This is the first of four (4) videos focused on helping young students and their parents understand the basics of the SSAT test. What is the SSAT you ask? The Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT) is an examination required for applicants to many U.S. private secondary day and boarding schools. The test is a paper-and-pencil test, complete with an essay and multiple choice sections. The SSAT consists of two parts: a brief essay, and a multiple-choice aptitude test which measures your ability to solve mathematics problems, to use language, and to comprehend what you read.
Unlike the SAT test, the SSAT is given to students at two (2) levels:
1) Lower (for students currently in grades 5-7)
2) Upper (for students currently in grades 8-11)
As you might imagine, the wide range of grade levels in both the Lower and Upper versions of the SSAT test creates different sorts of test preparation challenges for students in all grades. Join me in this four (4) part series which gives an overview of what to expect at each grade level.
SSAT Test Prep for 5th and 6th Graders (transcript)
Parents of 5th and 6th graders, welcome!
First thing to remember is this — don’t stress out, just relax. If you’re stressed out about the test your child’s going to pick up on that and they’re going to get stressed out. That’s certainly not going to help them! Downplay the importance of the test, it’s not going to make or break them in the admissions process. Tell them to go in, give it their best shot, and not worry about it. You’re going to love them when they come home regardless of what happens.
The first formal bit of information that you need to know is this, the test that your child is going to be taking is the lower level test. That test has been designed to challenge 5th, 6th, and 7th graders. So what’s going to happen is this:
Your child is going to start a section, they’re going to be feeling pretty good, and they’ll be getting a lot of questions right. Towards the end of a given section is when the child’s going to see a lot of problems that were designed to challenge the older kids. When they get to the end of a section, they’re not going to be able to get those answers.
They should not start guessing wildly. Please tell your child to expect to leave a lot of blanks at the end of each section. It’s not a big deal. When they get their percentile score back they’re only going to be ranked against students in their own age group, same grade and also same the same gender.
So if you’re the parent of a 5th grade girl and she goes in, her percentile score back is going to be based on how she did relative to other 5th grade girls on the day she took the test and for the prior two years. That’s what the percentile rank is all about and it will even things out. So again, it’s one test for 5th, 6th, and 7th graders. If you’re the parent of a 5th or 6th grader there’s likely to be a sea of many problems towards the end of each section that they can’t do. They’re not going to be able to get the answer. Make sure they skip it and they feel comfortable about skipping. This should not stress them out.
Last bit of advice for the parents of the 5th and 6th graders is this, before the test even begins a lot of kids get rattled and this is what happens:
They’re asked to answer their last name, their first name, their middle initial, their address and information of that nature. When you get to the first name, a lot of hands go up and kids will often say things like, “Well my name is William but everybody calls me Billy. What should I put down Billy or William?â€
The answer is they should put down the name that is found on their admissions ticket. Whatever name you sign them up as is the name they should enter on test day. The other one that a lot of kids don’t know is their zip code and they feel weird raising their hand and asking the administrator what their zip code is. So make sure your child knows their zip code. The last one is the month of their birth in numerical form. So if they’re born in April they’re going to have to enter a 04 for April, if they’re born in December a 12 for December. So make sure your child knows the number that corresponds with the month of their birth. If you give them those bits of information and a heads up on that, it will help reduce anxiety before the test begins.
Again, when the test begins make sure they know that they’re likely going to have to leave a lot of blanks at the end. It’s not a big deal. They’re only being judged against kids their same gender and same grade. If they know that I think they’ll have a pleasant experience, you’ll have a pleasant experience, and they’ll maximize their score!
Karl Schellscheidt
ePrep
www.eprep.com
Copyright 2006 — All Rights Reserved, ePrep, Inc.
October 26th, 2006 at 8:13 am
I like the pre-test tips. They are very practical. I have seen young kids get frazzled on those same issues many, many times.
December 12th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
Excellent advise. Thank you very much!
December 15th, 2008 at 10:12 pm
hay thankes im a 6th grade student in honers math and iv been stressing on testes so thanks this helped
January 25th, 2009 at 11:48 pm
thank you all very much for helping me with sat practice i can not wate until the test.
June 23rd, 2009 at 11:17 am
im very excited about highschool and needed some info on the ssat’s thank yuo so much, hopefully this will help me
July 27th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
Where can I find any tutoring class for SSAT low level?
Thanks in advance!!!
July 28th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
Nancy,
Finding a tutor depends on where you live. If you let me know, I may be able to provide you with a contact.
That being said, ePrep will be launching SSAT lower and upper level study programs within the next couple of months. If you can wait, the lower level study program may be a great option for you.
November 12th, 2009 at 8:10 am
My daughter is in 5th grade taking the lower level ssat in january 2010 – do you have an online cource?
November 12th, 2009 at 8:14 am
we are on princeton, nj
November 15th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Same question as Laura above from same location. Also, is there an on site course in the Princeton area?
November 17th, 2009 at 8:51 am
Laura and Shaurya,
ePrep will be launching both upper level and lower level SSAT courses in the middle of December. Each course will have three full practice tests with video explanations.
November 30th, 2009 at 3:11 pm
Do the 5th grade (incoming 6th grade) SSAT scores include the % score compared to the other 6th graders or just the national comparisons? My son said he left over half the exam blank but his national scores were over 95%. His scaled scores were in the high 580’s (M/V/R). I only have the email and not the official score sheet. Forgetting admissions, what do these scores tell me?
December 1st, 2009 at 8:14 am
Ellen,
Your son’s performance will be compared to that of all other sixth grade boys who took the lower level SSAT over the past two years. The full score report should include an SSAT percentile rank as well. The SSAT subject percentiles will be significantly lower than the national percentile. Please don’t be shocked and dismayed by them. SSAT takers are a self-selected group of very talented students. (I always tell people that I felt pretty good about finishing in the middle of my class at Princeton.)
Most private schools will look at the SSAT scores of an applicant. If they are above the 50th percentile among SSAT takers, they will dig deeper into the application, focusing on the transcript, teacher recommendations, extracurricular activities/accomplishments, etc.
I hope this helps.
December 4th, 2009 at 6:37 pm
I’m a bit confused. My granddaughter is in 5th grade now; does she
test as a 5th grader of 4th grader?
Thank you.
December 5th, 2009 at 10:25 am
Deborah,
Sorry if I confused you. If your grandaughter is currently in 5th grade, she will take the Lower Level SSAT. Her percentile scores will give you a sense for how she measures up when compared to other fifth grade girls who took the Lower Level SSAT over the past two years.
I hope this clarification helps.
August 26th, 2010 at 5:29 pm
Hi Karl,
This is very helpful- thanks! My son will be entering 5th grade and, although an excellent student, he has done very poorly on standardized tests at school in the past 2 years. He needs to take the SSAT in the next two months. We are in West Chester, PA- any suggestions? Do you recommend a place like Huntington or Kaplan?
Many thanks!
August 27th, 2010 at 12:15 pm
Patricia,
I would first recommend ePrep’s SSAT lower level course for your son. (http://www.eprep.com/courses/other)
If he needs extra help, I would look into Sylvan and Huntington.
Good luck.
Karl