SHSAT PrepContent areas
NYCPS names ratios and proportional relationships, the number system and expressions, equations and inequalities, statistics and probability, and geometry. Students are expected to walk in with those grade-level facts. There is no formula sheet, and words like parallel, similar, and perimeter are assumed knowledge.
But a topic list is not a plan. The real plan is the mistake that keeps showing up: a dropped condition, a backward ratio, a percent of the wrong base, a geometry formula attached to the wrong measure. If last week's misses came from five topics, start with the one that showed up on the hardest items or cost the most time.
A method for mixed items
Write the requested quantity first, translate each condition into symbols or a labeled diagram, compute one written step at a time, then check that the number matches the target before moving on. Math items cannot be revisited, so the method has to be clean the first time.
If the student cannot say what the target is, they are not ready to compute. That one habit prevents a huge share of official-style misses. SHSAT questions often hide the target in ordinary English: the product of two changed integers, the starting number of marbles, or the dimensions after a ratio is applied.
Practice the entry surface
Some items use an equation editor. Learn the palette on the official tutorial before a timed exam. A correct value entered in a form the editor rejects is still wrong. Practice parentheses, roots, and the multiplication dot until they are boring.
What to review after a Math section
Ask which decision would have prevented the error before the calculation even started. If the answer is 'be more careful,' the review is not finished. Name the missing condition or the swapped target, then give the student three new items that punish that exact mistake. 'Careful' is not a method.
Official sources
SHSAT policies and digital testing details can change. Confirm current information with NYC Public Schools:
SHSAT Prep is an independent practice product and is not affiliated with NYCPS.
Frequently asked questions
Do students get a formula sheet?
No. NYCPS says grade-level terms, symbols, and formulas are not provided in the test. Students need those facts before test day.
Continue your study plan
Most SHSAT Math items ask you to turn words into a representation, then check that the answer is the quantity requested.
Next guideMulti-Step Questions on SHSAT MathOne-step arithmetic is not the exam. The items that separate scores stack a representation, a second operation, and a unit check.
Next guideSHSAT Practice Tests: How to Use ThemUse official NYCPS tests first, then independent digital exams. Review the same day. Do not sit another full test until the last one changed the work.