Melissa Hendrix

As President’s Day approaches, it’s a perfect time to do some SAT and ACT questions on the apostrophe. If you’re not sure what exactly the proper spelling of the February holiday is, or have no idea how to use an apostrophe, here’s a lesson from our 2019 blog [https://www.noodlepros.com/blog/2019/02/15/presidents-day-vs-presidents-day-a-brief-and-timely-lesson-on-the-apostrophe/] .Settle down with a box of Valentine’s Day chocolates, and do your best. [quiz-cat id=”7424″]

Happy New Year, and welcome back to 2020’s first edition of Are You Smarter Than Your High Schooler?, a regular chance for parents and other adults to test how well they’d do on sample questions inspired by those on the ACT and SAT. In this week’s issue, the two Math questions and two grammar questions share a theme: simplicity. On the ACT English or SAT Writing and Language, students can mistakenly assume that the test writers want florid, verbose writing. In reality, both exams prize precisio

Trees are decorated, candles are burning, the days are growing ever shorter, and PSAT scores have arrived, all signs that the end of the calendar year is fast approaching. For many students, December means taking the SAT or ACT, while for many others, it means studying for tests before winter break. This column will take a break, too, and return in the new year to offer parents opportunities to test whether they are smarter than their high schoolers. So for the last time this decade, here are t

This week’s column is dedicated to all those who bemoan Black Friday’s eclipse of Thanksgiving, shudder at the crass commercialism, and would never get up at 5 AM to shop—but are just a teensy bit tempted by all those door-busting deals. So stay home instead, make yourself a turkey sandwich, and play fantasy retail with these questions inspired by ones that have appeared on the SAT or the ACT. [quiz-cat id=”7272″]

Transitions are hard. We may have adjusted to Standard Time in the last few weeks, but who likes that first day with a late afternoon sunset? It’s even worse when we transition to Daylight Saving Time in the spring. Some people struggle with transitions to new seasons, school years, or presidential administrations. And not even Johnny Depp looks good wearing transition lenses. On the SAT Writing and Language and the ACT English, many students struggle with transition questions and mistakenly lu

Happy Halloween! Here are two terrifying questions inspired by recent tests, a blood-curdling ACT and a spine-chilling SAT. Try them only if you dare. [quiz-cat id=”7229″]

Welcome back! This week’s issue is just like a good answer on the ACT English or SAT Writing & Language—short and sweet. First up, a pair of English questions inspired by the ACT and a Math question you might see on the SAT. [quiz-cat id=”7177″]

Welcome to the Back to School Special Edition of Are You Smarter Than Your High Schooler? To reflect the scholarly theme of fall, this week’s issue flips the script: Instead of getting the standard disclaimer that no rules or formulas are needed to solve, you’ll learn a few rules first and then test yourself on two Math questions, both inspired by problems on a recent ACT. Integers: All (real) numbers except for fractions and decimals. Factors: Numbers you multiply together to get another numb

As the last few weeks of summer approach and Labor Day looms on the horizon, thoughts turn from sunscreen and bug spray to school supplies and scheduling conflicts. Wasn’t Memorial Day just yesterday? If there is ever a week to have “summer brain,” this is it. Therefore, this week’s issue features two Math questions that may not be softballs but aren’t the hardest anyone would ever see on the SAT or ACT. The standard Math disclaimer applies: you don’t need to know any specific formulas to solv

It’s August and it doesn’t seem right to be thinking about school and the fall. But even the symphony of the late-summer cicadas can’t seem to drown out the shrill ads for back to school sales, and in some parts of the country, school begins as early as this week. Other parts of the country won’t start until after Labor Day, which seems fair since those same students got out only shortly before the Fourth of July. Regardless of what defines your summer break, it’s always a good time to do some

Welcome back to another issue of Are You Smarter Than Your High Schooler, a regular chance for parents to feel grateful it’s them and not you facing the SAT or ACT. In summer, however, what adult feels bad for teenagers? Their lives look pretty great from the vantage of the workaday world. But no need to go all Freaky Friday about it: just answer correctly 3 questions based on those that could appear on the SAT and appreciate your advanced years. [quiz-cat id=”6939″]

Welcome to the dog days of summer! According to the Farmers’ Almanac, the dog days run from July 3 to August 11th, marking the ascension in the Northern Hemisphere of Sirius, the canine constellation. But many never knew or have forgotten the origin of the phrase and just think it describes the hottest and muggiest days of the year. So in honor of Sirius, this week’s issue offers two Math questions with a summer theme. As ever, neither question would be considered easy. However, for the first