Test Taking Strategies
The key to performing well on the verbal section of the ISEE is mastering vocab. One of the main ways to understand how words are built is to study prefixes and roots. It is important to be able to break words that you do not recognize into pieces and decipher the meanings, because it’s better to be able to understand how words are made up than to just memorize them by rote. Our top vocabulary…
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In the Synonym, Sentence Completion, and Math sections of the ISEE, it is important for you to become comfortable with the one-two pass strategy. In the first pass, you should only attempt problems that you feel you have a good chance of being able to answer correctly. In the second pass, you should attempt the remaining problems. By using the one-two pass strategy, you won’t get caught up on a difficult problem halfway through and…
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The key to mastering the reading sections of the ISEE test is two-fold: reading the passage effectively, and answering the questions efficiently. The reading section of the ISEE is designed to assess how well you are able to grasp the main idea and tone of a passage. The most important thing to remember is that you are not expected to retain details as you read. This is different from how you probably read other books…
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The key to structuring your standard essay for the ISEE is to ensure you have the proper format. Here’s the general format for a successful standard essay: Introduction Sentence 1: Thesis/Answering the question Sentence 2: Introduce your first supporting paragraph (what you’re going to say in the second paragraph) Sentence 3: Introduce your second supporting paragraph (what you’re going to say in the third paragraph) Sentence 4: Sum up your ideas and transition into the…
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The synonym section of the ISEE test is very challenging due to the difficult vocabulary, as well as the traps that the test-makers include to confuse you. The first trap to look out for is the Secondary Part of Speech Trap. Sometimes the word has a secondary meaning when it is used in a different part of speech. For example, words can be both a noun and a verb, and have different meanings depending on…
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The key to performing well on the verbal section of the ISEE is mastering vocabulary. One of the main ways to understand how words are built is to study prefixes and roots. It is important to be able to break words that you do not recognize into pieces and decipher the meanings, because it’s better to be able to understand how words are made up than to just memorize them by rote. For example, the…
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In order to perform well on the ISEE, learning to study vocabulary is crucial. The Verbal section challenges the vocabulary skills of even the strongest students. It can be difficult to study vocabulary with your busy schedule, but without making it a priority, you will not be able to perform well on the synonyms and sentence completions portions of the ISEE exam. What is most important to remember about studying vocabulary is that you will…
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