Welcome to
McGraw-Hill Education
SAT
Subject Test: Chemistry
How to Use This Book
The SAT Chemistry test covers a very large amount of material, and your preparation time may be short. That is why it is important to use your study time wisely. This book provides a comprehensive review of everything you need to know for the exam, and it has been organized to make your study program practical and efficient. It will help you:
Identify the chemistry topics that you most need to focus on
Familiarize yourself with the test format and exam question types
Review all the basic chemistry you need to know for the test
Check your progress with questions at the end of each review chapter
Practice your test-taking skills using practice exams
The following four-step study program has been designed to help you make the best use of this book.
1 Take the Diagnostic Test
Once you have read through this chapter, start your preparation program by taking the Diagnostic Test. This test is carefully modeled on the real SAT Chemistry test in terms of format, types of questions, and topics tested. Take the Diagnostic Test under test conditions and pay careful attention to the one-hour time limit. When you complete the test, score yourself using the scoring information at the end of the test. Then read through the explanations to see which test topics gave you the most trouble. Look for patterns. Did you miss questions in one or two specific subject areas? Did specific question formats give you trouble? When did you need to guess at the answer? Use your results to identify the topics and question types that were most difficult for you. Once you know your chemistry strengths and weaknesses, you’ll know which subjects you need to focus on as you review for the test.
2 Review the Test Topics
This book provides a full-scale review of all the topics tested on the SAT Chemistry test. Once you have identified the topics that give you the most trouble, review the relevant chapters. You do not need to work through the review chapters in the order in which they appear. Skip around if you like, but remember to focus on the topics that gave you the most trouble on the Diagnostic Test.
Each review chapter ends with practice problems that you can use to see how well you have mastered the material. If you get a problem wrong, go back into the chapter and reread the section that covers that particular topic.
Make a study schedule. If you have the time, plan to spend at least two weeks working your way through the review chapters. Be sure to set aside enough time at the end of your schedule to take the practice tests at the end of the book. However, if you do not have much time before the test, you may want to shorten your review time and focus instead entirely on the practice tests.
3 Build Your Test-Taking Skills
As you work through the examples and review questions in each review chapter, you’ll become familiar with the kinds of questions that appear on the SAT Chemistry test. You’ll also practice the test-taking skills essential for top scores. These include
The ability to recall and comprehend major concepts in chemistry and to apply them to solve problems
The ability to interpret information gained from observations and experiments
The ability to make inferences from experimental data, including data presented in graphs and tables
4 Take the Practice Tests
Once you have completed your review of all the SAT Chemistry topics, get ready for the real exam by taking the four practice tests at the back of this book. As you take each test, try to simulate actual test conditions. Sit in a quiet room, time yourself, and work through as much of the test as time allows. The tests are ideal for practice because they have been constructed to be as much like the real test as possible. The directions and practice questions are very much like those on the real test. You’ll gain experience with the test format, and you’ll learn to pace yourself so that you can earn the maximum number of points in the time allowed.
Each test will also serve as a review of the topics tested because complete explanations are provided for every question. The explanations can be found at the end of each test. If you get a question wrong, you’ll want to review the explanation carefully. You may also want to go back to the chapter in this book that covers the question topic.
Each review chapter ends with practice problems that you can use to see how well you have mastered the material. If you get a problem wrong, go back into the chapter and reread the section that covers that particular topic.
At the end of each test you’ll also find scoring information. Calculate your raw score, then use the table provided to find your approximate scaled score. The scaling on the real test may be slightly different, but you’ll get a good idea of how you might score on the actual test.
The Top 40 Things You Need to Know for Top Scores in Chemistry
1 Changes
Understand and be able to identify the difference between physical and chemical changes. See Chapter 1.
2 Reactions
Understand and be able to identify the difference between exothermic and endothermic reactions. See Chapter 1.
3 Mixtures
Know the differences between substances, mixtures, and the components of mixtures. See Chapter 1.
4 Gas Laws and Calculations
Be able to use the gas laws to calculate moles, pressure, volume, and mass of a sample of gas at various temperatures and conditions. See Chapter 2.
5 Matter
Be able to name the changes in phases of matter and identify them on a heating/cooling curve. See Chapter 2.
6 Subatomic Particles
Understand the properties of the subatomic particles and how they allow isotopes to exist. See Chapter 3.
7 Electron Configuration
Be able to provide the electron configuration of an element given the number of electrons. See Chapter 3.
8 Molecules
Know how to distinguish between the various hybridization states and the shapes of molecules that can be formed. See Chapter 3.
9 The Octet Rule
Understand the octet rule and how it allows atoms and ions to be stable. See Chapter 3.
10 Grouping and the Periodic Table
Know the properties and names of various groups/families within the periodic table. See Chapter 4.
11 Metals, Nonmetals, and the Periodic Table
Know the properties and locations of the metals and nonmetals. See Chapter 4.
12 Trends and the Periodic Table
Know the trends for electronegativity, ionization energy, and atomic radius across the periodic table. See Chapter 4.
13 Bonds
Be able to distinguish between the various intramolecular bonds: covalent (polar vs. nonpolar), ionic, network covalent, hydrogen, coordinate covalent, metallic, dispersion/Van der Waals, and molecule-ion attraction. See Chapter 5.
14 Sigma and Pi Bonds
Be able to tell the difference between sigma and pi bonds and be able to locate them within a molecule. See Chapter 5.
15 Compounds
Be able to name ionic and covalent compounds using both traditional methods and the stock method. See Chapter 5.
16 Chemical Equations
Know how to balance and classify chemical equations. See Chapter 6.
17 Calculations of Compounds
Be able to calculate percent hydration and percent composition of a compound. See Chapter 6.
18 Solubility Rules
Understand how to use solubility rules to predict the products of a reaction and write net ionic equations. See Chapter 6.
19 Solutions
Know how to calculate the concentration of a solution. See Chapter 6.
20 The Mole
Understand how to use the mole to calculate the number of liters a gas will occupy, the number of molecules present, the mass of a sample, and the number of moles of another substance in a reaction. See Chapter 6.
21 Potential Energy Diagrams
Be able to draw and label a potential energy diagram. See Chapter 7.
22 Heat
Know how to use a potential energy diagram and Hess’s Law to calculate heat involved in reactions. See Chapter 7.
23 Rate of Reaction
Be able to determine how to change the rate of reaction. See Chapter 8.
24 Equilibrium
Be able to determine how changing conditions changes the point of equilibrium of a reaction. See Chapter 8.
25 Products and Reactants
Understand how to use Keq and Ksp values to find concentrations of products and reactants. See Chapter 8.
26 Spontaneous Reactions
Know how to determine if a reaction will be spontaneous. See Chapter 8.
27 Acids And Bases
Understand the various operational and conceptual methods for defining acids and bases. See Chapter 9.
28 Ka
Understand what Ka can tell us about an acid or a base. See Chapter 9.
29 Molarity and pH
Know how to calculate the molarity and pH of an acid or a base solution. See Chapter 9.
30 Oxidation Numbers
Be able to determine the oxidation numbers for the elements in a compound. See Chapter 10.
31 Oxidizing and Reducing Agents
Know how to identify the substances that had a change in oxidation number and identify which serve as an oxidizing or a reducing agent in a half reaction. See Chapter 10.
32 Redox Reactions
Be able to balance both simple and complex redox reactions. See Chapter 10.
33 Voltaic and Electrolytic Cells
Know how to determine the reactions that occur within voltaic and electrolytic cells. See Chapter 10.
34 Prefixes
Understand the prefixes used in organic chemistry so as to know the number of carbon atoms present in a molecule. See Chapter 11.
35 Functional Groups in Organic Chemistry
Be able to distinguish between the various functional groups in organic chemistry that contain oxygen, nitrogen, and double and triple bonds. See Chapter 11.
36 Radiation
Be able to identify the risks and benefits of using radiation. See Chapter 12.
37 Nuclear Emanations
Know the differences between various types of nuclear emanations. See Chapter 12.
38 Half-Life and Mass Calculations
Be able to calculate the half-life of an isotope or the mass of a radioactive sample after a certain period of time. See Chapter 12.
39 Laboratory Techniques
Understand safe and general laboratory techniques. See Chapter 13.
40 Laboratory Calculations
Know how to make all necessary calculations pertaining to experiments carried out in the laboratory. See Chapter 13.
