Tennessee TCAP Testing Tips and Strategies
We know how hard standardized tests can be, not only for the kids but for the parents as well. With exams coming up we put together some ideas to help you get through standardized testing season. We’re here to give you some tips and strategies to help with studying and taking tests. We have tips for at home studying, for when your kiddo goes to take an exam, and some advice for parents to best support their child.
Parent Tips
As a parent you want your child to succeed in all that they do, including doing well on standardized tests. These tests are different than the typical classroom test and Poquizes your child is accustomed to. There are a number of procedures that have to be followed and the tests become long and drawn out due to this. There’s no real roadmap for what to study or even how, but not to worry there is plenty you can do at home to support your child. Here are four ways that can help you prepare your kiddo for the upcoming TCAP exam.
Effective Studying Habits
Study habits are not a one shoe fits all situation. Everyone learns differently; therefore, everyone also studies differently! Finding your child’s most effective way to study can be a long journey but don’t give up. Here are a few studying habits that might be worth trying out! Keep in mind that not all of these methods will work with your kiddo, they are da great place to start in figuring out your child’s studying routine.
Flashcards: Pull out those index cards and get ready to quiz. Flashcards have been a staple in many a study routine. They are easy to take on the go and allows anyone around to quiz the studier on the information. The act of creating the flashcards is even a study tool, re-writing information helps to reiterate it’s importance. Repetition is key with this study tool.
Visual aids: Visual aids can be a multitude of things. You might create a bead strand with each bead representing one piece of information. Color coding your notes can be an effective way to categorize information that goes together. Simply highlighting important information can be an effective visual way to learn. Flashcards also fall under this category. Be as creative as you need, break out the crayons, whiteboards, highlighters, markers, and more!
Recordings: You child might be an auditory learner, meaning they learn best what they hear. Listening to information repeatedly will be far more effective than re-writing notes for auditory learners. For those of us with smartphones we have a handy recording device on us at all times. Record yourself or your child reading their notes aloud and listen to the recordings to help ingrain the information!
Writing: Sometimes we learn the best with written repetition, the act of rewriting the notes can help solidify the information. There are many alternatives to typical pen and paper however if you’re looking to not use up so many sheets of paper. There are tablets you can write on, dry-erase boards, and more.
Reading: None of the ideas above seem to be working. Try having your child simply reading their materials. The simple repetition of reading the information over and over again can also be a big help with retaining material.
Combination: You can even try a variety of combinations using the above methods. Whatever works best for you child is what you should focus on, you don’t have to stick to one path.
Studying of course is extremely helpful when preparing for regular and standardized tests. However, don’t wait till it’s time for standardized tests to work on your child’s studying skills. It will take time and effort to find your child’s special mix of strategies, continuously check-in throughout the year to make sure your kiddo is being successful in their studying.
Keep Calm
This may be easier said than done. It can be frustrating trying to get your child to study when all they, and you, would rather do is let them play or do something else together as a family. One way to help maintain a stress-free learning environment is to create a study playlist. There are a multitude of curated playlists meant for studying available, but why not spend some quality time with your child building a playlist that will help them succeed! If you choose to go this route, we suggest instrumental music as lyrics might be more of a distraction, but whatever works best for you and your family is the most important thing.
Study Space
Studying at home can be hard. When you’re home you want to relax, spend time with each other, or play. Having a designated time and space to study can help with the adjustment. This could be as simple as study time taking place after dinner at the dining room table. A few other options could be an actual desk set up somewhere in the house, the living room coffee table, or wherever works best for you and your child. Don’t be afraid to venture outside of the house to study if that is what ulu child needs, try studying at your local public library or find a nice spot outside for some fresh air.
Test Taking Strategies
Not only should you go over the information that will be on the exams, but you should also help teach your child some test taking strategies! Big tests can be daunting, especially if they are timed. One of the most important strategies is learning how to pace themselves on the exam. Think back onto what strategies were most helpful to you when taking important tests. Even think to what strategies were the least helpful. While everyone is different there is a strong chance what worked for you might be a good place to start. Test anxiety can be debilitating especially when an exam is made into such a big deal like standardized testing is. Help your child develop some calming techniques that can be utilized during the test if they start to feel overwhelmed.
Children Tips
We’ve covered studying at home, now it’s time to touch on what you should do during the test. Standardized tests require a different type of mindset and approach than a classroom exam. They may have similar concepts but in reality, they feel a lot different to you regular classroom quizzes. Here are four standardized test specific test-taking tips!
1.) Take your time and pace yourself.
Timed tests can be intimidating, you worry about having enough time, even having too much time where you might second guess yourself. Try not to stress about the time limit, as long as you pace yourself, you’ll be just fine. Make sure to not spend too much time on anyone question. You can always come back to any question that stumping you. If you end up finishing early take some time to review any questions that were giving you any issues.
2.) Keep a calm mind and body.
Keeping yourself calm during the exam is essential. Getting worked up and upset will lead to a downward spiral. If you can maintain a calm mind and body your testing experience will be immeasurably better. Here are two short songs you can use on testing day to help you stay calm! One is geared towards Elementary age students and the other for secondary age students in middle and high school. Take your pick or sue both!
Elementary Age:
When I Need to Calm Down (Tune of Old MacDonald)
When I need to calm down, I can take a deep breath x2
In and out, in and out, in and out, in and out
When I need to calm down, I can take a deep breath
Alternative verses:
Close my eyes, squeeze them shut; Give myself a hug, squeeze
Secondary Age:
Take a Deep Breath:
Breathe in 2 - 3… (Hold), and out 2 - 3… x4
Have a calm body today.
3.) Read EVERYTHING! Including directions, answers, questions, and images.
Make sure to read everything on the test. Directions are very important; you don’t want to miss something or answer incorrectly simply because you skipped the directions. Read everything thoroughly and take your time reading so that you can understand what is being asked. If there are any kind of images, be it graphs, charts, or anything don’t ignore them they are there for a reason! A great tip for answering questions about a reading passage, read the questions prior to the passage. If you know what to look for before reading you won’t have to go back and forth between the passage and the questions saving some valuable test time!
4.) Answer EVERYTHING!
In the end guessing an answer is better than leaving a question blank. If time is running out, or you simply have not a clue what the correct answer is make an educated guess. For questions you don’t know the answer to try and eliminate answers that you know are incorrect. Narrow down your choices with the information you have. In this case you can at least increase your chances of choosing the correct answer. With the time limits you may end up having to guess on remaining questions simply because time is running out. It is always better to guess than to leave the question blank.
These kinds of test can be scary and intimidating. Keeping up with your studies throughout the year will greatly impact your confidence and capability for the exam. Don’t let the stress of the exam rule your life. You know what you know!
You’ve got this!
Music Therapy and Test-taking
We’ve talked a lot about how to support your child at home for big exams and studying, did you know that academics can be supported during Music Therapy?
One of the most popular goals within sessions at Musical Bridges happens to be academics! We can utilize several Neurologic Music Therapy techniques to work towards academic goals whether it is in early academic topics or higher-level academics. In Music Therapy we can work on colors, numbers, object identification/recognition, multiplication, sequencing, reading comprehension, problem solving, and more!
Music Therapy is beneficial in helping neurodivergent individuals learn new concepts while simultaneously supporting them in other therapeutic areas such as regulation, communication, motor skills, etc. Check out some of the Neurologic Music Therapy techniques that lend themselves to academics here; MMT, MEFT, and Neurologic Music Therapy Techniques.
We are here to support our clients in all areas of their lives. From everyone at Musical Bridges we wish you the best in your studying.
You’ve got this!