For students, exams are a dreaded, anxious event. However, whether we like it or not, school tests are an unavoidable part of our educational journey. While some children handle them easily, others experience intense pressure to succeed, occasionally at the expense of their wellness. What strategies can be used to help primary school kids deal with stress?
There are various methods for making tests less stressful while remaining productive. The trick is to figure out what works best for your child to perform at their best throughout the examination. Here are some ways to help your child through primary school exam stress.
Remind them to take breaks
When primary school examinations in Malaysia are approaching, most parents restrict their kids from using the internet, playing video games, using their phones, or hanging out with friends. But, it's important to recognise a child's need for play and social connection.
Your child’s attention, concentration, and memory will deteriorate if you make them study for exams for extended periods of time. Alternatively, work with your children to establish and stick to a timetable. Make time for play and recreation so your kids can relax, decompress, and recharge.
Plan a study schedule with them
Try not to force your kids to comply with a timetable that you have created. Rather, allow your kids to create their schedules, where you play an active role in helping them or guide them in developing a clear foundation.
Externally imposed rules and limitations will produce added stress. Your children may have difficulty sticking to a schedule if it doesn't feel natural or comfortable. Allow your children the opportunity to decide when they want to study and revise. Observe their choices carefully and only correct them when necessary.
Understand their strength and weakness
Each individual has a unique set of skills. While some children excel in mathematics and score highly in that subject, others excel in language arts and humanities. Assist your child in recognising their areas of strength and weakness so they can study appropriately.
Try to understand your child's abilities as a parent so that you don't have overly high expectations of them. An average student won't instantly become the best in the class. Create attainable and realistic goals. This will help prevent future disappointments and keep you focused on helping your child improve.
Avoid adding to their stress
Reducing a person's workload or burden is the first thing anyone should do to help them when the individual is stressed. Children are less accustomed to managing stressful circumstances and may not know how to regulate or communicate their stress effectively. Hence, you must be able to recognise when your child is experiencing too much anxiety as a parent.
Parents should try to avoid increasing their kids' stress levels. Support and reassure your kids. Help them understand that it's natural to experience stress, and guide them on maintaining composure and concentration under pressure.
Promote healthy eating and sleeping schedule
Despite how appealing it may be to stay up late and push through revisions, your child will be more productive and have better academic performance over time if they maintain a consistent sleeping schedule. While it may be appealing to allow them to study if they're in the mood, try to maintain your child's bedtime.
Your child will be far more likely to retain any new information they acquire after getting a full night's sleep since they will feel rejuvenated and recharged.
In addition, your child must consume a nutritious, well-balanced diet because there is a clear connection between stress and anxiety with unhealthy eating habits. Advise your child to avoid sugary foods and beverages. While they might provide your child with a temporary energy boost, they may make your youngster sleepier and less energised after a while.
Make learning fun
You can do various activities with your child to practise maths and reading without feeling like work. Here are a few ideas to encourage your children to improve their abilities required to perform well during exams:
- Card games
- Word and number puzzles
- Mental maths
- Reading for fun
Understand their emotions
To manage exam stress, communication is essential. We can all relate to how it feels to suppress negative emotions and how much better things seem after being expressed to someone else. Exam anxiety is to be expected, but if we don't keep things in perspective, what may initially seem like a few jitters could quickly become a panic attack.
Reassure your child that feeling anxious before exams is natural and that their peers will feel the same way. Providing your child with perspective can make them feel less stressed. They'll feel more at ease and productive once they realise that it's not the end of the world if they don't perform well.
Proper Guidance And Support Will Help Your Child Be A Self-Assured Adult In The Future
One of the most crucial things a parent can do is to learn how to guide their kids in overcoming exam stress. You're probably aware that stress has a variety of negative impacts on your child.
As their most important role model, you, as parents, greatly influence how your kids deal with stress in their daily lives. Thus, making an effort to understand why they are feeling stressed and working to develop strategies is a crucial first step to guiding them in managing the anxiety that comes with the impending exam season.
