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This manual opens with a diagnostic test that includes explained answers to help students pinpoint their math strengths and weaknesses. In chapters that follow, detailed topic reviews cover polynomial, trigonometric, exponential, logarithmic, and rational functions; coordinate and three-dimensional geometry; numbers and operations; data analysis, statistics, and probability; and graphing calculators, their operations and applications. Six full-length model tests with answers, explanations, and self-evaluation charts conclude this manual.
• Table of Contents:
• Introduction
• Diagnostic Test
• Answer Key
• Answers Explained
• Self-Evaluation Chart for Diagnostic Test
• Functions
• Geometry and Measurement
• Numbers and Operations
• Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
• Introduction
• Basic Operations
• Specific Applications
• Programs
• Model Test 1
• Model Test 2
• Model Test 3
• Model Test 4
• Model Test 5
• Model Test 6
• Summary of Formulas
• Index
Anonymous
Posted February 19, 2010
For the girl that was confused about the slope equation, I have to say this... Sweatheart, if you took any form of Calculus, you should have been able to add 2+3 to realize that their slope equation was simply reflecting a change in Y (rise, for you third grade girl), over change in X (run, you third grade girl). This is not rocket science. Don't post negatively due to YOUR lack of mathematical common sense. A y-sub of one minus a y-sub of two simply reflects change in rise. Were you seriously confused over this?
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anya495
Posted March 8, 2011
Let me start by saying I'm a somewhat inexperienced with preparing for standardized testing, so my opinion may be a bit different than the general consensus. Regardless, I have a strong math background and consider myself reasonably talented for someone of my age (I'm a sophomore in high school taking Calculus BC). Here's my input:
I bought this book purely because I ran out of practice tests to take in the Princeton Review equivalent. After diving into the first practice test, I became a little nervous. The problems are more difficult than those of any other Math 2 prep book. I managed to finish 43 of the problems in the allotted time, which surprised me because I was used to finishing all 50 with a good five minutes to spare. I calculated that my final score was a 760. This surprised me even more. I hadn't got less than a 800 on any of the other tests I had taken. The Barron's problems are definitely more time consuming than the ones that will be on the actual test. They're also more "pointed." For example, they use vocabulary specific to certain functions that would never show up on the actual exam. Someone who's taken the test could correct me, but I don't think that you'd ever get asked to find "the sum of distances from any fixed point on a curve to the two foci."
I do agree that the explanations in the back are a tad vague, but someone with a solid understanding of the material should be able to wrestle through them. I'm also of the opinion that a couple of the answers in the back are wrong. Here's my advice: consider buying the book because it has SO MANY practice tests, but take your scores with a grain of salt. If math isn't exactly your forte, pick up the Princeton Review book because solution methods are more thoroughly explained.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Firstly, I'd like to state that the "anonymous" reviewer that posted before me is degrading the book much more than he or she should be doing. The slope equation that Barron's provided is just a variation of (y2-y1)/(x2-x1), which everyone should know; all Barron's did was simplify it by saying (y - different y, or y1)/(x - different x, or x1) -- they said (y-y1)/(x-x1). X and X1 are different, and so are Y and Y1. In the same case, X2 is different from X1 and Y2 is different from Y1, which comes from the more universally presented slope equation. So, in general terms, the equations are exactly the same. This is the slope equation. I learned this equation in 7th grade. This is a basic equation that EVERYONE should initially know before even THINKING about taking the SAT II Math Subject Test, aside from the fact that this is level TWO math.
Secondly, generally, Barron's is a GREAT guide in pretty much ALL areas of SAT testing. Why? Because they present the more challenging questions and help students think critically. I like it that they include questions that are usually, more often than not, much, much more complicated and thought-provoking than those of many other test guides. So, if you aren't prepared to answer really difficult questions, Barron's is NOT the guide for you. It fits me in that it readily helps me take on the more hard questions that will be on the Math Level 2 test, and pretty much gives you a skim over the easier questions. I don't really need review on the easier questions anyways -- I just want practice on the more difficult ones. This is what Barron's provides me.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted June 5, 2008
I acquired this book in hopes of effectively reviewing all my pre-cal math for the SAT subject test Math 2. I was SORELY disappointed. I am NOT a math whiz. I took AP Calculus as a Junior in high school, so I understand math fairly well but I need clear explanations. Barron's is about as vague as you can imagine. Somehow, the equation of a line is (y - y1) / (x - x1) = slope. I never knew that??? In all my years of math, I never learned that? And Barron's expects you to know that and to use it accordingly. Uhhh... ???? There are several ways to solve a math problem, and Barron's does not seem to acknowledge or encourage that. The explanations are sparse, if any exist at all. I ended each prep session more confused and frustrated than when I started. HATE IT! The 'explanations' are only useful if you already have a strong grasp on mathematics. Plus, there was a lot of superfluous stuff that I highly doubt are on the actual subject test.
3 out of 12 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.rsmith_9
Posted December 24, 2011
The verdict: Consider the purchase of this book if you have plenty of time to prepare and really are shooting for an 800. Otherwise, stick with Princeton Review¿s Cracking the Math II SAT.
+
The book is exhaustively comprehensive and covers practically every topic that could appear on the exam. Includes a whopping 7 practice exams, compared to Princeton Review¿s 2 exams.
-
It reads like a textbook and does not tell you which material you really need to know for the exam. There are quite a few useless topics that are never tested, such as finding the eccentricity of hyperbolas. The exams questions in the book are much more difficult than the actual SAT.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted July 4, 2009
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Posted August 17, 2010
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Posted May 3, 2009
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Posted June 8, 2009
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Posted January 15, 2011
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Posted July 6, 2009
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Posted January 23, 2010
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Posted June 6, 2010
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Posted November 5, 2011
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Posted April 24, 2011
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Posted August 26, 2009
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Overview
This manual opens with a diagnostic test that includes explained answers to help students pinpoint their math strengths and weaknesses. In chapters that follow, detailed topic reviews cover polynomial, trigonometric, exponential, logarithmic, and rational functions; coordinate and three-dimensional geometry; numbers and operations; data analysis, statistics, and probability; and graphing calculators, their operations and applications. Six full-length model tests with answers, explanations, and self-evaluation ...