT! It has a built-in equation solver, and you can use the table/graph functions to help you answer so many different types of problems. Don’t be afraid to use it; time is precious in the ACT setting.

Break – 10 minutes

Halfway there! You’ve made it to break; enjoy these 10 minutes. Take a deep breath. Take a walk. Here are just a few key points I’d like to make.

Get up and move. Sitting for a whole morning isn’t fun, so take advantage of this time to stretch your legs. If you need to, use the restroom—but be conscious of your time, so you’re back before the test resumes.

Don’t “lock out.” You’ve “locked in” for your test, but don’t get out of this mindset. This is what killed my reading score; you need to be able to get back to work right after the break is over.

Reading – 40 minutes, 36 questions

Now that your break is over, it’s time to focus. In this section, you’ll have four “subsections”—4 different sets of questions pertaining to passages. Here are some ways that I got through the reading section of the ACT.

Look at the different passages, and pick your battles. Look at the different genres: prose fiction, social sciences, humanities, and natural sciences. Figure out which one you’re best at, and start with it. Save the hardest one for last.

Hot take: reading the questions first is the biggest time scam ever. Everybody, including John Baylor, has taught you to read the questions first. Don’t do it! I found this to be a waste of time, and you’ll just have to read the question again later! Chances are, you’re not going to remember the content of all 10 questions as you read the passage anyway.

Annotate like there’s no tomorrow. As you read, circle and underline key information. This will help you come back when you’re answering questions.

Run it back. Your memory will not remember what the author said verbatim. In this section, you can find everything in the text; you just need to search.

Figure it out in 30 seconds or move on. You don’t have time to stall on one problem, so if you can’t find your answer in the text, rely on your intuition, then move on. You can always come back later.

Question, Predict, Answer. After you read the question, pause. Predict an answer, then look at the options below. As I said in the English section, the ACT gods love to mess with your head; this is also the case in this section! Some answers may seem correct, but they aren’t.

Words are strong. Never (oh, that’s ironic!) pick an answer that has a word like always or never unless it’s genuinely true. These words are strong and are often there to make your brain jump to conclusions.

Science – 40 minutes, 40 questions

You’ve reached the last multiple-choice section of the test: science. Here is my advice to get you through this section.

This section is not pure science. While topics often cover the concepts of biology, chemistry, and physics, they are not the main focus; this portion of the exam focuses on your reasoning skills. It is testing you on your ability to read graphs/tables and analyze data.

Don’t read the passage unless you must. The passages often include extra detail, but they’re not entirely necessary. If a question requires passage information, then you should read it, but don’t waste your time reading something to have not used it at all. It’s best to get a basic idea of what’s happening, then move on to the questions.

Use the process of elimination. Oftentimes, you will find one or two choices that seem off—cross them out! Data usually follows a pattern.

Don’t be scared to do some math. Anticipate doing a little bit of math in this section. Don’t worry—it’s mostly mental math, and it can all be done without a calculator!

💡Note! This section is not optional. You should know this, but don’t let people tell you otherwise. Because the state of Nebraska mandates the ACT as a state assessment, you will take this section.

Lunch – 30ish minutes

You’ve finished the major portion of the ACT. Enjoy this time.

Writing – 1 essay, 40 minutes

Don’t disappoint your English teacher. You spent time working on ACT argumentative writing, so show it off! Here is my advice.

Come up with your plan in three minutes or less, then go, go, go!!! Don’t spend too long sitting and thinking about what you will write; it will instead come naturally to you as you write. If you want to make an essay outline, make it brief.

Only proofread if you need it. If you’re a strong writer, you don’t need to go back and proofread. This time—if you are confident in your grammar and spelling skills—could be far better used as more time to write and develop ideas. If you think like me, it’s easier to think about the spelling and grammar as you write, not as an afterthought.

Write until your hand feels like it’s going to fall off. I know you’re not used to writing essays by hand, but trust me: they get long very quickly—especially when writing a thesis and supporting it using multiple examples. Push through, making the essay as complex as you are able in the 40 minutes you have. If you don’t want to chop off your hand by the end of this section, you’re not doing it right.

Use personal examples, even if they’re completely made up. The ACT graders like to see you tie in personal experience when talking about your perspective, so make sure to include it. If your topic is something very niche (as it was last year), make something up. So long as it helps support your opinion, roll with it!

Don’t stress too much. The writing portion of the ACT does not count toward your composite score, and most people won’t look at it. You still need to try your hardest, but don’t let this part consume you.

And then you’re done. See, that wasn’t so scary, was it? Even if it was, it’s over (and remember, you can always take it again). Don’t forget, your test score doesn’t define you. You’ve got this, juniors! Happy test taking… or at least as happy as it can be…

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