SAT Test Preparation
Many factors affect how students perform on the SAT exam. These factors can be divided into two groups:
- Academic factors: knowing the information
- Non-academic factors: test anxiety, distractions, fatigue, bodily habits, mental blocks, and low confidence
Spiritual-Academics
SAT Retreat: Integrates Faith and Academics
- Fact: Students struggle with thwarting thoughts and feelings in learning and testing environments.
- Solution: The spiritual practices used in the SAT Retreat offer learners a way to effectively deal with performance thwarting thoughts and feelings.
- Fact: The majority of students see no connection between God and the SAT.
- Solution: The SAT Retreat connects the test to the students’ talents and the Creator of those talents.
- Fact: Many students see the makers of the SAT in a negative light, believing the test makers intentionally try to “trick” test takers.
- Solution: The SAT Retreat introduces students to a totally new, respectful and sacred, way of looking at the SAT and its creators.
- Fact: SAT prep programs prepare only one part of the student.
- Solution: The SAT Retreat prepares the whole person, aiming for health of mind, body, spirit, and emotions.
Courses that deal with SAT academics are common. However, programs that offer real help with the non-academic factors are not generally available, even though these factors significantly affect performance by robbing test takers of the clarity they need to access and use stored information. Popular test-prep seminars and books at best only superficially mention non-academic factors. For example, "Don't be nervous" is good but useless advice unless students are guided through the actual steps of "how" not to be nervous. Dr. Pace's diverse fields of expertise have placed her in a unique position to apply specific holistic techniques to address the host of difficulties students bring to high-stakes tests. Thus, in addition to introducing a remarkably powerful approach to SAT Math and English, the SAT Retreat component of the seminar effectively treats the non-academic factors.
This program has won the approval of students and has earned them significant point increases! See testimonies and point increases below.
SAT Workshops that Target Specific Subjects, including:- Basic Math Workshop - Focus on Basic SAT Arithmetic, Algebra, and Geometry
- Advanced SAT Math Workshop - Advanced math topics
- SAT Essay Workship - How to write a great essay
- SAT Critical Reading Workshop - Techniques to improve reading comprehension and speed
- SAT Retreat - This completely original program from Dr. Pace details how to use various Christian/Catholic spiritual techniques to handle the non-academic factors that keep most students from performing at their personal best
- Vocabulary and Common Themes Workshop - Special focus on the vocabulary common to frequent themes in Critical Reading passages
- SAT Overview/Refresher Overview - refresher course designed to reinforce and refresh the student before the actual SAT
- SAT Review - An extended SAT Refresher course, covering all parts of the test
Click here for the Current Schedule and Registration Information
Dr. Pace's Unique Approach includes:
- The language of SAT mathematics
- Ongoing demonstrations of how easy the test can be
- Familiarity with the most frequent SAT problem types in all test sections
- A comprehensive review of the most popular SAT vocabulary
- Her insights as a published author into the mechanical and creative aspects of great essay writing
- Effective strategies
- Techniques to address the non-academic factors that affect performance
Read Dr. Pace's Published Response in the Wall Street Journal (6/3/09)
"Tests Measure Many Things and Prepping Can Help"
Testimonies and Point Increases from the 25-hour Combined SAT Academic and SAT Retreat Program
"Dr. Pace, your SAT Prep/Retreat experience not only raised my SAT score by a critical thirty points--placing me in Penn's SAT range--but also, the program--specifically the retreat component--helped me utilize my creative strengths and include them in my application. Through your guidance in the retreat and class I was able to identify my strengths and fully understand my positive academic qualities and characteristics. My essays reflected these characteristics and fortes, and I believe that this was a key component in obtaining an acceptance to my first choice college!
I greatly appreciate all of your help and guidance with the SAT program and also your continued support and prayers. Your guidance not only helped to raise my SAT scores, but helped me remain focused throughout the year in school, with my athletics and extracurricular activities, and college applications. Thank you so much for all you have done for me and I wish you a most Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!" - Eric Skoritowski, Saint Joseph's Prep, 2010
"Thank you for all your time and effort in assisting Amanda with her SAT. Amanda is now a freshman at Marywood University, in their brand new "School of Architecture." Thanks to your guidance, Amanda was able to improve her score substantially. She received the highest merit based scholarship offered at Marywood, and $21,000 overall for the first year. So, once again, thank you. I don't think she could have done it without you." - Mr. Steve Archibald, Philadelphia
“Dr. Pace’s SAT Retreat program, with its encouragement of an all-around healthy lifestyle, teaches through life lessons, lessons that will get you through not only the SAT but also through a handful of situations. The retreat helped me realize what to expect of myself mentally and how to prepare myself physically and emotionally. It taught me essential tactics that will undoubtedly help me with future problem-solving.” - Mary Kate Gasiewski, Nazareth Academy, class of 2010: 290 point increase, PSAT to PSAT
“I think this total approach to the SAT—mind, body, emotions, and spirit—is needed because it helped me become more confident and feel that I could do well on the test. I am now able to trust myself that I know the correct answer. I thought this was an excellent program. It showed me how to perform to the best of my ability.” - Amy Keever, Bishop McDevitt, class of 2011: 390 point increase, PSAT to PSAT
“I think that this holistic approach is needed and could help anyone do better on PSATs and SATs. It is also very helpful and useful in everyday situations, not just for test-taking. Specific benefits I received include learning to block out the negatives and keep the positives, relax, believe in myself, and stay focused.” - Samantha Graham, Nazareth Academy, class of 2009: 190 point increase, SAT to SAT
“The total approach used in this program allowed me to feel confident in my ability to take the SAT. I now realize that most foods I eat for breakfast hamper my ability. I now know which foods will help me to do well on the SAT. This program helped me to see the SAT as a test I can do well on, and it gave me great test strategies and ways to remain calm.” - Britnee Smith, St. Basil Academy, class of 2010: 190 point increase, PSAT to PSAT
“I think that once you get everything in balance , it makes focusing on the questions easier, which makes the test better overall.” - Emily Buck, Nazareth Academy, class of 2009: 230 point increase, SAT to SAT
“I learned how to calm myself, because anxiety and mental stress frequently plague me when facing standardized tests.” - Barbara Padlo, Nazareth Academy, class of 2010: 330 point increase, PSAT to PSAT
The following students offer testimonies to the effectiveness of the combined 25-hour program on a DVD that Dr. Pace shows at her seminars. Their point increases are:- Liam Bradley, Roman Catholic High School:
PSAT to PSAT: 210 point increase - Briann Lafty, Nazareth Academy High School:
SAT to SAT: 260 point increase - Noreen Forkin, Saint Basil Academy High School:
PSAT to PSAT: 230 point increase - Matthew Danella, Father Judge High School:
PSAT to SAT: 200 point increase - Amanda Archibald, Nazareth Academy High School:
SAT to SAT: 130 point increase
Note: Please be aware that greater or lesser point increases doesn’t reflect the student’s starting score or final score. For example, a 30 point increase might seem small; however, 30 points would be the maximum attainable point increase for a student who went from a 2370 to a perfect 2400.
Testimonies for SAT Workshops and Seminars:
"Dr. Pace truly has the ability to infuse children with the deep desire to learn. Specifically, her SAT Essay class helped me write a quality essay in a way a book alone could not. Whether it is getting a scholarship or being accepted into the school of your choice or just expanding your intellectual ability, Dr. Pace can make a difference!" - Kacie Farrell, Mount St. Joseph's Academy Class of 2011, Accepted into Johns Hopkins Program for Gifted Students
"Whether you have a low score on the SATs and need a higher score for a scholarship or you have a high score and need an even higher score to get into an Ivy League university, Dr. Pace's seminars will help you. Dr. Pace teachers her students of all skill levels a new way to think and she teaches tricks for fine-tuning those standardize test taking skills. Taking Dr. Pace's classes is definitely a profitable venture, as I know from experience. Your SAT scores will increase and that means more $$, much more than you are actually paying for the classes."
- Gerry Campion, University of Pennsylvania Class of 2007, North Catholic High School Class of 2003
"Your SAT classes were a great help to me, both with the test and especially your analysis of its design. You helped me realize that much more important than the answer to 'Which is the right choice?' is the question, 'What is the correct way of looking at the problem?' It was a pivotal moment in my life and career as a designer and engineer." - Jesse Battaglia, design engineer
"I would like to thank Dr. Pace for her help throughout the years. With the help of Dr. Pace, I was able to break through barriers, especially in my verbal score. The classes I took with Dr. Pace were very worthwhile and benefited me very well."
- Michael Campion, LaSalle University, North Catholic High School Class of 2005
"I am writing this to thank you very sincerely for all the help you have given me over the past eight years. Without your guidance and expertise, I would definitely not have gotten to where I am today. I want to thank you for the countless seminars and weekend "Whiz Kids" classes. All these extra hours of study have truly helped me out more than I could have ever imagined at the time. Those thick vocabulary packets have helped me get a 710 in verbal on the SATs (only a few points short of my 800 goal), and the extra algebra and geometry lessons helped me get a 630 in math. My score helped me get into Saint Joseph's University with a scholarship, which I plan to attend this fall. Again, I want to thank you so much for all you have done for me in the past. You have made such an impact on my life. I really appreciate it and I know I could never have gotten into my top choice college without your help. Thank you for being such an influential person and teacher."
- Lizzie Diem, Saint Joseph's University, St. Basil's Academy Class of 2005
"The SAT Workshops really helped me learn how to approach the seemingly endless barrage of hard questions on the SAT. To be more precise, the seemingly endless barrage of hard questions on any test was considerably lightened. I would highly recommend these workshops, even if you aren't going to take the SAT. They really helped in my classes, particularly on the High School Entrance Tests and in my English and math tests. They also helped me look at a new approach to solving different kinds of problems, which I use very often. And, of course, they made the SAT seem a little less daunting than it formerly did." - Melanie Sweeney, Nazareth Academy Class of 2011, Johns Hopkins Candidate, Academic Scholarship winner
Please call 215-725-6568 for more information or to register for any program.