This time of year often brings excitement to children as the weather gets warmer and they begin to look forward to summer break and family vacations. For many children; however, this can also be a time of stress and anxiety. As the school year winds down students are preparing to take Standard of Learning (SOL) tests and/or taking final exams. This can sometimes evoke feelings of stress, anxiety, and worry in students. While some nervousness can be helpful for motivation, large amounts of nervousness, stress, and anxiety can interfere or even impair a student’s ability to think clearly, plan, and perform well on tests.
The list below provides a few warning signs that your child maybe suffering from test taking anxiety.
Signs that a child is worried, stressed, or overly anxious about test taking:
- Puts self down or calls self “stupid”
- Has an upset stomach or tension headache before a test
- Doesn’t want to go to school, especially on test day
Strategies to help prepare for test day:
- Be prepared- It is important to study some each night so that you are not cramming the night before the big test. The night before the test, organize the materials you will need for the next day to prevent stress the next morning.
- Get a good night’s sleep the night before the test.
- Choose a comfortable location for taking the test- A seat with good lighting and minimal distractions
- Strive for a relaxed state of concentration- Avoid speaking with any fellow students who have not prepared, who express negativity, who will distract your preparation.
- Eat a nutritious breakfast- Don’t go to the exam with an empty stomach. Fresh fruits and vegetables are often recommended to reduce stress. Avoid caffeine which is known to increase anxiety.
- Take a small snack, or some other nourishment- This can help to take student’s mind off of his/her anxiety during the test.
- Manage your time during the test– If you don’t know an answer, come back to it.
- Avoid the feeling, “I’m stuck!”- Those tricky problems can knock you off balance. Don’t get worried or frustrated. Reread the question to make sure you understand it, and then try to solve it the best way you know how. If you’re still stuck, circle it and move on. You can come back to it later. What if you have no idea about the answer? Review your options and make the best guess you can, but only if you don’t lose points for wrong answers.
- Have a positive attitude- Having a positive attitude can go a long way towards success and help manage text anxiety.
Even when children and teens follow all the steps above, they can still experience increased anxiety during the test. Studies have shown that students that practice relaxation techniques can achieve higher test scores. Relaxation techniques such as, deep breathing, visualizing, and positive statements are easy to implement. Listed below are just a few examples of techniques that you can teach your child to implement during the test to help lower anxiety levels.
Relaxation Techniques:
- Close your eyes and breathe deeply, all the way to your abdomen, so it rises and falls.
- Focus on your breathing. Exhale slowly, and as you exhale, let go of negative thoughts and tension.
- Imagine yourself taking a test. See yourself in the classroom sitting calmly, breathing, and thinking positive thoughts. Feel more calm and confident with each breath you exhale.
- See yourself reading the questions and answering them one at a time, slowly and carefully. You are in control; you have prepared and have all the knowledge you need to pass the test.
- Notice how regular your breathing is and how calm and confident you are. Continue to breathe slowly and deeply for another 5 breaths, and open your eyes feeling relaxed and alert.
Not only can these strategies and techniques help your child on test day but they can also provide a framework for your child to draw upon throughout his/her school career.
Denise Booth is a Virginia Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with over 10 years experience working with children and families. She specializes in providing therapy to adolescents dealing with trauma and PTSD, behavioral issues at home and school, as well as anxiety, depression, self-esteem and substance abuse. In her work with parents, she strives to enhance parent-child relationships and strengthen parenting skills.
