Terry Said:

Is reading comprehension trainable?

We Answered:

In order to boost your reading skills you have to practice reading books that use higher levels of vocabulary.

A lot of people recommend fiction, because it is assumed that most people would enjoy fiction. If you don't enjoy any type of fiction (whether it's sci-fi, mystery, romance, adventure, biography, etc.), then you should try reading either magazines that focus in some subject that you like, or textbooks.

Using higher vocabulary in your speech (or listening to others with good vocabularies speak) can boost your reading comprehension a little. It's just that you won't feel the effects until you apply what you've heard to something that you read.

Hopefully this helps! Let me know if you have any questions! :)

Herbert Said:

Need an Idea on 8th-9th Grade Math, Vocabulary, and an Essay?

We Answered:

Math
http://www.coolmath.com/algebra/
Vocab
http://medtech.stisd.net/summer_requirem…

Ethel Said:

Am i good at reading and comprehension?

We Answered:

Well lets think here.
If your in 8th grade then you should have a 8th grade reading level.
Go figure.

Barry Said:

Could some please give me examples of Hyperlexia and how frequent it could occur to be considered hyperlexic?

We Answered:

i think you have hit the nail on the head. figuratively speaking.

Ethel Said:

Are these okay ISEE scores for applying to 9th grade?

We Answered:

You did very well on the ISEE! Your scores should be good enough for either Thacher or Cate. Thacher is considered more rigorous than Cate. Thacher will likely look at what math class you are in now and your grades. If you're an A student in Geometry, your score may not matter that much. If you're a C student in Algebra, your score will likely matter more. But your ISEE score is only one factor in being admitted. They will look at your grades from about 5th or 6th, your extracurricular activities, your ability to get along well with other students, etc.

My son took the ISEE last year, he's unusually academic and good at tests so he scored really high, but one of his friends isn't good at standardized tests. She's a very bright girl, but she never scored super high in every section, even though she was a straight A student at their extremely rigorous K - 8. She applied to one of the extremely rigorous schools that my son did (where he now attends), it's very similar to Thacher, and she was accepted with her ISEE scores. I believe they were similar to yours. (She chose another school, due to the cost and the rigor. Extremely rigorous schools may have 5 hours of homework a night, including homework on every weekend. Add that to a couple of hours most days for sports practice or arts rehearsal and it's tough. She didn't feel that was right for her, and it's really not right for most kids.)

I know the recent average SSAT scores for accepted students at Cate is 80% and Thacher is 83%. The SSAT isn't the same as the ISEE, but it is very similar. My son and his friends who took both scored almost the same on each test. (My son and his friends thought the SSAT was slightly easier, except that wrong answers are penalized.) The SSAT combines the 4 scores and although the one percentile score is not exactly the average of the 4 (it's more complicated than that), it's close enough. So you can see you would be in the ballpark.

In case you didn't realize, your percentile score is a comparison of other test takers. That is the score they pay the most attention to. 98 percentile means you scored in the top 2%, 63 percentile means you scored in the top 37%.

Do Thacher and Cate are still have openings for Sept 2010? I know decisions were due in April and usually both have many more apps than spaces.

Good luck!