Sat math Essentials

F i v e - C h o i c e Q u e s t i o n s
The 
five-choice
questions, which are multiple-choice questions, present a question followed by five answer
choices. You choose which answer choice you think is the best answer to the question. Questions test the follow-
ing subject areas: numbers and operations (i.e., arithmetic), geometry, algebra and functions, statistics and data
analysis, and probability. About 90% of the questions on the Math section are five-choice questions.
C H A P T E R
Preparing for
SAT Math
2
7

---

Here is an example:
1.
By how much does the product of 13 and 20
exceed the product of 25 and 10?
a.
1
b.
5
c.
10
d.
15
e.
20
Five-choice questions test your mathematical rea-
soning skills. They require you to apply various math
techniques for each problem.
G r i d - I n Q u e s t i o n s
Grid-in
questions are also called 
student-produced
responses
. There are approximately ten grid-in ques-
tions on the entire exam. Grid-in questions do not
provide you with answer choices. Instead, a grid-in
question asks you to solve a math problem and then
enter the correct answer on your answer sheet by fill-
ing in numbered ovals on a grid.
You can fill in whole numbers, fractions, and dec-
imals on the grids. Examples follow.
Whole Numbers
If your answer is 257, fill in the number ovals marked
2, 5, and 7:
Fractions
If your answer is 
4
9
, fill in the number ovals marked 4
and 9 and a fraction symbol (/) in between.
Note that all mixed numbers should be written as
improper fractions. For example, 5
3
5
should be filled in
as 28/5.
Decimals
If your answer is 3.06, fill in the number ovals marked
3, 0, and 6 with a decimal point in between the 3 and
the 0.
1
2
3
5
6
7
8
9
1
5
6
7
8
9
0
•
/
1
2
3
3
6
7
8
9
0
•
/
1
2
3
4
4
4
4
5
6
8
9
0
•