Helping Your Child with Test-Taking part 2
This is the next series of practical articles to help you and your children - Helping your Child Succeed in School, and test taking. If you understand the importance of tests and results, and how to use them to nurture confidence and assurance in your children, it will go a long way to reinforcing the positive traits in your children.
What are Tests?
Tests are yardsticks that teachers, schools, school districts and even states use to measure what and how they teach and how well students are learning what is taught. Most tests are designed and given by teachers to measure students’ progress. The results tell the teacher whether they are keeping up with the class, need extra help or are ahead of other students. As parents we should also pay attention to this yardstick. Remember regular small wins is what we are looking for.
The results also tell schools that they need to strengthen courses or change teaching methods. Still other tests compare students by schools, school districts or cities. These become school league tables.
What ground work should you be going?
There are some things you can do to really help and get a head start in this process. The first thing to remember that you are not aiming to make your child top of the class for everything, but are looking for ways to boost and reinforce the overall outlook and thought processes of your kids.
It is worth meeting with your child’s teachers as often as possible to discuss his progress and what they are likely to cover in the school term. Ask the teacher to suggest activities for you and your child to do at home to help your child’s understanding of schoolwork.
Make a study area - a quiet, comfortable place for studying at home. It is good to get your child used to this and form a habit to study here.
Do provide books and magazines for your child to read at home. By reading new materials, a child will learn new words that might appear on a test. Ask your child’s teacher for lists of books for outside reading or get suggestions from your local library. Provide games and puzzles or other things that make your child use their brain - problem solving, creative, or making things….
It also helps if your child has an evening and bed time routine - this makes it easier, and is not questioned, and helps to ensure that he or she is well rested on school days and especially on the day of any tests. Children who are tired are less able to pay attention in class or to handle the demands of a test.
Plan ahead. Start studying for the test well in advance. Make sure that you understand what material the test will cover. Try to make connections about what will be on the test and what you already know. Review the material more than once. Make a study plan - which topics your child needs to cover on each day. Make it a habit for your child to study a little every day if there is no homework.
Each time your children do this, reward them at the end by giving them something or playing with them or letting them do something they enjoy. It is also good for a child’s discipline to stick to time limits as much as possible.
You will to find and strike a balance between this and not over ‘cramming’ and at the other extreme, total freedom for the child. Where you put this scale is up to you, but there is no doubt that this kind of programmed approach is very effective.
The next article in this series will discuss some practical specifics in relation to tests and exams.
