Every child goes through the hurdle of passing the exams. With exams comes the fear of failing. Parents may say “Don’t Stress” to their children but they are, themselves, bothered by the worries of good grades, college admission, societal pressure and more.
At Excelsior American School, we promote a stress-free environment by practising the right habits to keep fear at bay. As parents, you can also indulge in the following ways to help your child fight the exam phobia:
- Trace the Symptoms of Stress
Sleepless nights, disturbed eating patterns, too much caffeine, mood swings, lost-looking face and other anxiety symptoms are usually there but left unseen. Keep an eye on your child’s behavioural and psychological balance to notice any sign of stress. - Help Them to Follow a Study Schedule
Scheduling is the best tool for child development. Forming schedules helps to adopt habits that can make life easy. Let’s assume that your child is in class IX who studies 5 subjects with 20 chapters each. This makes 100 chapters for the test. Now, divide these 100 into hours, days and weeks. How?
For example, the average time taken by your child is an hour to learn one chapter then devote 2 hours of the day on preparing two chapters. Also, if your child studies for 5 days a week, then s/he could complete the syllabus within 10 productive weeks. - Organize Their Study Material
Just like warriors need their ammunition, students need their study material. Before your kid sits for the “study hour”, ask them to collect all books, stationery and class notes necessary for revision. Try to keep them seated during prep time to not break their concentration. - Encourage Refreshment Breaks
Recharging is important. To keep your child’s productivity high, it’s important to give them breaks. Let them enjoy games, television, short movies, music, dance, outdoor games or some activity of their choice that keeps them away from over-thinking about the exam.
Also, indulging in hobbies refine knowledge better. Being the top Montessori School in Gurgaon, our goal is to let every child explore the world beyond the syllabus and develop skills through practical and fun learning. As parents, you can also utilize these refreshment breaks to cultivate a rich learning experience through such activities. - Acceptance of Fear
Fear that lingers beneath will cause more harm. If your child is trying to cope with the exam phobia by camouflaging it then encourage them to rather, accept it. As said by Sadhguru, “Fear is about something that is yet to be done. Fear is about something that doesn’t exist right now.”
Once your child accepts that he has exam phobia, it’ll be easier to overcome it. Let them know, fear of failure is not bigger than them. - Constructive Activities to Build Confidence
Exam phobia wouldn’t exist if your kid is confident. Involve your child into playing rapid-fire, solve quizzes and take surprise tests. Prepare them for worst-case scenarios like difficult questions or tricky test papers which will boost their confidence to take the exam head-on. - Things to do BEFORE the Exam
Taking an exam could be nerve-wracking but here’s what you should do:
- Keep a positive outlook
- Never compare your kid’s performance with any other
- Healthy eating is related to a healthy mind
- Encourage a sleeping pattern that has at least 7-8 hours of good sleep
- Allow them a quick break or nap time
- Reduce last-minute study
- Don’t pick up any new concept in the final hours
- Create short notes, diagrams, poems to memorize difficult areas
- Take mock tests for building confidence
- Things to do DURING the Exam
There’s not much a parent could do during the exam. However, here’s how you can contribute to your child’s “D-Day”:
- Rise on time and get your child ready
- Never miss an energizing breakfast
- Share some motivating words with your child
- Remove the strain of parental expectation off their shoulders
Final Note to Parents:
Your kids may work hard but still not achieve as per your expectations but don’t be disheartened. Encourage them to do better next time. Having a positive attitude makes a difference.
Share with us some tricks that you use to help your child beat the exam fear.
