The first section of the SAT is a 25 minute essay. Most colleges count it
far less than the critical reading and math sections, so there is no need
to stress about it. There are some really simple approaches, however, that
can help you score much higher. Bottom line: SAT writing rules are easy.
Six simple tips:
1. Three sharp pencils and a watch.
2. Neatness counts.
3. More is more. Try to fill out 40-45 of the 45 lines.
4. The five-paragraph essay is your friend - intro that states your
thesis, 3 evidence paragraphs with topic sentences obviously and directly
supporting to your thesis, a conclusion that repeats the intro.
5. Examples to back up your argument - scholarly is better (science,
history, literature examples), but if they don't come to mind right away,
personal is fine too. Oddly, they don't need to be accurate - so if you
think Socrates said "The unexamined life is not worth living" go ahead and
say he did, even if you are not sure. Avoid overly pop-culture references
(video games, edgy movies or TV shows) that a tired, conservative adult
might not appreciate.
6. Several well-placed multisyllabic words.
(Adapted from
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A62544-2005Mar1.html )
Example questions:
The question is almost always a debatable statement about human nature
and/or the correct attitude toward some important aspect of existence.
"There is no success like failure."
"More choices create less happiness."
"The tried-and-true solves more problems than innovation."
"The purpose of art is to teach us about ourselves, not the world around
us."
"Criticism of others is necessary for progress."
(See
http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/sat/after/essay_prompts.html
for the full questions.)
Quotes that might help:
Frequently, quotes and ideas about self-knowledge and about free will or
determinism will be helpful. In addition to Socrates above, some ideas:
"Freedom is what you do with what has been done to you." - Sartre
"At the moment of decision, we are totally alone." - Sartre
"Life is the sum of all your choices." - Camus
"Suffering is caused by attachment." - Buddha
"Everything should be made as simple as possible, and no simpler." -
Einstein
"Happiness is a mystery like religion, and should never be rationalized."
- GK Chesterton
Example essays and why they earned high or low scores:
http://www.sparknotes.com/testprep/books/newsat/chapter6section5.rhtml
As always, come chat with a college counselor if you have questions!
Your allies,
The college counselors
