Helping Your Child Study

Revising

Celebrating exam success is fabulous for the student as well as for the teachers who have taught them and we, the parents who have supported and shared the exam journey with them. To open the results letter and see successful grades jump out from the paper brings, for the student, and also for parents, a mixture of feelings from relief, excitement, joy, exhilaration, confidence and pride.

We invest in our children's education in the belief that we are enabling them to reach their potential. However the school, its teachers and the students are not the only vital ingredients in the recipe of exam success. Parents also play a crucial role.

Our children in the UK are the most consistently and highly assessed children in the world today. Many children feel pressurised to achieve highly and increasing numbers of young people are suffering every year from stress related symptoms and health problems relating to the pressure of exams. Childline recently reported a 50% rise in the number of calls and increasingly GPs are prescribing medication for teenagers who are stressed and overwhelmed by exams.

ChildLine’s Chief Executive, Carole Easton, said:

"Exam stress affects almost every child at some point in their education and we are hearing from hundreds of children at this time of year who are struggling to cope with the pressure they are under. It is vital to reassure children that there is life after exams, that they are not the only route to success, and that they will still be loved and valued no matter how they perform."

So- how can our children achieve success without the stress? What can we do to help them to manage the pressure and confidently reach their potential?

This is a huge topic area, but this document contains a few suggestions to help you get started.

Bridget Clapham
Parent and Success Coach.
BridgetClapham.co.uk

The following links provide information which you may also find useful: