Parent Resources
Tips for Helping Your Child Be a Successful test taker:
|
|
Do praise your child for the things he or she does well, and be supportive of his or her efforts, especially in areas or activities that are challenging. Kids who feel good about themselves and their abilities-and who aren't fearful about making mistakes-will fell more confident, and less anxious, when taking the test. |
|
|
Do talk with your child about what they're doing in class and ask what he or she is reading. Studies show that kids who talked with their families on a weekly basis about school and what they were reading scored higher on the national standardized reading test than kids who talked about these things with their families less often. |
|
|
Do limit your child's TV time. Studies show that kids who watched fewer than three hours of television a day scored higher on the national reading test than those who watched more. |
|
|
Do express a positive attitude about the test and confidence in your child's ability to do well on it. Research shows that parents' and teachers' attitudes influence children's attitudes. So if you're upbeat and encouraging about the test, your child is likely to feel good about it. |
|
|
Do encourage your child to read-newspapers, magazines, food labels, recipes, letters, and instructions, in addition to fiction and non-fiction books. Test makers draw on a wide variety of formats when choosing items to evaluate reading comprehension skills. |
|
|
Do realize that putting too much emphasis on the test and the results can increase your child's anxiety about the test. Too much anxiety can prevent your child from doing his or her best. |
|
|
Do reassure your child that test scores are only one measure of his or her abilities, not the whole picture. Don't judge your child on the basis of his or her test score. |
|
|
Do ensure that your child gets a good night's sleep the night before the test and eats a nutritious breakfast the day of the test. |
*These tips were taken from the January issue of "Creative Classroom".
Please check out these helpful links...
www.teachingtolerance.org wonderful sections for parents and children on understanding differences
www.tolerance.org contains monthly parenting columns
www.allkindsofminds.org website devoted to helping others understand learning differences
www.kidshealth.com great information for parents and children on a variety of topics
www.homeworkcentral.org contains great articles on helping your children academically
www.parenting.org great FAQ section and wonderful site for teaching character values
www.firstgov.gov/Topics/Parents.shtml articles on such topics as safety, reading help, career information for children, the first days of kindergarten, etc.
Please check back often, as new sites are being added.