Wondering how to help your child prepare for exams? Helping your child prepare for exams can be a stressful task.
Trust me, I know all about this.
Right now, my oldest is taking four science final exams in the next week. It’s his last year of high school, so these marks matter for university admission. There’s a lot of pressure, and even the most well adjusted, and studious, kid faces some tough challenges during exams.
As a parent, you want to make sure that your child is well-prepared and has the support they need in order to succeed. While it may feel like there’s a lot to do, a few simple strategies can help your child get prepared for their exams.
How to Help Your Child Prepare for Exams
Is your child starting exams soon, but you’re not sure what you should do to help them prepare? Want to make sure they get the best grades possible, but you don’t know where to start?
You’ve come to the right place!
We have tips and advice you need to help your child ace their exams. From how to study effectively, to preparing for tests, we have everything covered. Don’t worry about your child’s exams – we’ll help you get them ready for anything. Our step-by-step guide will take the stress out of preparation, and give your child all the tools they need for success.
Let’s look at some of the best ways you can help your child prepare for exams.
Help Create Study Goals
Creating modest study goals can be an effective way to keep your child motivated and on track when preparing for their exam. Setting achievable goals can also help reduce stress and pressure by allowing them to break down the material into manageable chunks.
It is essential to understand the format and content of tests like the CAT4 practice test in order to effectively prepare for them. This can include familiarizing yourself with the types of questions that will be asked, as well as studying relevant concepts and strategies. Whether you’re trying to instill study skills for future success, focusing on a final exam for a class, or helping your student study for university entrance, it’s important to understand the CAT4 test format and content. The CAT4 test is a UK cognitive ability test, which assesses verbal, nonverbal, mathematical, and spatial reasoning, and it’s used to forecast student progress.
Organize the Space for Study
A clean, organized study space is essential if your child is going to stay focused on studying. Make sure that their desk or table is free from clutter, they have all the necessary supplies they need within reach, and that distractions such as phones or TV are kept out of sight.
If you’re stuck on how to organize a study space, think minimalist. There’s not a lot of difference between designing a beautiful minimalist child’s bedroom and creating a clean, inviting study space.
Create a Study Schedule
Having a clear plan of what needs to be done each day helps your student with the habit of studying regularly so that they don’t find themselves cramming right before their exam. A study schedule also gives structure and routine, which can reduce stress and anxiety about taking exams by helping them stay organized and on track with their studies.
Creating a schedule that ensures enough study time, without overwhelming your child, is one of the most important aspects in how to help your child study for exams.
Get a Healthy Amount of Sleep and Eat Well
It’s important that your child gets enough sleep as this helps them focus better when studying and during exams.
Eating healthy meals, like these make ahead Mason jar salads for back to school lunches, throughout the day also helps ensure that their brain stays nourished and energized while studying or taking tests.
Discourage Cramming For Exams
This is one of my top tips for how to prepare your child for exams: Don’t cram!
Cramming right before an exam might seem like an easy solution but it often leads students feeling overwhelmed and anxious, thereby increasing stress levels significantly while decreasing performance levels.
Encourage a Growth Mindset to Help Your Child Prepare for Exams
Wondering how to help your child study for a test?
It’s also important to encourage your child not only while they are preparing, but also during their exams as well. Remind them that mistakes are part of learning, and that knowledge isn’t static but rather something we build upon over time through trial-and-error (also known as a growth mindset.
Figure Out the Style of the Exam
Knowing what type of questions will appear on an exam paper is key in helping students study. For example, some exams are solely multiple choice, while others are long form essays. Each type of exam question requires a different technique for studying and taking the exam.
Here’s a hint: If the instructor won’t let you know the exam format, then looking at past papers can provide insight into what type of questions may come up and which topics should be studied more thoroughly than others.
Look at Class Notes
Looking over class notes from lectures or tutorials can be helpful for a couple of reasons.
First, looking over notes consolidates and cements knowledge. Second, looking over notes can help in understanding any concepts or ideas missed due to being absent from class or simply needing a refresher on particular topics covered earlier.
How to Get Your Child to Study for Exams
While there are a lot of practical study tips above, they’re all completely useless if you can’t get your child to study for exams in the first place.
For the most part, getting your child to study for exams involves a lot of patience, compassion, and a desire to understand how they feel about the exam and study process.
How to Help Your Child with Exam Stress, or How to Reduce Stress and Pressure
Wondering how to help your child with exam stress?
One of the most important things you can do is make sure that your child doesn’t feel overwhelmed by all the extra work they’re doing to prepare for an exam or test. Encourage breaks throughout the day, offer words of encouragement, listen when they need someone to talk to, and remind them that everyone struggles sometimes—it’s perfectly normal!
Take Regular Short Breaks
Studying intensely for long periods of time can lead to burnout so it’s important that students take regular short breaks throughout the day including physical activity such as walking around outside or playing sports with friends in order to relax both mentally and physically before returning back into study mode again.
Study In Different Ways
Trying different methods to make studying more fun. Most kids are enthusiastic about watching YouTube videos relevant to topics covered.
Similarly, try these different ways to study:
- having study sessions with friends who are taking similar courses
- reading text out loud instead of just reading silently
- walking around while studying
- singing questions and answers
- using flashcards
Create Built In Rewards For Studying
Finally, creating built-in rewards for studying can motivate many kids. Here are a few ideas:
- enjoying a tasty snack after completing a certain period of study hours
- treating your child with movie night after completing a long study session
- turning on non-distracting music during studying
- taking regular dance breaks
When done right, rewards can really motivate students to study.
Preparing for exams doesn’t have to be overwhelming; there are plenty of ways you can help make it easier on both yourself and your children by creating achievable goals, organizing spaces for study, creating schedules, getting enough rest, eating well, reducing stress and pressure plus encouraging growth mindset among other things discussed above.
Doing these things will give your children the support they need while providing peace-of-mind knowing that everything possible has been done towards helping them reach success! Good luck!