im thinking of taking the act whenever summer comes back. im gonna be a sophmore but i havent learned most of the material that is going to be on the test. Is it still worth trying?

Definitely wait!  I don't know what classes you've already taken, or what you're lined up to take, but some stuff definitely won't be easy. 

There were questions that had to do with my FSTPDM class (functions, stats, and trig, and point discrete math) that my peers who weren't in that class would've had no idea about.  There were even several questions that I would have bombed had I not taken physics my junior year. 

And for the english portion...  You'll definitely want to wait.  Most of my friends that took the normal junior-level class (like English 11) got 24s to 27s, and my friends in my AP Language and Comp class were only slightly above that range.  Only a few of my peers actually got in the 30s, and thats having taken their junior classes.  I got a 35, and I know I wouldn't have gotten anywhere NEAR that if I had taken the test a year earlier. 

Although, if you don't do so well, you can always retake.  I think you would have to pay again for a second try, but most colleges take your best score, not your first attempt.  Good luck!

kay thanx guys :D

yeh im gonna be a sophmore i already took geometry and biology my freshman year and i learned all the algebra 2 stuff online so im gonna give it a shot. but im prob gonna bomb my science part but i'll go to one of the act review things they give at school :D

Well in my school we took the PLAN test sophomore year. It's on a 1-32 scale and predicts how well you will do on the ACT.  It predicted I would get a 34, and lo and behold, that's what I got.  But since you're going to go ahead and do the real test, I'll give you a basic breakdown of the sections (keep in mind it's been a while since I took the test, so my memory's a bit fuzzy).

MATH-This is 60 questions in 60 minutes, covering up to Algebra 2 and some trigonometry.  My biggest piece of advice: don't get hung up on any one question! I did, and I couldn't get to the last few questions so I only got a 29 (and I was in Calculus at the time!). 

ENGLISH-This section covers what you know about writing, like grammar, vocabulary, and paragraph structure. In one section, you have to decide if a sentence is written correctly or if one of the four alternatives is better. In another, you have to edit a passage (they give you options and you decide which one fits the piece best). There's some more stuff too, I think, but I don't remember. Basically, bone up on grammar if you're not already good at it. And don't just read the marked section; read the sentence before and after to make sure your answer fits into the context.

READING-This is reading comprehension, plain and simple. My suggestion: Skim the passage first to get an idea what's going on. Then look at the question and read more closely to figure out the correct answer.  I've always been an avid reader, so comprehension comes naturally to me. I got a 36, no problem.  In my opinion, if you read outside of class from a wide variety of sources (books, magazines, newspapers, etc.), you're well-prepared.

SCIENCE- Actually, you probably won't bomb the science part, because it's more like reading comprehension, just with more technical material. I'd skim the whole passage, (the description, procedures, the data, the graphs) before reading the questions.  Then I'd look at each question and get a closer look to find the answer. 

ESSAY- They give you a question with two sides, and ask you to take a side and support it.  They might give you an article or other data to get evidence from (I'm not sure if they do or if I'm confusing it with another test).  Whether they do or not, the basic idea is the same: Start with a thesis, provide supporting details, and conclude.  If you do that decently, you'll get 4 (out of 6).  To get a 5 or a 6, you'll have to come up with an opposing argument and refute it, as well as do exceptionally well on the other parts.  Since this is a timed essay, you won't have to worry as much about an in-depth intro and conclusion as you would in an English paper, but make sure all the parts are there.  It also looks great if you can draw on prior knowledge from books, classwork, history, or personal experience to back up your point (you can probably come up with something). 

Well there's my advice.  Basically, don't stress yourself out too much preparing for the test. You can re-take it and colleges will care more about your grades in advanced coursework. Good Luck! 

On the ACT, the science part is definetaly (sp?) the one you need to study. Also the writing section since it has spelling on it. I bombed that part. :) lol.

Both SAT and ACT will show any scores taken soph year or later, the SAT will also show freshman scores.  You would probably be better off to wait to take either test so you can score higher.  Most colleges take the highest composite score, but they also see the other scores and don't like to see too many re-takes.  Better off to take the bot as a junior, see which one you test better on and then release those scores to the college of your choice.