SAT Prep — Plan Your SAT Essay Examples in Advance

Before you sit down to take the SAT, make sure you enter the room prepared with a handful of stories and examples to use on the SAT essay.

Of course, you can't anticipate all of the possible SAT essay prompts, but a having few good, well-rehearsed stories could save you precious time, and earn you a higher score.

What kinds of stories should you prepare in advance?

Think about overcoming adversity. Have you had any problems in your own life that you had to overcame? Poverty? Neglect? Stereotypes? Family drama? Ridicule? Any physical or social handicaps? How did you deal with your problem? Can you think of a specific example?

Do you have a "coming of age" story to tell? If not a personal story, what about a story involving an historical or even fictional character? Can you think of someone who faced great challenges and became a better person because of how they dealt with those challenges?

Think about ideals such as integrity, optimism, diversity, perseverance, hard work, and democracy. Can you recall any stories that might illustrate these ideals?

Humor can be very effective in communicating your ideas in a memorable way. Do you have an amusing story than can illustrate a human value?

Even if you end up using none of these stories on the actual essay, the simple act of thinking through possible examples will develop and hone your "mental muscles."

So prepare yourself by creating a narrative bag of tricks. Most good stories can be adapted to illustrate various themes. If you walk in the door with a lot of potential stories, you won't find yourself stuck for ideas on test day.

Good luck.