The Way to an A:

Daily Review Eases Student Test Stress & Improves Outcomes for Kids

Daily Review Eases Student Stress

It’s hard to believe but the first semester has already reached the halfway point.  In classrooms across the state, teachers are reviewing material ahead of their students’ formative assessments.

Formative tests get a bad rap, but in reality, these tests are a tool for teachers and parents. Administered properly, formative exams can be used to determine which material students have absorbed and which academic objectives could use some additional instruction time.

Review is an important part of the academic process in the classroom, and accordingly, the best students make it a part of their daily routine.

Here are three tips for impactful, effective review:

  1. Review class notes for every class, every day. Students shouldn’t wait for test day to crack open their notes. Committing material to long-term memory is accomplished best in short, consistent study sessions.  Spend 15-20 minutes per day reviewing class notes, and when test days rolls around you’ll already be ahead of the game. 
  2. Change up your review order. Studies show that information is best retained at the beginning and end of a study session. That means sometimes the material in the middle gets lost. To make study time most effective, review every subject every day, but rotate the order.
  3. Drill down. If you have eight pages of notes for one class period, it’s unlikely that everything in those notes will appear on the eventual test. Think about the test as you review, and prioritize notes accordingly by highlighting and underlining notes that pertain to likely test questions.

Creating a review routine will build student confidence and lower test stress when the time comes. This is true in the classroom and at home.

Parents can help their students this time of year by asking what material was covered in class and reviewing notes nightly. This process will help your child and reinforce the lesson plans presented by his or her teachers.

When parents, students and teachers are all working together –

Everyone learns the Way to an A!