Is your teenager a late bloomer: a capable young person who has not yet succeeded in school?
Are they struggling with both school and the SAT or ACT?
Your teenager can turn this challenge into an opportunity for success -- not just on the SAT or ACT, but for life.
Consider Brandy, a former student of ours at Much Smarter.
Brandy had not succeeded in any dimension in school.
She showed particular weakness in math, which had been a struggle for her since elementary school.
She seemed under-motivated, not showing any enthusiasm for school.
Her initial SAT practice scores were well below average.
Her parents asked for our help with Brandy's SAT / ACT scores.
When we spoke, the parents recognized that Brandy had a long way to go for an SAT / ACT score that would be useful for her in applying to college.
But they also saw that, if she dedicated herself to the challenge and learned how to use her potential in the process, she would go off to college much better prepared than otherwise.
So, the SAT / ACT score was actually the smallest part of the parents' concerns.
The bigger opportunity was to teach Brandy how to succeed. She could use the SAT or ACT to get a new start.
And that's just what she did!
She learned to approach the SAT / ACT as a game of skill.
She learned that her initial challenges with the SAT had nothing to do with how smart she is.
She gave herself time to succeed.
She learned to see the entire activity as mastery of a game.
She allowed herself a year to master her new game.
At the end of the year she was getting really good at the SAT / ACT game.
She was showing real depth in the reading and writing parts of the game.
And, for the first time in her life, she was showing real competence in math.
Her SAT / ACT practice scores improved -- and her classroom grades came up as well.
Brandy and her family began to look, not only at Brandy going to college, but even applying to a more competitive college.
Brandy's stunning success highlights a key point:
Clearly, higher SAT / ACT scores, while helpful, were actually the smallest part of what Brandy gained by mastering her SAT / ACT game.
The bigger part: Brandy learned that she was capable.
She learned not only that she could succeed but also how to succeed.
That she didn't have the limitations she thought she had.
She had accomplished that first small success that she could build upon.
She learned what it takes to master any new game.
So, now she was on her way to mastering all the games of her life.
So, this is the key gift the SAT and ACT offer your teenager: challenge.
Just as we get stronger lifting weights, we grow when we take on and master a challenge.
And if we train for the challenge in a certain way we are actually training our minds.
We are developing successful habits of thinking, feeling, and learning.
So, this is the Bigger Opportunity in SAT / ACT training: to transform your teenager's struggle with the SAT / ACT into a training experience that can help them build habits for lifelong success.
Thinking bigger, self-confidence, learning mastery -- all add up to unlocked potential for your teenager.
And for you, the biggest advantage of all -- peace of mind, knowing that this worrisome obligation -- the SAT or ACT -- has been turned into an opportunity for growth.
<This concludes the 4th part of our 4-part article on helping your teenager get a new start with the SAT / ACT>
