Don’t Stress Over the SAT

It has all been leading to this. After writing many argumentative essays on what you believe is right for everyone and trying to find an equivalent value for x that would make the equation true, it is time to show what you have learned. The days become shorter and shorter, and all you feel is fear, panic, anxiety, terror, and no confidence. Although the test may seem impossible to finish, it is okay to feel scared because you are not the only one going through these phases.

As a teenager, it may seem normal to feel stressed about every upcoming assessments that you don’t feel ready for. In fact, an article created on a website called “PHYSCOM” reported that, “According to data collected by the American Psychological Association for the Stress in America Survey, teen stress rivals that of adults… For teens, the most commonly reported sources of stress is school (83 percent).”

The Standardized College Admission Test, more commonly known as the SAT, is another known cause for the high levels of stress in almost all teenagers.

The SAT is a program run by College Board, an American non-profit organization that focuses on enhancing each student’s mind by providing them with programs of different levels. For example, College Board offers rigorous programs for students who want to broaden their minds and find themselves challenged with problems that they would encounter at a college level. They have created their own textbooks called Springboard that almost every english teacher uses or refers to for help. The organization promotes the test all students take at the end of the year in which they apply their writing skills and math knowledge on each question. Normally the test would take an average of about 2-4 hours of completion for each subject.

It is normal for a teenager to feel anxious about the upcoming SAT, since they believe it can determine their future. Their anxiety provokes them to not focus on studying for the test, it may cause a lack of sleep for them, and they might not even be prepared for the test when it is time to take it. That is why they need to have a planned schedule that helps them prepare for the finals at least two weeks before they have to take it.

Students who are extremely stressed can relieve some of it by doing yoga poses once in a while. Start by doing the basics. Sit on a soft surface such as your bed. Cross your legs, sit with your back straight, close your eyes, and begin the breathing process. Try focusing on your breathing, and not on how much time you have left to study. Breathe in slowly for four seconds, hold for three, and let your breath out for four seconds, and relax for three seconds. Continue repeating this same process until you don’t feel very stressed. Ideally, it should take no more than five minutes.

Afterwards, stretch both legs and try touching them with your hands. Hold your hands at or near the end of your feet for four seconds and go back to your vertical position for five seconds. Repeat until you feel quite sore but not entirely. Then lay on your back and stretch out as far as you can. Preferably, lie on the floor as you do this. Stretch for about four to six seconds, and then relax for five seconds. These small and quick stretching exercises will help you feel relieved for a few minutes.

There will also be a time when you will have to study, so some useful apps that you can use for your phone are the following:

For learning and reviewing a few topics: Khan Academy and Wikipedia (although teachers say it is not the most reliable)

For note taking: Evernote, Pages, Penultimate, Super Notes, and Notability

For typing documents: Google Docs or Microsoft Words

For creating notecards: Quizlet, StudyBlue, TinyCards, FlashCards, and BrainCape

For looking up words and synonyms: Dictionary.com (the app), Merriam Webster, and Oxford

Getting information on the SAT: khanacademy.org (this is a website)

Remember, it is important to do well on the SAT, but if you study hard, mentally prepare yourself, and stay healthy and relaxed, you can treat it like any other old test and you will be just fine.