How to help your child prepare for final exams?
Senior year is perhaps the most exciting year of high school. Also for children who actually learn very easily. Not only is it exciting for students, but also for parents. How can you prepare your child for final exams?
In this article you will find some useful tips.
Preparing for final exams
It begins again, the time of final exams. And even if your child learns easily, graduation year is a super exciting year. Especially when you notice that your adolescent would much rather do other things than sit with his nose in the books. However frustrating, punishment usually only backfires.
But how do you help your child prepare for the final exams, without risking that he or she does nothing at all?
Sacrifice the right handles
As a parent you have only one task: to guide your child on the road to adulthood. In the final exam year this becomes all too clear. There’s little you can do.
You cannot force your child to study or take schoolwork seriously. However, you can encourage him or her and give him or her the right tools, in the hope that he or she will use these to eventually pass the exam.
Purchase the right materials, for example, to make it easier for your child to study. Think about summaries of exams VMBO-TL, HAVO or VWO. These contain all the information needed to pass the final exam. Moreover, these also include some old exams, so your child can already practice with the new questions.
With a good, professional summary, learning for the final exam is achievable and manageable. Your child sees exactly what material is important and what they need to learn for a subject. And that, in an already exciting period, saves a lot of time and stress.
Know that your child finds it very difficult to plan and therefore almost always starts learning late? Then try to help him or her make good plans. Start this as early as possible.
The earlier you start, the longer your child has time to pick up the schedule and learn small pieces of material each week. The longer the time, the less stressful the last weeks before final exams will be.
Make sure there is enough relaxation
Don’t expect your child to be busy with school all the time. Certainly not if you also notice stress signals. It is not the intention that he or she is only busy with school and has no time to relax. When your child also becomes weepy, nauseous and tired, it is time to create moments of relaxation.
For example, spend a day shopping together, eating out or encouraging your child to meet up with friends.
Make sure they have enough food and drink
Studying can be very strenuous. One child goes through it very easily and is very good at studying and planning and the other child has more difficulty or loses himself completely in schoolwork. This can sometimes even make them forget to eat and drink enough. Or at least to eat healthy. A bag of chips every time you study is not good either.
Therefore, try to encourage your child to make healthier choices and always cook with plenty of fresh foods. That way you give your child a healthy base and fuel for the brain.
Give the right support
The period of final exams is stressful for both children and parents. Giving the right support will help your child a little extra during this difficult period. The above tips are useful during exams but also throughout high school.