the Sam Jackson College Experience

all the exciting parts, none of the heavy debt burden

Jan 31, 2008 0

Four excellent ways to learn new words for the SAT without leaving your desk

Looking to study for the SAT or just expand your vocabulary generally? Do you like words, and find them fun? Turn your back on those who might call you strange and keep reading…

  1. Read a book online! You can get loads for free on Google Books (a lot? who knows!) or the Gutenberg project (over 20,000 free books). Or you can of course order one online from Amazon. Sorry, I know, books are a gimme, but people don’t read enough these days so I wanted to put it on the list.
  2. Play Scrabulous! on Facebook or off it. Scrabble, even more addictive and accessible than ever. Always a great way to learn words. Look up what you don’t know, all while you try to make new words! If you aren’t familiar with the Facebook application which lets you play against your friends, check it out now. There goes your productivity. Sorry.
  3. Play FreeRice. You guess words’ meanings and every correct answer donates rice to the United Nations towards ending world hunger. Feel good about learning new words… really really good!
  4. Eric Barnes of ePrep sent me a link to their new WordSmith vocabulary game, which inspired me to make this post about a couple ways you can learn new SAT words. Key feature here is a ladderboard which adds a nice competitive element, so also worth checking out.

Subscribe to RSS feed


Who is Sam Jackson?

photo headshot sam jacksonI'm currently a junior at Yale University and I've been blogging about college admissions and higher education marketing trends since I began my college application process in 2005. I now also write about my experience here at Yale. I just got back from studying abroad at Peking University this past Fall 2009 in Beijing, China! Click here to read my 'about' page.

Kind words about my blog:

Andrew Careaga calls it “a service to all of us in the higher ed marketing business.”

Christian Long says it has “dramatically inspired college admissions folks to take notice”

Bob Johnson says “I like [it] because I agree with so much of what he says.” and that “Paying attention what Sam writes will let you focus more closely on students who will actually attend your school.”

Karine Joly says my witty and fresh style “offers a rare glimpse at the mind of our elusive prospective students”

and TargetX calls my blog “good reading” and me “wise-beyond-my-years.”