I am a big proponent of taking the ACT at least once during 8th, 9th, 10th grade if you can. I don’t send any test scores on until later. I just don’t see a lot of downside to doing so. My son took it once in 8th grade and got a 26. Took it again this month and got a 31 as a 9th grader. His English score hurt him as he got 32, 33 and 34s on the other sections. So I don’t think that would hurt any application he does as it improved and is doing ok for a freshman. If you struggle with tests, the familiarity and pressure of an actual test center is a good idea IMHO.