PWN the SAT: Math Guide - Softcover

Mcclenathan, Mike

4.43

42 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1467968102 ISBN 13: 9781467968102

Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub, 2011

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NOTE: This is not the current version of the Math Guide. The updated second edition is available on Amazon--it's linked above in the "Formats" box. You can also find it by searching for its ISBN: 1481883348.
PWN the SAT: Math Guide is designed to help strong math students reach their full SAT potential by quickly isolating weaknesses, and turning them into strengths.

In addition to chapters explaining test-taking strategies and concepts, this book contains about 230 practice questions with hand written solutions, and a "Blue Book Breakdown" in which every math question in the 10 practice tests in the College Board's Official SAT Study Guide is categorized, so students can continue to track their strengths and weaknesses as they work through official practice tests.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

From the Author:

This seems like a good place to answer a few Frequently Asked Questions:

What does "PWN" mean?Basically, it means "to completely dominate." It comes from old school videogaming, when trash talk had to be typed, not shrieked into a headset. Because time spent typing was time spent as a sitting duck, nobody ever fixed typos in those days. So "pwn" was a frequent typo of "own" that got legs and is now used in gamer circles on purpose. It's pronounced "pone," not "pawn."
Why on earth would you call your book that?My girlfriend and mom are the most frequent askers of this question. They're convinced that if I changed the name, I'd suddenly sell a million books! But I had a very specific student in mind as I wrote this book: my 15-year old self. I was my school's top math student, but I was dogmatic in my belief that problems could only be solved "the math way." That served me well in every arena except for the SAT, where my insistence on brute-force math, rather than nimble problem solving, cost me a perfect 800.
How do I know it cost me a perfect 800? Because now, years removed from that experience, I get perfect 800s doing the test the way I describe in this book--and I have fun doing it. I wrote this book to try to help kids like the Old Me (strong math students who aren't happy with their SAT scores) learn to approach the test like the New Me. I love math, and there's plenty of it in the book, but there's also a plethora of alternative solutions.
Will I like this book if I didn't know what "pwn" meant until just now?If you're a strong math student who's looking to improve your SAT score, then I think so. The book isn't full of words like "pwn"--just the title.
What makes this book better than all the others available?"Better" is in the eye of the beholder, but here are a few things that make my book unique:

Each chapter is followed by a listing of all the questions in the College Board's own Official SAT Study Guide (AKA "Blue Book") that are susceptible to the techniques I've just described. This is not the kitchen-sink approach to test prep--the techniques I advocate will apply on the real test.
The back of the book contains another breakdown of each test in the Blue Book. This one helps students keep track of their mistakes and identify topics they need to work on.
Each of the drills in my book has hand-written solutions. I think it's helpful to see math worked out the same way a student will have to do it on test day.
I don't spend too much time on the basics kids already know; I get right into the stuff I always see students struggle with.

Note: typos that appeared on pages 98, 100, and 164 in early printings have been fixed. If you purchase a new copy today, you need not take any action. If you purchase a used copy, please visit mathguide.pwnthesat.com to download replacement pages.

From the Back Cover:

The PWN the SAT Math Guide was created to help ambitious, highly motivated kids maximize their SAT math scores. It contains healthy doses of test-taking strategies, mistake-minimizing techniques, and actual, honest-to-goodness math.

Inside you'll find short, specific drills for all major SAT concepts, and longer diagnostic drills designed to identify weak areas. Solutions for each drill question are worked out by hand.

You'll also find question-by-question breakdowns of all the tests in The Official SAT Study Guide (AKA The Blue Book), both by test (so you can brush up on appropriate techniques for the questions you miss) and by concept (so you can see all the myriad ways the SAT might test your knowledge of, say, right triangles).

If you read this book from beginning to end, with a pencil in hand and a calculator and Blue Book by your side, then you will be able to approach the SAT with confidence, knowing that very few questions will surprise you, and even fewer will be able to withstand your withering onslaught.

Stand tall, intrepid student. Your destiny awaits.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.