<p>I took the June '14 ACT with a composite of 29 with very lopsided scores. I had a 35 in English, 30 in reading, 26 in math, and 23 in science. I find the English section to be super easy yet I struggle tremendously with the science section along with math. What’s the best way to improve my science and math scores for the Sept ACT? I already have the Real ACT book and it has helped improve my math score to an extent, but what other prep books would help raise my math and science scores in order to achieve a composite score of 31 or higher? </p>
<p>Kaplan has some great free math videos on YouTube. Master what they have there, and it is worth several more points on your math.</p>
<p>I have the same problem! I find the real Math and Science sections much harder than those in the Real Act book.</p>
<p>I think Khan Academy is really good for learning additional math. A big trick is to try hard to really understand the problem. In math you often have a choice, memorize the procedure that some teacher tells you to solve the problem or actually understand the problem. You will know that you actually understand a problem when you can think of lots of ways to solve it.</p>
<p>Let me give some examples. First you know how to write, clearly. And you know that there is no single way to express your idea in writing. You can say “The car flipped over” or “The car turned over”, two ways to express the same idea. The fact that you can be so nimble shows that you truly understand how to use language.</p>
<p>So lets take a simple math example. Say I asked you to calculate 5*5. Here’s several different ways to solve that same problem:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Pure memory
5 * 5
= 25</p></li>
<li><p>Use addition
5 * 5
= 5 + 5 + 5 + 5 + 5
= 25</p></li>
<li><p>Use counting
5 * 5
= IIIII * 5
= IIIII IIIII IIIII IIIII IIIII
= 25</p></li>
<li><p>Factor the problem
5 * 5
= (2 + 3) * (1 + 4)
= 2<em>1 + 2</em>4 + 3<em>1 + 3</em>4
= 2 + 8 + 3 + 12
= 25</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I can easily think of several ways to solve the problem 5 * 5 and this shows I really understand it. My mastery is high. So when you have trouble with a problem, first learn it by watching the explanation. But ask yourself at the end, can I think of another way to solve it? Test your other methods.</p>
<p>And this leads to another point. To master math, you must learn to play with math. In the above example I kept playing with the idea of 5<em>5, looking at different ways to express it. By the end I came up with a really cool way to show how factoring worked. I actually explained a much harder concept, factoring, starting with the idea of 5</em>5 and applying a few rules that can be used to transform an equation.</p>
<p>My point here is to return to the red book. Retake those practice exams. Don’t time yourself. When you get to a math problem that you missed the first time make sure you can solve it again. Did you simply memorize the answer or are you now able to think through the problem without leaning too hard on things you have memorized.</p>
<p>Remember all of mathematics is built on a few simple rules. These are all you ever have to memorize. Everything else is built up along the way by playing with these rules. If you want to be really great at mathematics and have the type of mastery that will make you great at ACT exams, then it is important that you learn to play with the concepts in your mind.</p>
<p>Sorry for ranting, hope it is helpful!</p>
<p>Ben</p>