There are specific things parents and teachers can do to help reduce the anxiety children may feel before a standardized test.

Make sure children are well-rested and well-nourished on the day of the test.

• The night before a test, children should get enough sleep.
• Children should eat breakfast the morning of the test.

Help children manage any stress they may feel about the test.

• Help children see the test in context. A test is one "snapshot" of the student's performance on a certain day. Knowing this might help students feel less stress about the test.

• Talk with children about ways to manage stress about the test. Specific stress-management techniques may include thinking in a positive way about their performance on an upcoming test, planning test-taking strategies (for example, planning to skip and return later to questions to which students don't know the answer). They should be encouraged to continue to be active and participate in enjoyable activities, such as sports and hobbies, while preparing for the test, instead of continually immersing themselves in studying.

Review good test-taking practices with students. Remind students to

• read the directions thoroughly and make sure they understand the directions before beginning a test section.
• avoid spending too much time on one question. If students find themselves stumped by a particular question, they may want to go on, returning to that question once they have finished the rest of the section.
• work at their own speed. Students may need to be reminded to focus on themselves and their own work, and ignore other students who seem to be working faster or who may finish the test early.
• go back and check their work.