Tackling anxiety during exams
“Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strength.” — Charles Spurgeon
Anxiety is a real and serious issue that needs to be addressed. Most parents ignore it and think that it is common for students to be nervous during exam time. A little bit of worrying can be good for the students. It helps the students stay vigilant and drives them to work hard. But, sometimes the stress and anxiety can get out of control and affect their performance in the exam. There are many cases where students tend to forget the easiest of answers and fail to perform in their exams just due to anxiety. So, let us look at a few ways you can help your children tackle the issue and perform at their best during the exams.
Planning is key
Having a plan ensures that you can cover the portions required and also make the most efficient use of the time you have available for preparation. By following a fixed plan, you’ll have a more solid idea of where you are standing and will be able to take action if you see that you’ve fallen behind.
Watch out for their health
Make sure your children are healthy. Ensure they have a balanced diet and are not falling sick due to their anxious mind.
Without sleep, your children will feel more and more anxious and in turn lose more sleep. It is something you should avoid at all costs. Without sleep, your children’s attention and concentration will reduce drastically and they are more likely to forget what they’ve learned.
Let them go out and recharge
Don’t let your children be cooped up all the time at school. Give them enough time for things other than studies and encourage them to go out and spend time outdoors. It can help reduce their stress and is also helpful for their brain functioning. Playtime with friends will be an outlet for their frustrations and will help them concentrate when they sit down to study.
Mock exams
We can’t stress this point enough – mock exams are a student’s best friend during exam time. They help students get familiarised with the exam pattern and help them plan and manage time during the exam. One of the reasons for most children feeling anxious during exams is that they feel they won’t be able to complete their answers within the allotted time. The best way to tackle this is to let your children attend as many mock exams as they can and work on managing the time for the exam.
Talk to your children
Talk to your children and assure them that you’ll be with them and support them no matter what the result is. Tell them that you see the effort they are putting in and it will surely reward them. Don’t put pressure on your children and demand they score marks to your liking. Instead, assure them that they’ll do well and support them.
Talk to their teachers
If your children are feeling unmotivated and stressed, talk to their teachers and try to get an understanding of their behaviour in class and your child’s chances in the exam according to teachers. Use this to make a plan on how you can support your children and how to make up for their weaknesses.
Journalling
Get your children a journal and ask them to write out their thoughts and worries. It definitely will be a good outlet and help them gain clarity on what it is that is worrying them. It can help them find solutions and help them deal with their stress and anxiety on their own to an extent.
On the day of the exam
Wake them up early so they have enough time to get ready and won’t have to rush to the exam centre. Also, get their things ready early so they won’t have to search for them at the last minute.
Prepare a light breakfast for your children and ensure that they don’t go for the exams on an empty stomach. Also, make sure they don’t overeat. Sometimes overeating with anxiety can cause vomiting.
Make sure to stop revising at least 2 hours before the exam. Last-minute revisions can make you forget what you learned and cause you to panic.
Breathing exercises before the exam
Take a deep breath for a count of 5. Hold your breath for 5 seconds. Let out the breath for 5 seconds. Repeat this 4-5 times. It can help improve the oxygen flow to your brain and also slow down your heartbeat helping you to calm down.
Here’s a pro tip you need to share with your children – Leave all the stress about the exam at the exam hall. Once you have completed the exam, there is nothing more you can do about it. So worrying about it is pointless and won’t do you any good. So, just leave it at that and focus on what lies in the future. You can think about it when the result comes. Don’t torture yourself by overthinking and analysing every single action of yours. Believe in yourself.
All the best! 🙂
Exam Smart Tips
Exam Smart Tip #1 – How to Encourage Our Kids to Speak Better?
Exam Smart Tip #2 – How to avoid carelessness?
Exam Smart Tip #3 – Establishing Routines!
Exam Smart Tip #4 – Let’s Read Carefully!
Exam Smart Tip #5 – Beating the Exam Fever!
Exam Smart Tip #6 – How to Eat Right for the Exams?
Exam Smart Tip #7 – How to Avoid a Meltdown?
Exam Smart Tip #8 – Taking Stress out of Tests
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