Best method for Cube Counting

[Murl]

I have been using the table labeled 0 thru 5 and using tally marks in the respective column. I have also heard of counting each level separately and separating them by lines like in barron's dat book. What have you guys had the best luck at?

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[sfrice80]

I seriously just looked from right to left on the object and went through and counted with my fingers and when I was done counting I then would look at my fingers for the number. It sounds stupid and like it wouldnt be very efficient but I flew through cubes and saved time for harder sections such as top/front/end and folding. Try it out, it actually works really well. Cube counting was consistently my best section on PAT.

 

[orangutan777]

i've been counting the cubes from left to right in columns and tallying them as a i go, this way i'm sure i wont lose track (i've gotten 15 on all CDP practice tests besides missing one or two on the illusion ones)

 

[Dental Mom]

I have been using the table labeled 0 thru 5 and using tally marks in the respective column. I have also heard of counting each level separately and separating them by lines like in barron's dat book. What have you guys had the best luck at?

The 0-5 table works the best for me, but sometimes I get nervous and miss things because I feel the method is slow, but it is effective....I guess is all about practice. Do what works for you all the time. I learned how to do R and S with my hands and during exams I look, well "weird"

 

[ZzZzSleepyhead]

Haha I learned how to R/S with my hands too!

 

[cmills66]

I've been doing the 0-5 and then tally approach but i do have a question with that method. For example in CDP, if they start you with how many cubes have 3 sides..., they always ask sequential numbers after (for example next they would ask how many have 4 sides, five). When i see a question like this, i always start with 3 and ignore the cubes with zero, one and two sides. Am i safe doing this, or does the real DAT start you off with 3, but then later asks you how many cubes have 2 sides?

 

[ZzZzSleepyhead]

cmill,
I think doing it that way would get really confusing if they did throw out a "how many has 2 sides" after a "how many has 3 sides" question. Why don't you just count up all the cubes and tally them up and answer the questions all in one go?

 

[sketo43]

I liked the 0-5 tally strategy. It's not the fastest method, but I think it's the surest way to get every question right on this section. Time was never an issue for me on the PAT.

Also, always count each structure in the same direction - I always counted starting on the top row, going from the back left to the front, then moving to the right one row and repeating. The direction doesn't matter, just be consistent. It helps prevent you from missing a cube or counting a cube twice.

 

[bennijai]

I count with my fingers as I eye the cubes from left to right. But I'm debating whether or not it's the same time as tallying. My way of tallying is to count through the cubes and just write down the number of sides on the paper rather than tally 0-5.

Example. My sheet would look something like this: 1 3 4 3 5 1 1 3 4 4 5

I tested both ways and seems like the timing is about the same. All I can say is just practice and your results will vary from your experience.

 

[Murl]

I have been using the tally method and do well on the cube section except for the illusions. I am not really worried about those because everyone says there are no illusions on the real thing.

 

[namiie]

cmill,
I think doing it that way would get really confusing if they did throw out a "how many has 2 sides" after a "how many has 3 sides" question. Why don't you just count up all the cubes and tally them up and answer the questions all in one go?

I agree! When I do it like this, I really only have to look at each individual cube once (ok, twice, briefly, since I count them all one last time to make sure the total # of cubes matches what I counted). Looking for how many cubes have 1 side painted, then 2, then 3 gets confusing, imo...easier to lose count like that.