Managing Stress at Age 11
In year six, children will sit the National Curriculum Assesments (SATs), 11+ exams, and perhaps also exams for entry into independent schools. This can mean quite a lot of stress and anxiety—which is of course to be avoided! In this post, we’ll go over a view tips and tricks to manage these anxieties.
Get ahead as quick as you can!
Don’t decide last minute which tests and exams your child will be sitting! It will make the whole process much less frantic if you decide well ahead of time which 11+ assesements and entry exams to register for, as then you can start nice and early with prep work and not leave things to the last minute. Registration opens the spring before assesment (September), when your child is at the end of year five. Make a note of this and plan accordingly. If you need help planning out revision, one of our tutors can give you a hand!
Encourage a positive attitude to learning
it’s important to keep your child’s attitude to learning positive and focused on growth. Encourage them to see the benefits of long term learning by trying out the following techniques:
Make a progress chart. This can help your child visualise their progress: seeing the effects of their hard work will mean they will feel better about their ability to improve
Make sure that praise is focused on the work they have put into their studying rather than on any innate qualites, for example, ‘you worked super hard’ is often more likely to encouarge growth than ‘you’re so clever’
Mental health and physical health go hand in hand
Healthy routines will make the exam process far less stressful. Some things to remember:
Children aged between 6 and 12 need between 9 and 12 hours of sleep per night: getting a good night’s sleep will ensure better focus and performance
A healthy and balanced diet will help improve brain health and thus improve memory and recall
Sport and exercise will help your child let off steam and can alleviate stress
Keep emotions calm and the pressure low
Young children haven’t yet learnt how to properly regulate and manage their emotions, so they often reflect the feelings of the adults around them. This is why it is very important that you stay calm, so as not to exacerbate your child’s worries. Remember to also remind your son or daughter that they only need to do their best and that it is not the end of the world if things don’t go according to plan.
At Liv and Learn, we value children’s mental health and wellbeing as much as their academic success… get in touch to find out how we can help take the pressure off!