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Parenting Tips: Test Taking

by Tiffany Rudd

I just got a note from Cameron’s Kindergarten teacher informing parents that the students will be taking “end of year tests” for the next few weeks and asking for support at home. It really took me back to my years as a public school teacher and the stress of testing time. I worried so much over each student’s readiness and on their ability to show their hard work and knowledge on a test. Now, here I am, at the beginning of many years of the same worries for my own children. As much as we hate to admit it, testing is an important part of life. From Kindergarten tests, to ACT/SAT, college exams, and even drivers license exams. 

So, what can we do as parents to help our children do their very best on tests? 

I found some great suggestions at pta.org: 

1. Instill the value of learning in your child at an early age.

2. Make sure your children are good readers.

3. Communicate frequently with your child's teacher or teachers.

4. Know your child's learning progress and needs by monitoring assignments, homework, and test performance.

5. Establish a regular time for homework and studying.

6. Don't make your child nervous about tests, even big ones.

7. Encourage your child to develop a positive attitude toward school and testing.

8. Review tests with your child after they are returned home for what your child did and didn't understand.

9. Remember, tests and grading systems are not perfect.

It is also important to teach your child good test taking skills. Here are ten great testing tips to share with your student.

1. Have a Positive Attitude

Approach the big test as you'd approach a giant jigsaw puzzle. It might be tough, but you can do it! A positive attitude goes a long way toward success. 

2. Make a Plan

The week before the test, ask your teacher what the test is going to cover. Is it from the textbook only? Class notes? Can you use your calculator? If you've been absent, talk to friends about material you may have missed. Make a list of the most important topics to be covered and use that as a guide when you study. Circle items that you know will require extra time. Be sure to plan extra time to study the most challenging topics. 

3. The Night Before

Cramming doesn't work. If you've followed a study plan, the night before the test you should do a quick review and get to bed early. Remember, your brain and body need sleep to function well, so don't stay up late! 

4. The Morning of the Test

Did you know that you think better when you have a full stomach? So don't skip breakfast the morning of the test. Get to school early and do a ten-minute power study right before the test, so your brain is turned on and tuned up. 

5. Test Time

Before the test begins, make sure you have everything you'll need - scratch paper, extra pencils, your calculator (if you're allowed to use it). Understand how the test is scored: Do you lose points for incorrect answers? Or is it better to make guesses when you're not sure of the answer? Read the instructions! You want to make sure you are marking answers correctly. 

6. Manage Your Time

Scan through the test quickly before starting. Answering the easy questions first can be a time saver and a confidence builder. Plus, it saves more time in the end for you to focus on the hard stuff. 

7. 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. 

8. Multiple-Choice Questions

The process of elimination can help you choose the correct answer in a multiple-choice question. Start by crossing off the answers that couldn't be right. Then spend your time focusing on the possible correct choices before selecting your answer. 

9. Neatness Counts

If your 4s look like 9s, it could be a problem. Be sure that your writing is legible and that you erase your mistakes. For machine-scored tests, fill in the spaces carefully. 

10. I'm Done! 

Not so fast - when you complete the last item on the test, remember that you're not done yet. First, check the clock and go back to review your answers, making sure that you didn't make any careless mistakes (such as putting the right answer in the wrong place or skipping a question). Spend the last remaining minutes going over the hardest problems before you turn in your test.

I found this great list at teachervision.com. I created a printable version HERE so you can share it with your child.

Elementary + Activities: Spelling Race

by Tiffany Rudd

You will need: Your child’s spelling list or site word list, 2 inch circles cut out of construction paper, a marker, and a timer.

Prep: On individual circles, write the letters needed to spell each word on your child’s list. Designate a starting line, then spread the circles around the floor in the playing area. 

How to Play: At “go,” start the timer and read a word from the list. Your child then runs around gathering the letters that spell that word. The catch: he/she can only pick up one letter at a time and has to return it the the starting line before finding the next one. Once the word has been spelled correctly, call out a new word. When all the words on the list have been spelled correctly, stop the timer. Return the circles to the floor and challenge your child to start again and beat his/her time! 

Variations: For younger kids, write an entire site word on each circle. To make the activity a little easier, use different colored circles for each word. 

Preschool Activities: Marker Fun

by Tiffany Rudd

As much as I wish I did, I definitely do not have a super laid-back and relaxed personality. (Please don’t tell my husband I just admitted to that!) I’m not a big fan of messes and sometimes I think my kids miss out due to my lack of “chill.” Obviously, my sister and I are exactly alike in this area. I blame our Dad. (Mom, don’t tell him I said that!) Did you read Deborah’s Parenting Tip last Friday called Planned Spontaneity? That post could have been written about me. I loved her ideas on fitting in fun and spontaneity. 

This activity is one of the ways I have found to allow some mess and not set off my “must clean now” uptight side. Thank goodness for WASHABLE Markers!

Step One: Strip your toddler down to just a diaper or underwear. This activity works best for children 18 months - 3 years. 

Step Two: Take a minute to pinch some thigh chub and appreciate just how adorable a naked baby really is.

Step Three: Put your child in a confined area. The bathtub or highchair work great. 

Step Four: Give him/her some WASHABLE markers. Did you check three times to make sure they each said washable? No? Just me then, huh? I told you I’m laid back.

Step Five: Let your child color anywhere! Yep, anywhere! Thank goodness for no clothes and an easy to clean area.

Step Six: Take pictures, smile, and then clean like a mad woman. Did I mention how grateful I am for washable markers?

This super easy, zero prep activity has been a favorite of each of my little ones. 

Meal-Time Activities: Kitchen Table Celebration

By: Deborah Pace Rowley

This isn’t exactly an activity to do at meal-time but is my all-time favorite use for my kitchen table. Whenever one of my children has done something wonderful that needs to be celebrated, we have that child stand on the kitchen table. *This is assuming you have a sturdy kitchen table that can support your child’s weight. **Only eliminate standing up if your table is really rickety. Trust me the best part of this activity is standing on the table! While the child is standing on the table, dramatically announce the news of their amazing accomplishment. Our kids have stood on the table for giving Primary talks, passing a spelling test, not crying at the doctor’s office when getting shots, scoring a winning soccer goal, not hitting anyone for a full day…you name it! The rest of the family then circles the table and cheers for the child as loudly and exuberantly as possible. We shout “Three Cheers for __________ (fill in the blank with the child’s name.) Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray!” The child’s smile says it all!

Parenting Tips: Planned Spontaneity

By: Deborah Pace Rowley

Have you noticed that kids love it when their parents act spontaneously? It is exhilarating to let go of the routine, forego the rules, and just play together. The problem is…I can’t do it! I must be completely lacking in the spontaneous gene because, even if I could let go of MY PLAN (which I can’t!), I couldn’t think of a spontaneous action if my life depended on it.

So I cheat in this department. I plan ahead for moments that I can make seem spontaneous. I buy a kite and store it in the trunk of my car. Then I watch the weather for a windy day so that I can pick up the kids at school and “spontaneously” announce, “Let’s be crazy and go fly a kite today!” All the kids cheer as I wink and nod knowingly to myself in the rearview mirror. What a fun Mom I am! The amazing thing is that if I had made this announcement at family council, “Let’s go fly a kite on Thursday at 2:30 p.m.” my plan would have resulted in grumbles of disapproval and disinterested stares. Trust me, I have tried this approach. There is something about flinging it on kids spontaneously that makes the idea wildly popular.

If you are the predictable, day-planner type, (you know who you are) give planned spontaneity a try. Next time you are folding a mountain of socks into neat little balls, don’t put them away. Instead, sneak the laundry basket behind the couch. Then when Dad is pulling into the driveway, “spontaneously” gather all the kids behind the sofa for an impromptu sock war as soon as Dad enters the house. You won’t need to give Dad a heads up. He will jump right into the action, grabbing up socks and pelting them back at his giggling and screaming offspring. You will just smile, knowing that you had planned this spontaneous moment of family fun all along!

Elementary + Activities: Bash Down the Wall

by Deborah Pace Rowley

Junior high and high school can be so stressful for kids. Sometimes the pressure causes my teenagers to melt down just like they did when they were toddlers. Teenage tantrums look a little bit different than two-year-old tantrums, but not much! Right now at our house Dad is a student too and is approaching his finals this week. He has also been a little bit grumpy and stressed out (sorry honey, but you have!) so I planned a special stress-busing activity.

First, I gathered all the boxes that I could find of different sizes and shapes. *Couch cushions and pillows would also work for this activity if you can’t find enough boxes. I loaded them all into the family room with some tape, paper and markers. Then I gathered my family and had each person write on pieces of paper all the things that were causing them stress. They could write down specific assignments, tests or teachers, anything they were concerned about. Then they attached each piece of paper to a box. Some boxes got more than one label because we had so many. Then we built a wall with all our boxes. The wall almost spanned the distance of the room and almost reached the ceiling. Then each family member got a chance to bash down the wall. They could ninja-kick, karate-chop, or head-butt down the boxes. The only requirement was that they had to holler at the boxes as they did it. ‘Take that you big, bad assignments! You aren’t so bad after all!” “Is that the best you can do?” “You think this test is hard! I will show you hard!” After each person had a turn to bash down the wall (and some kids had more than one turn!), we talked about how we are bigger than our problems and God is bigger than everything. He can help us tear down any wall. He even tore down the walls of Jericho with the blast of a few trumpets! We don’t need to worry or stress when God is on our side. At the end of the activity, everyone lay peacefully on the floor of the family room for 15 or 20 minutes. The kids (and their Dad) probably should have been working on homework. But I didn’t care. It felt so nice not to feel stressed for a change.

Preschool Activities: Secret Language

By: Deborah Pace Rowley

When one of my daughters was little, she often invented words. One time when she was really mad, she couldn’t find the rights words to express her anger at me. Red-faced, she blurted out, “Blah, blah, blue, blue!” I chuckled inside and decided to overlook the reason for her frustration. Instead I responded, “Why, honey, that is so sweet. I blah, blah, blue, blue you too!” Natalie began to laugh. This silly expression quickly became our term of endearment for each other. It was our secret way to say, “I love you.” The important part was that this expression belonged just to Natalie and to me. She guarded this phrase and wouldn’t let Dad or any of her siblings use our “special words.” Is there something special you could do or say that would show your love for each child individually? Spend a few minutes snuggling with your preschooler and come up with a made-up word or special gesture or hand shake together. 

Meal Time Activities: Describe It

by Tiffany Rudd

I set a small “rule” at the breakfast table today that made for a super fun start to our day. The only rule was: You can’t say the name of the foods you want, you have to describe them! 

Sleepy eyes + bed-head + a glass kitchen table = an awesome photo! :)

We were having steel-cut oatmeal (yum!) with toppings for breakfast. So, I set out bowls of fruit, the cinnamon shaker, a jar of jam, and even a little bowl of chocolate chips. 

When Cameron asked, “May I please have some small, purple, frozen balls of juiciness?” we couldn’t help but laugh.

And when Brooklyn said, “Please pass the jar of blood stuff with little seeds that Grandpa made.” Cameron had tears in his eyes, he was laughing so hard. 

He wanted blueberries and she wanted raspberry jam, but just asking for those wouldn’t have been nearly as fun.

Try this simple rule at your table today. You may not be eating “hot, creamy goodness in a bowl” or shaking “tiny flecks of spiciness” on top, but as long as your meal includes a few options to ask for and describe, I promise it will be a lot of fun!