Testing Tips for Your Child

There are many ways parents can help their children perform to the best of their ability on school exams. Here are a few tips you can share with your child to help your child prepare for the big test.

First of all, plenty of sleep the night before a test and a good breakfast the morning of will help your child stay focused and perform to the best of his or her ability during the testing session.

Encourage your child to use short study sessions over a period of several days or weeks to prepare for the test rather than cram the night before. Your child will know the information better, retain it for a longer period of time, and feel more prepared when the test day finally arrives.

It is also important for parents to help their children study. If there is a wide range of concepts, vocabulary words or information included in the chapter or unit test, ask the teacher for a study guide that highlights what is most important for your child to master.

Ask the teacher what kinds of questions will be on the test. Are there multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, matching, short answer or essay questions? Knowing the types of questions can help you and your child decide how to study for the test.

If your child is in upper elementary, middle school or high school, then I'm sure you know that PSSA (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment) testing begins the week of March 14. If you'd like to help your child prepare for the exams, you can visit www.pdesas.org for sample test questions. Click on Reference Materials under the Fair Assessments tab, and look for the link to the PSSA Item Samplers.

Remember to encourage your child to do his or her best. Do not put pressure on your child to get a certain score. This may add to your child's nervousness and can affect his or her performance. Remember, not every child is capable of excelling in all subject areas in school, so simply encourage your child to put forth his or her best effort on every test.

Remind your child to listen carefully during the test when the teacher is giving directions, and to ask for help if any directions or parts of the test are unclear or confusing. If your child comes to a question he or she doesn't know the answer to, skip it and come back to it later. Spending too much time on a particular question can affect your child's confidence and, if the test is timed, it can affect your child's score. Eliminating incorrect answers is another strategy that may help your child.

After the test, review the results with your child. Go through the incorrect answers with your child, and read any comments the teacher may have written. Understanding your child's mistakes and knowing which skills and concepts require additional practice or study time can help your child perform better on future tests. Sometimes, a child can misunderstand a question because of the way it is worded, so review each incorrect question with your child to check for understanding.

Reward your child for doing his or her best. Take your child out for some ice cream, or spend some quality time at home playing a game or watching a movie together. Let your child choose an activity he or she will enjoy. This will encourage your child to put forth just as much effort the next time your child has to prepare for a test. Most importantly, let your child know you are proud.