All you need to know about the ACT
Seniors are taking the ACT for free on Tuesday, October 19, 2021.
What is the ACT?
The ACT is a standardized test, used for college admissions, that students take for free in the spring of their junior year and in the fall of their senior year. This test covers math, science, English, reading, and an optional writing test.
The highest score on the main four sections is 36, but all colleges have different score requirements. So, if you have your college list, go to the college’s online pages and check their requirements. If you do not feel satisfied with your score or accomplish your dream college score requirements, you can re-take it as many times as you want by paying $60. You can register at www.act.org to re-take the test on the following dates at Blackman High: October 23rd, 2021; December 11th, 2021; February 12th, 2022; April 2nd, 2022; June 11th, 2022; July 16th, 2022.
ACT Sections:
The math test contains contents of preparing higher math, number and quantity, algebra, functions, geometry, statistics, and probability, integrating essential skills, and modeling. This test lasts one hour and contains 60 questions. The test score average for this section is 22.
During the science test, students will have 35 minutes to answer 40 questions. The content found in this section includes interpretation of data, scientific investigation, evaluation of models, inferences, and experimental results. The test score average in this section is 23.
The reading section consists of four passages. The passages focus on topics from social studies, natural sciences, prose fiction, and humanities. Here, students will have 35 minutes to complete a total of 40 questions. Students will need a complete understanding of key ideas and details, craft and structure, integration of knowledge and ideas, and a high understanding of complex texts. For the reading section, the scoring average is 22.
Students will have 45 minutes to answer 75 questions during the English section. The content found in this section is the knowledge of the language, production of writing, and conventions of standard English. In this section, the scoring average is 18.
If students choose to take the writing test, they will have 40 minutes to write an essay that measures their writing skills. On this optional test, you will have a writing prompt that will describe a complex issue and must describe three different perspectives on that issue. The highest possible score on this test is 12.
If you are an ESL student, you will get more time to complete all sections of the test.
How to prepare:
If you want to get a high score on this test and don’t know how you are in the right place.
School tutoring: Teachers often offer free or low pay tutoring before or after school. If you want to prepare for the English and reading tests, contact Elisa Burks at [email protected]. If your problem is more about math and science contact, Morgan Anderson, at [email protected], to receive information about the tutoring.
Apps and online resources: If you do not have time to stay at school or arrive early, online resources and apps are the perfect options for you. The official page of ACT (www.actstudent.org) lets you take old versions of the test, and when you finish it, you will see everything you did wrong and help videos teaching you how to do it.
Other resources: https://www.khanacademy.org/
ACT Prep: Practice Tests, Flashcards, Quizzes App
Quick Test Tips:
Don’t leave any blank spaces! Try to mark every bubble.
Have a good night’s sleep: Go to sleep early so you won’t feel tired while testing.
Have a nutritious breakfast: It can be an egg with bacon and sausage or maybe some waffles with pecans and honey (you need protein!), the important thing is that you have something in your stomach. Remember you will be testing for hours.
Change the batteries of your calculator the night before the test! You don’t want to run out of batteries in the middle of a problem.
Bring your own pencils, a bottle of water, and a snack.
Leave your phone, Apple Watch, or other electronic devices at home or in your car.
The next ACT will be for seniors on October 19, 2021, and the ACT for juniors will be on March 1, 2022.
I’m a senior, and my pronouns are she/her. My hobbies are reading, writing about things that matter to me, singing, dancing, and acting. My favorite...
