Let’s talk about test anxiety in our children, I became familiar with this term at the beginning of first grade. I noticed Aiden would get extremely nervous the night before his exams, and this would affect his overall performance. After some research, I found out test anxiety is very common among elementary children. As Aiden moved up in grade levels, his anxiety increased as workload increases, and exams were being timed.

The mom in me wish I could magically take away this feeling, a lot of times his anxiety causes headaches and stomachaches. My heart breaks every time I see him go through this because I know he works very hard and puts a hundred percent into his school work.

Unfortunately with remote learning, exams are a big part of my kids’ curriculum. To help Aiden reduce his anxiety here are some things we do the night before and the day of his exams to help him relax and perform better.

• Chamomile tea is his favorite to drink every day, it keeps him relax and calm.

• Affirmation I let him repeat positive self affirmation daily.

  “I can do all thing” “What I believe about myself is more important than what others believe about me”
  

• Confidence Booster I always let him know he is capable of great things, remind him of the many times he crushed his exams, this helps him to focus on positive thoughts.

• Talk To Teachers: having an open conversation with his teachers has worked really well. As a result, helpful measures are used within his class allowing him to be successful.

• Listen to Music I might be biased but my kids have great taste in music. Aiden loves to listen to Nina Simone every day before virtual learning, and Native American flute at night before bed, this keeps him relax.

• Asked Questions his feeling is important to me sometimes we get caught up in test scores that as parents we miss things that our kids go through. I try to set my feeling aside about academics and focus on him and what he is going through. I ask him….
  
  Why do you think you get so nervous when it comes to taking your test?

Do you feel that you have prepared for it?

What else can I do to help you overcome this feeling?

• Lavender oils I used this in our diffuser, other times I would massage his feet and upper body to ease tensions, and have him take deep breaths, plenty of oxygen helps his lungs so he can focus and stay calm.

Here are some great books to help Kids cope with anxiety

I would love to know if your kids have anxiety while taking Exams? If so, How do you help your kids get through?