At Debate Mate, we're passionate about teaching children key 21st century skills including empathy, resilience, critical thinking and clear communication. All these skills have huge application to succeeding in exams! Read on for our tried-and-tested tips to support your child this exam season...
In the lead up to exams:
1) Pomodoro Technique
This is a system that supports efficient time management and better focus when revising. Working for huge blocks of time is both unenjoyable and ineffective- using this technique ensures your child takes regular breaks and makes the most of their revision time!Â
Here's the process:
- Set yourself a task to be completed
- Set a timer for 25 minutes
- Work on your task
- When the timer goes off, take a short break for 5-10 minutes
- Repeat 3-4 timesÂ
- Take a longer break of about 30 minutes
- Repeat the process as needed
Debate Mate helps develop efficient time management in your child through managed debate preparation time in breakout rooms!
2) Drink enough water!
Hydration has been shown to support improved focus, better short term memory and mental resilience. Studies have even shown it to affect cognitive function- children who are hydrated typically perform better in exams due to the effects of water consumption on concentration and information recall.
Make sure your child is drinking enough water this exam season!
3) Sleep
Poor sleep can affect children's memory, creativity, concentration and critical thinking skills. This can be impacted not only by the length of sleep but also the quality of it! Ensure your child has a positive sleeping environment that is dark and cool and has a good amount of sleep before exam days!
During Exams:
1) Stay calm and read the question!
Encourage your child to take a deep breath and make sure they read the question several times before trying to answer it!
Staying calm in high pressure situations is a key skill taught at Debate Mate during competitive debates on unseen motions and fast-paced preparation time in breakout rooms!
2) Break the question down into manageable chunks
Highlighting key words in the question and splitting a big question down into smaller, more manageable steps is a brilliant way to approach exams.
This comes naturally to a lot of Debate Mate students due to the valuable critical thinking skills taught through our virtual programmes!
3) Positive mental mindset
Exams can be very stressful times for a lot of students- that's where mindfulness and resilience comes in! These are skills that have to be practiced and refined as you grow up, to prepare you to deal effectively with difficult challenges that everyone faces throughout their lives.Â
- Remind your child to put these exams in perspective and that trying your best and working hard are the most important things!Â
- Failing and trying again is a far greater life lesson than succeeding first time any way!
Stay tuned for our posts next Monday on how debating can help support mindfulness and good luck to everyone completing exams in the next few weeks!
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