What is the best way to prepare for the SAT< ie which course, Kaplan, Princeton review?

Question

I have looked up Kaplan, Princeton Review, and SylvanPrep, and have pretty much narrowed it down to pick between those three. OF those which one would you pick to prepare for the 0ct 14 2006 test, and why? Please be detailed, provide details from your own experience, and provide pros/cons. Also, what books would be ideal to supplement the course in my free month of August? I have heard a great deal about Princeton Review books and the College board guide, but are they actually helpful? Again, please provide details from personal experience and pros/cons and perhaps suggestions I may have not heard of yet. As always, I will handpick the winner of the 10 points on the factors of quality, length, and fulfillment of the entire question. Thank you in advance for your time and thought.

Answer 1

I just took the SAT in June, and I studied with books from both Princeton Review and Kaplan. They were both helpful but personally I liked the Kaplan book (SAT 2400) better because it was geared more towards achieving a near perfect score whereas the PR. book I used (Preparing for the New SAT) was more of a general help book.
The PR books are a good first book to start with because they provide a solid background of knowledge that you will need to achieve an adaquate score. I loved the Hit List of Vocab in the book. Trust me, on the SAT there are so many new words that you will have rarely seen, but if you study the Hit List in the PR book, you will be much better prepared. I suggest using flashcards and looking them over every night at least a couple weeks before your test. I know it sounds corny, but for me it really helped me to build my vocb. Also what I loved about this book was the practice tests it included. I bought the one with the CD which let you take the tests on the computer, and gives you an actual score.
Once you are more familiar with the SAT, the Kaplan SAT 2400 book will be helpful because it focuses mostly on the most difficult aspects of the test and lets you practice harder questions. It still also gives you a good background of the SAT too. Both books prepare you well for math too, by giving you formulas and practice questions.
Basically whether you use th PR book or Kaplan book in my opinion will depend on how you use them. Make sure to practice with the practice tests and study your vocab before hand. Studying the books definitely helped me a lot beacuse it provided everything that I needed to know and as I practiced the questions in the book, I became more familiar with the SAT test format in general so I was less surprised when actual test day came. Good luck!