Brenna O'Neill, Author at 91��

SSAT Math Strategies

Brenna O'Neill — Wed, 24 Dec 2025 01:50:00 +0000

Read Carefully

One of the most common mistakes on the SSAT is misreading a question, usually due to reading too quickly or skimming. Be sure to take a few extra seconds on every question to avoid careless errors.

Underline important information

Underline words and numbers indicating quantities, relationships, and calculations (less than, twice, product, etc.) that you’ll need to answer the question. Words like “not” can be easily missed and completely change what you’re supposed to find in the question!

Check that you answered the given question

After you finish solving each problem, look back at what the question asked you to find. Make sure your answer aligns with the question.

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Work Backwards

Take advantage of the fact that the SSAT gives you more information than just a question–it also provides you with answer choices, one of which must be correct!

For questions with an unknown quantity, you can substitute the answer choices for the unknown quantity to see which works in the equation. Always start with the middle answer choice to minimize the number of answers you have to substitute.

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Estimate

Estimation is a powerful tool for eliminating wrong answers. Before beginning to solve every question, ballpark what the right answer should be. Think about things like:��

“Should it be positive or negative?”
“An integer or a fraction?”
“Bigger or smaller than the other numbers in the question?”

Sometimes the question will even include clues that you should estimate, such as “approximately” or “about,” but even without these words, always estimate first.

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Pick Values

Sometimes the math questions you see on the quantitative sections may seem very challenging to solve abstractly. The question may ask how an unknown quantity will change if it undergoes a couple of percent changes or ask you to solve for one variable in terms of others. In cases like these, it can be helpful to use actual numbers to determine the answer, rather than trying to solve algebraically.��

For example, consider the following exercise:

You can make up values to help make sense of the problem. If “x+y is divisible by 3”, choose two values that have a sum that is divisible by, such as “x=1” and “y=5”, for a total of 6. Then, substitute those values into each answer choice until you find the one that solves the problem. In this case, the correct answer is D because 2(1) + 2(5) = 12, which is divisible by 6.

Originally published on February 6, 2020. Updated on December 23, 2025.��

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SSAT Test Day

Brenna O'Neill — Wed, 24 Dec 2025 01:31:00 +0000

The day before your scheduled SSAT, you should relax, read a book, perhaps�� exercise, and get plenty of sleep. In fact, you should prioritize sleep the entire week before the test, as those earlier nights’ sleep will be critical. On the morning of the test, wake up with ample time to eat a good breakfast and to arrive at the test center at least 30 minutes prior to the start of testing. Do not attempt to study or cram last-minute information on the night before or day of the test! This will only cause undue stress and anxiety. Now is the time to feel confident in everything you’ve already done to prepare, and allow all of the hard work that you have done to solidify.

What to bring to the testing center:

Admission ticket
A snack
Water

Pro Tip: Put your snack and water in a clear resealable plastic bag with your name on it.

For paper testing:

Four No. 2 pencils

Prohibited items:

Calculators
Pens
Backpacks
Cell phones (must be off and cannot be accessed during testing)
Scratch paper (provided at computer testing locations)
Watches (a clock will be visible in the testing room)

You’ve done all you can to prepare for this moment. Make sure you have everything you need and you’ll be set up for success on test day!

Learn more about the SSAT at .��

Originally published on February 7, 2020. Updated on December 23, 2025.��

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Getting Started with Your SSAT Prep

Brenna O'Neill — Mon, 22 Dec 2025 22:18:00 +0000

The first step in your SSAT prep is to take a full-length practice test. This initial diagnostic test serves as a benchmark for your progress and is the jumping-off point of the preparation process. We here at 91�� generally recommend taking this test as early as possible, but it is never too late.

No matter how close your official test date is, taking a practice test will ensure you know what to expect on test day. An SSAT practice test will familiarize you with:��

Question types
Content
Section instructions
Section timing
Test difficulty��
Scoring analysis

*Tip: Ensure you have access to normative scores for your practice tests! Remember that answering 75% of the questions correctly on a given section may be a great score or an average score, depending on the grade level and difficulty of the section.

Additional benefits of taking a full-length practice test include:

Timing practice: Learn how to manage your time effectively.
Answer-sheet practice: Become adept at accurately bubbling in your answers.
Content review: Identify which concepts you should review before the official test.

The most important thing about a practice test is its accuracy—if the practice test does not reflect the content of the official test, the benefits of taking that practice test are limited. There are many sample tests and practice resources available, and we encourage you to take advantage of them during your preparation process. We at 91�� have spent a great deal of time making our practice as accurate as possible, and we ask for feedback every year to ensure that our content is up to date. You can find our practice materials at .

Originally published on December 9, 2019. Updated on December 22, 2025.��

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SSAT Test-Taking Strategies

Brenna O'Neill — Sat, 03 May 2025 00:49:00 +0000

Process of Elimination

The beauty of a multiple-choice test like the SSAT is that the correct answer is always there! Even if you aren’t sure how to find it, look for answer choices you know are incorrect. Eliminate those, then make an educated guess based on the remaining answer choices.

Each answer choice you eliminate increases your chances of choosing the correct one. In the example below, after elimination, you have a 1-in-3 chance (33%) of answering correctly, rather than a 1-in-5 (20%) chance that you would have had with a random guess. Sometimes, elimination alone is enough to lead you to the right answer.

to learn specific elimination strategies for each section and question type.

Guessing

For the Elementary Level SSAT:

Always answer every question!

On the Elementary Level SSAT, correct answers earn you 1 point, and incorrect or blank answers receive 0 points. Since there is no penalty for wrong answers, you should make an educated guess even if you are unsure of its accuracy. Eliminate as many answer choices as you can before guessing to increase your odds of getting the correct answer. If you can’t eliminate any options, or if you are running out of time in the section, be sure to select an answer for every question. Blank answers can’t earn you any points!

For the Middle and Upper Level SSAT: On these levels of the test, incorrect answers result in a quarter (.25) point deduction.

This “wrong-answer penalty” is designed to cancel out the advantage of random guessing. Without the penalty, students could earn points by guessing (as explained above). With the penalty, random guessing typically results in no net gain or loss over time. Statistically, your average score will be about the same whether you guess on all questions or leave them blank. Learn more about how the wrong answer penalty works.

Time Management

Using your time effectively on the SSAT is crucial. Every correct answer earns you the same number of points, so your goal is to answer as many questions correctly as possible. Don’t waste valuable time on a tough question when you could use that time to get three easier ones right. Here are three steps to manage your time effectively:

Group questions by difficulty: As you read each question, ask yourself “do I know how to solve this?” If the answer is “Yes, absolutely,” go ahead. If the answer is “Maybe,” take a stab at it, and prioritize circling back to it at the end if you have time. If the answer is “not really,” or if it’s taking too long, skip it.
Mark your guesses: When you skip a question, mark an answer on your answer sheet anyway, and circle the question in your test booklet. This keeps your answer sheet properly aligned.
Return later: After going through the entire section, go back to the tough questions you marked and see if you can solve them in the time you have left.

*This is an example of what timing feedback looks like in the 91�� practice platform:

As you can see, this student spent too long on question 27, and therefore didn’t have time to answer all of the questions. Insights like these are critical to building effective time management skills.

Final Thoughts

Developing solid test-taking strategies for the SSAT is just as important as understanding the structure and content of the exam. A mix of preparation and strategy will be key for your success–start practicing with TI !

Originally published on January 28, 2020. Updated on May 2, 2025.

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Preparing for the ISEE Essay

Brenna O'Neill — Sat, 19 Apr 2025 00:06:00 +0000

The final section of the ISEE is the Essay. Students are given 30 minutes to respond to a prompt. While the Essay section is not scored, a copy of the writing sample is sent to schools along with the ISEE score report. As you prepare for the ISEE Essay�� section, it’s important to understand its purpose and know what to expect on test day.

The Why

The ISEE writing sample offers admissions staff valuable insight into a student’s character, personality, and writing ability. Oftentimes, target schools may have their own separate application essay as part of the admissions process. In these cases, admissions teams may compare a student’s writing sample to their application essays. This helps schools evaluate how students express themselves independently. Many students, parents, and guardians underestimate the importance of this section and, as a result, tend to under-prepare.��

Writing a Persuasive Essay

The most important thing to remember is that this essay is your chance to let schools get to know the real you–your values, passions, and personality. Use it to express what matters to you. In advance of test day, spend some time brainstorming topics: people, events, and/or activities that you could reference in a variety of essay prompts. Having a few go-to ideas can be incredibly helpful when you’re short on time.��

Three ISEE Essay Tips

Use your time wisely. Start by taking the first 2 to 5 minutes to outline your essay. Include your main point, two to three supporting points, and any key examples or personal details you’ll use.
Structure your writing. Spend 20 to 25 minutes writing. Your essay should include an introduction, 2-3 body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Use specific examples and descriptive language to bring your story or argument to life. The more personal and vivid your writing, the more memorable it will be.
Leave time to revise. Take the final 2 to 5 minutes to revise your work. Look for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and capitalization errors. Clean writing ensures that your ideas shine without any distractions.

Start preparing today!

Originally published on August 7, 2018. Updated on April 8, 2025.

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All About ISEE Accommodations

Brenna O'Neill — Thu, 13 Feb 2025 19:18:45 +0000

When learning about and registering for the ISEE, many students have questions about testing accommodations. What exactly are they? Are they right for me? How can I go about receiving an accommodation? We’re here to help simplify things!

What are testing accommodations?

Testing accommodations for the ISEE are slight changes designed to help students with disabilities effectively show their knowledge and skills on the test. The goal of testing accommodations is to level the playing field for all students to ensure that everyone can perform to the best of their ability. Accommodations don’t change the content or scoring of the ISEE.

What kinds of accommodations are offered on the ISEE?

ERB, publisher of the ISEE, offers a wide variety of for students. Not all testing formats are capable of providing every type of accommodation, so it’s important to do your research ahead of time and register for a testing format that suits your needs. You can see which test formats support each accommodation type on .��

The most common accommodation is extended time, either 50% more or double time. If you have an extended time accommodation, we offer both 1.5x and 2x time for our , so you can experience exactly what it will be like on test day!

Am I eligible for accommodations?

The criteria that must be met for a student to qualify for accommodations include:

Being diagnosed with a disability that requires accommodations
Having completed necessary documentation that establishes need
Currently receiving accommodations regularly at school for that disability

It’s important to note that temporary disabilities, such as a broken arm or concussion, will not make a student eligible for ISEE accommodations.

Will my accommodations be shown on my score report?

No, they will not! ISEE score reports will not show any accommodations received.

What documentation do I need?

There are multiple types of documentation that can demonstrate a need for accommodations. For example, an Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) or a letter from a doctor may constitute acceptable supporting documentation. Your current school will also be required to complete and sign a statement. The official can provide you with further guidance on the submission of supporting documentation.

When should I apply for accommodations?

You must apply for accommodations before registering for the test. Getting your accommodations reviewed and approved can take about a week once your request has been received, so keep this in mind when planning which test dates you want to register for.

How long are approved accommodations valid for?

Once your accommodations are approved, they will be valid for 15 months following the approval date.

91��’ ISEE practice tests have accommodations built-in for students who need them. Learn more about how to enable accommodations in your practice account.

Originally published on May 11, 2016. Updated on February 13, 2025.

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Educated Guessing Strategy for ISEE Math

Brenna O'Neill — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 20:23:58 +0000

The best-case scenario on the ISEE math sections is knowing how to do every problem. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen. So what do you do when you’re faced with a problem you don’t understand and you truly have no idea where to even begin?

The guessing strategy outlined below will increase the odds of getting a question right, even if you know nothing about the question and can’t eliminate any answer choices.

The key to this strategy is knowing one important fact about ISEE math questions: the answer choices are put in order from least to greatest (or occasionally greatest to least), whenever that is possible.��

For instance, if the possible answers are 3, 7, 11, and 14, these will always be ordered the same way:

A) 3
B) 7
C) 11
D) 14

You will never see:

A) 11
B) 7
C) 14
D) 3

The guessing strategy hinges on that fact. To make sure that the question properly assesses a student’s knowledge, wrong answer choices represent a possible miscalculation or error that a student might make. It turns out that it’s very difficult to write a question with good wrong answer choices that are all higher or lower than the correct answer.

For instance, let’s consider a very simple problem: 3+2.

As the test writer, you want to write some wrong answers that represent errors a student might make.��

Maybe the student accidentally subtracts instead of adding: 3 – 2 = 1.
Maybe the student miscalculates when counting on their fingers and ends up one off: 4.��
Maybe the student accidentally multiplies instead of adding: 3 x 2 = 6.

Now you have your four answer-choices: the correct answer, 5, and the three wrong choices, 1, 4, and 6. Notice that two of these are smaller than the correct answer, and one is larger.

Putting the choices in order and placing the question first, the whole problem would read:

What is 3+2?

A) 1
B) 4
C) 5
D) 6

If you’re stuck on a math question with answer choices that are all numbers, pick one of the middle choices, B or C. It’s statistically more likely that one of these will be the right answer.

At first glance, this may not seem quite right – there should probably be an approximately equal number of answers for each letter, right? Absolutely! So where do those extra As and Ds come in?

Not all of the math questions have answer choices that are all just numbers.��

Some of them will have algebraic expressions, like “2x+3”, or lists of numbers, like “-3, 7, 5, 2”.��

For all of these questions, test writers have to make up for the abundance of questions with answer choices B and C. These questions with non-ordered answers are more likely to have the correct answer choice be A or D to balance the other questions.

If you’re stuck on a math question with answer choices that are not numbers, pick either A or D. It’s statistically more likely that one of those will be the right answer.

While this guessing strategy can be helpful, ideally you won’t have to guess on too many questions. To limit the amount of guessing you have to do on test day, improve your understanding with .��

Originally published on August 24, 2016. Updated on January 13, 2025.

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How the Digital SAT Is Scored | Tests and the Rest Podcast

Brenna O'Neill — Mon, 25 Sep 2023 16:35:06 +0000

The digital SAT is an adaptive test, which means that scoring is a lot more complicated than it used to be. Wondering how it works?

Brenna O’Neill, President of 91��, joined Mike Bergin and Amy Seeley on the��Tests and the Rest��podcast for an in-depth discussion on digital SAT scoring. to learn how multistage adaptive scoring works on the digital SAT, why some questions are worth more than others, and what these changes mean for students on test day.

All of our digital SAT practice tests are computer adaptive, ensuring students have an accurate practice experience. Get started today at /sat/digital-sat-practice/.

Students

Practice for the Digtial SAT

91��

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What is the ISEE? | Tests and the Rest Podcast

Brenna O'Neill — Tue, 05 Sep 2023 18:51:07 +0000

Brenna O’Neill, President of 91��, joined Mike Bergin and Amy Seeley on their podcast, Tests and the Rest, to discuss the ISEE. ��to learn all about the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE), including how and where it’s administered, what materials are covered, and when students should take the test.

The best way to familiarize yourself with the ISEE is to take a full-length practice test. Visit to get started.

Start preparing for the ISEE today!

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SSAT Reading Strategies

Brenna O'Neill — Wed, 05 Feb 2020 20:56:00 +0000

Find Evidence

The most important rule of reading comprehension is that the passage will always provide all of the information needed to answer the question. This means that reading comprehension is really like a scavenger hunt, and your objective is to get as good as possible at sleuthing, finding the lines that give the answer to the question as quickly as possible.

If any part of an answer choice doesn’t match the information given in the passage, it is incorrect. Even one word can make an answer choice wrong!

Note: There cannot be more than one valid interpretation of the information in the passage.

The correct answer should always have the same meaning as the information in the passage, though it may not use the exact same words.

Think of Your Own Answer First

Whenever possible, after you read a question, come up with an answer in your head before you look at the answer choices. This will help you eliminate wrong answer choices and find the best answer.

Eliminate Extreme Answers

In general, avoid answer choices that are too extreme. SSAT passages are usually moderate in their claims. If you see answer choices with words like “only,” “always,” “never,” “best,” “every,” or other extreme words, these are unlikely to be the correct answer. You should only choose them if you are absolutely sure that this sentiment is in the passage as well.

Main Idea Strategy

After reading the passage, come up with the main idea in your own words. What was the passage all about? Start by eliminating answer choices that are not in line with your main idea. If you’re torn between a couple of answer choices, determine how many lines of the passage talk about each answer choice. The one that covers more of the passage is a better answer.

Tone Strategy

Tone questions ask how an author feels about the information in the passage. Start by determining if the tone is positive, negative, or neutral. To help decide, pay attention to adjectives and other charged or feeling words in the passage. Find the answer that best matches the way the author is talking about the subject.

Note: Neutral tone answer choices may be “informative” or “factual.” A persuasive tone is indicated by words like “should,” “ought to,” “must,” and “need.”

Vocabulary in Context Strategy

Treat these questions like sentence completions. Don’t look at the answer choices at first. Instead go to the line in question, read the sentence while covering up the word, and come up with your own word to go in the blank. Then find the closest answer choice. Afterwards, plug your answer into the sentence and make sure that it fits.

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Brenna O'Neill, Author at 91����