Cheat codes / Every part
Predict before you peek
Cover the options, find your own answer first, and the wrong options lose their power to trick you.
How I think about it
The code in steps
- 1Cover the options and read only the question.
- 2Solve it (Math) or say your own answer, word, idea or rule (Reading and Writing).
- 3Look at the options and pick the one that matches your answer.
- 4If no option matches, re-check once, and only then test the options.
Learn it
1. What it is
Every multiple-choice question has one right answer and three wrong ones that were written to look attractive. If you read the options first, those attractive wrong options enter your head and compete with your own thinking.
Predict-first means: cover the options with your hand (or ignore them), work out the answer yourself, then look at the options and pick the one that matches.
2. The exact steps
1. Read the question and the passage or the problem. Do not look at the options.
2. In Math, solve the problem completely. In Reading and Writing, say your answer in your own words.
3. Look at the options and find the one that matches your answer.
4. If nothing matches, do not panic. Re-check your work once. If your answer is still different, only then test the options one by one.
3. What prediction looks like in each part
Math: solve it fully, as if there were no options. Write the number.
Words in Context: put your own word in the gap. Guess a simple word like 'praised' or 'strange'.
Transitions: decide the relationship first (same direction, opposite, cause and result, example). Say 'but' or 'so' or 'for example'.
Boundaries: say what the first part is. Is it a complete sentence or a half sentence? Then say which mark you expect.
Central ideas, inferences, evidence: say the main point or the result in one short sentence.
4. A tiny drill
Choose three questions. Put a sheet of paper over the options. Write your own answer on the paper. Then move the paper and compare. Count how many times your own answer was on the list. Many students are surprised at how often it is.
5. How to know when to use it
Use it on almost every question. It is strongest on Math questions with traps (percent, rate, signs) and on Words in Context, Transitions and Boundaries where the answer is a small piece.
It is weakest on a few questions where the options are long sentences and your prediction cannot be exact, such as some Rhetorical Synthesis questions. There, predict the content you need (for example 'both the 1,500 and the 9,000') rather than whole words.
Why it works
The Digital SAT multiple-choice questions use wrong options written to be tempting: a sign error, a half-finished calculation, a word that is close in meaning. Those options only have power when you see them before you have decided. When you predict first, you are using the same skill the test is built to measure, and you use the options only as a check. It also saves time on questions where you would otherwise test all four options.
Watch out: If your prediction is wrong and it matches a trap option, you will feel sure and be wrong. That is why step 4 says to re-check once when it feels too easy on a hard question. Also, on a few questions, a prediction of exact words is impossible, so predict the idea, not the words.
See it work on real questions
Try each question your usual way first. Then open the box to see the code at work.
Words in Context · question 3
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Transitions · question 6
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Boundaries · question 3
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Linear equations in one variable · question 3
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Percentages · question 4
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Rates and speed · question 4
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Do not just believe me. Test it.
Choose 12 questions from different skills, four Math, four Words in Context or Transitions, four others. For six of them, look at the options first as usual. For the other six, cover the options and write your own answer first. Record your time and your result for each. Compare how many you got right and how long the two groups took. Also count how many times your own answer matched an option. Repeat on a second day with new questions, then decide.