Cheat codes / Every part
Run the clock: the time bank
Spend little on the easy questions, save the seconds, and spend them on the hard ones where they matter.
How I think about it
The code in steps
- 1Open the question menu and do the easy questions first.
- 2Answer easy questions fast, and save the seconds.
- 3If a question takes twice its average with no plan, guess smart, mark it, and move on.
- 4Return to marked questions and spend the saved time.
- 5Hide the timer until 5 minutes remain if it makes you nervous.
Learn it
1. What it is
Reading and Writing has 54 questions in 64 minutes, so about 71 seconds per question. Math has 44 questions in 70 minutes, so about 95 seconds per question. These are averages, not rules for each question. Each section has 2 modules timed separately.
The time bank: when you answer an easy question in 20 seconds, you have saved about 50 seconds (Reading and Writing) or 75 seconds (Math). Those seconds are in the bank for the hard questions.
2. The exact steps
1. Use the question menu in Bluebook to see all questions in the module. Do the easy ones first and mark the hard ones for review with the bookmark.
2. On an easy question, answer quickly. Do not double-check what you are sure about. The saved seconds are your savings.
3. If a question has taken about twice its average (about 2 minutes in Reading and Writing, about 3 minutes in Math) and you still have no plan, enter your best smart guess, mark it, and move on.
4. When the easy ones are done, go back to the marked questions and spend the saved time on them, one by one.
3. Handling the timer
Bluebook has a timer that you can hide until 5 minutes remain. If watching the clock makes you nervous, hide it and use it only as a signal. If you hide it, make sure you use the 5-minute mark as the time to check that every question has an answer. If the clock helps you, leave it on.
4. What about the second module?
The second module adapts to how you did in the first. It may feel harder, and that is not a sign that you are doing badly. The same plan works: easy first, bank the time, spend it on the hard ones, never leave a blank.
5. A tiny drill
On your next practice module, write on a sheet the time at the start and at the middle. At the middle, you should have answered about half the questions. Also note the number of questions you flagged. After the module, write down which ones took more than twice the average and why.
Why it works
Every question is worth the same amount of score, whether it takes 15 seconds or 3 minutes. So the best use of a fixed amount of time is to collect the cheap points first and make sure the hard ones get the seconds that remain. Bluebook lets you move freely inside a module, with a question menu and mark for review, so you can do this in the order you choose. Once you leave a module you cannot go back, so the work must be finished inside it.
Watch out: Do not assume the questions go from easy to hard. The order is not a reliable guide, so read the first few words of a question before you decide it is a skip. Also, do not rush the easy ones so much that you make careless mistakes. Easy does not mean careless. The times I give for the bank questions are my estimates for a prepared student, and your numbers will be different, so measure them yourself.
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 1
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Linear equations in one variable · question 1
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Central Ideas and Details · question 7
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Rates and speed · question 8
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Circles · question 8
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Do not just believe me. Test it.
Do one timed module of practice questions twice, on two different days, with different questions of similar difficulty. The first time, go from question 1 to the end without any plan. The second time, use the question menu, do the easy ones first, flag the hard ones, and use the banked time on them. Write the number correct, the number of blanks and the time you had left. Compare the two. One module is a small test, so do it a few times before you judge, and note whether hiding the timer until 5 minutes remain helped or hurt you.