Rating: 
(8 reviews)
Author: Michelle Rose Gilman, Veronica Saydak, Suzee Vlk
Publisher: For Dummies
Amazon.com
You’ve heard that performing well on your ACT can make up for mediocre performance in high school. But how can you ace it? Suzee Vlk, author of The SAT I for Dummies, can help. The ACT for Dummies is packed with useful information and strategies to help you prepare for the test. The book includes advice on how to use the book efficiently (Vlk estimates you’ll need 19 hours to work through it), review chapters for all four sections of the exam, and two complete practice exams. In familiar Dummies style, Vlk includes a handy tear-out “Cheat Sheet” with a summary of the most important information and a “Part of Tens” section with 10 things colleges are looking for in their applicants and “Ten Dumb Things You Can Do to Mess Up Your ACT.” With its witty writing, clear layout, and helpful icons in the margins to point out tips, tricks, and traps in the exam, and sample questions, The ACT for Dummies makes test preparation easy and relatively painless. –C.B. Delaney
Book Description
Boost your test-taking skills and beat the clock
Prepare for the ACT® quickly and painlessly and maximize your score!
Are you one of the millions of students taking the ACT? Have no fear! This friendly guide gives you the competitive edge by fully preparing you for every section of the ACT, including the optional writing test. You get two complete practice tests plus sample questions — all updated — along with proven test-taking strategies to improve your score.
Discover how to
- Study for each section
- Stay focused during the test
- Manage your time wisely
- Make smart guesses
- Spot test traps and tricks
Download Description
More than a million high school students take the ACT each year. This new edition of our ACT guide has been updated to cover the exam’s new optional writing test, which may be required by many colleges. It includes two complete practice tests and sample questions for each section of the test all revised and updated plus a new part devoted to the writing test. The book also features proven tips and strategies for managing time, guessing, and maximizing scores.
5 Comments
It’s fun to read and it’s a good prep. Unfortunately, the practice tests contain several errors. So far, I have only taken the english and the math sections of the first test, and I have found three errors. (And this is only on the first two of eight practice sections!) I have the 3rd Edition and these problems might be different in other editions. Feel free to dispute me.
(Asterisks represent underlined portion in question.)
English, problem 19, test 1:
Born in 1921 in Ithaca, New York, Alex spent his early years with his grandmother in henning, *Tennessee*. The oldest of three sons in his family.
19. A. NO CHANGE
B. Tennessee - the oldest of
C. Tennessee because he was the oldest of
D. Tennessee. Alex was the oldest of
The explanation gives D as the correct answer. They must have forgotten to underline “The oldest of” in the sentence following Tennessee.
Math, problem 18, test 1:
18. Triangles I and II (not shown) are similar figures. The
angles of triangle I are in the ratio 1:2:3. If the
perimeter of triangle I is 15+5(SQRT)3, and the shortest side
of triangle II is 15, then what is the perimeter of triangle
II?
F. 150+20(SQRT)3
G. 60+15(SQRT)3
H. 60+5(SQRT)3
J. 45+5(SQRT)3
K. 45
After working the problem, I got the answer 45+15(SQRT)3. The explanation gives the same, but it’s not an answer choice!
Math, problem 28, test 1:
28. Given that x is an integer, for what value of x is x+(2/3)x
and x+4<15?
F. 8
G. 9
H. 10
J. 11
K. 12
I took this to mean, “For what value of x are both x+(2/3)x AND x+4 less than 15?” I thought that was a strange was of phrasing it and the explanation implies that the question should have asked, “For what value of x is x+(2/3)x>15 and x+4<15?" It gave the answer H. It seems they left off the second half of the first inequality.
Sorry if this sounds like bashing, but these flaws really threw me off during my practice test. It entered my mind that the test could be wrong, but I did not think that assuming that the ACT people made a mistake was the smartest thing to do.
Also, I am under the impression that the practice tests in this book are not real ACT tests, meaning that they were made up for this book - not priorly administered tests.
The ACT for Dummies is a great ACT study guide. The Math section totally refreshed me and was very valuable when it came to test time. But what really made the ACT for Dummies book so good was that it was full of really cheesy humor. This humor helped keep me reading a book that would otherwise be extremely dull and positively unbearable. I wouldn’t be at the University of Michigan without the ACT for Dummies!
Hey also check out The 5 Minute Iliad, after finishing the ACT book
I bought this book along with The Real ACT Prep Guide and have found this book to be much more useful. I already understood the basics of the test, but I was looking for something to refresh me on all those little rules I’d forgotten in school. This book did just that. It is a great reviewer, especially in the English and Math sections.
I found this book very easy to follow along with. It is divided into sections for each subject test. In each section you will find basic rules and simple explanations for things that are commonly on the test. The math portion really brushed me up on things I’d forgotten in geometry and algebra. Even if you’re having trouble understanding you math teacher, this book will teach you what you need to know very easily. With each new thing you learn in the book, it gives you a sample question that uses your new information. Then you get questions at the end of each section that test what you’ve learned.
I also found the tips to be very helpful, such as one that said the ACT never asked any questions about spelling. It’s helpful to know that when you’re taking the test, and it was one less thing I worried about on the English test.
The practice test in this book wasn’t as close to the real test as it could have been. A few of the questions were a lot easier or harder than you’d find on the real test, but overall they were close to the real thing. I suggest picking up a practice test with your registration packet for a more realistic test.
In conclusion, this book is great if you want to brush up on your skills over a period of time, or if you want to cram the night before the test. I found it very helpful and littered with great test taking tips.
I know this isn’t an accurate measurement, but after reading about half the book (and having an additional year of school), my score went from a 22 to a 26, and then to a 29. Some of that has to be due to this book.
This book was very informative and easy to understand.
I liked that it gave a practice ACT test.
This certainly ranks up there. My other choices for 2007, hands down:
1) How To Ace Your Way Through College & Still Have a Life
2) The MLA Handbook
3) Fiske Guide to Colleges
Dr. Vernon M
Cambridge, MA