You will have 3 hours and 45 minutes to complete this test. There are ten separately timed sections: one 25-minute essay, six other 25-minutes sections, two 20-minute sections, and one 10-minute section. Work as rapidly as you can without losingtest taking accuracy. Be sure to mark your answer sheet properly. You must use a No. 2 pencil…..Open your test booklets. You may begin.

What do you think of when you hear these testing directions? How do you feel? Does the memory or flashback involve anxiety or fear? If so, you are in good company, as test anxiety seems to be prevalent and on the rise. May is the time when many students will take their Standards of Learning (SOL) tests. This month is also a very popular time for high school students to take the SAT and complete AP testing. With increased pressure and emphasis on standardized testing in our schools, test anxiety is at an all-time high. Having some nervousness may be a sign that your child values the task and could actually be beneficial in making sure that they are well prepared. Test anxiety, which is characterized by excessive fear, is entirely different and can be debilitating, causing students to have difficulty with concentration and recall.

Test Anxiety- What is it?

Test anxiety is a type of performance anxiety. Students with this condition experience severe distress before, during, and after an exam. The stress is not a result of being unprepared. Even though they have the skills to perform, anxiety prevents the student from demonstrating those skills. According to the American School Counselor Association, test anxiety can cause a variety of symptoms such as upset stomach, headache, fear, irritability, trouble focusing, anger, and even depression. Students may also demonstrate behaviors such as difficulty sleeping and a persistent urge to leave the classroom to go to the restroom or nurse. Up to 20 percent of the school-age population suffers from test anxiety. Another 18 percent may have a milder form of the condition, according to the American Test Anxiety Association. Anxiety creates a type of mental fog or static that impairs a student’s ability to comprehend, reason, and retrieve information from memory.

I Think my Kid has Test Anxiety, What Can I Do?

Emerging research in psychology and cognitive science is giving us a better understanding of the link between stress and performance. Educational expert and columnist, Annie Murphy Paul makes the following suggestions:

  1. Write it Down
    Students can use a technique employed by psychologists called “expressive writing” to reduce negative thoughts. Have your student spend the time before a test writing down their thoughts and feelings about the test. This practice allows students to off-load their worries onto the page, freeing up more brain power for the test.
  2. Focus on Values
    Test anxiety can be especially high in minority and female students. Studies conducted with these groups have shown that test anxiety is reduced and performance improved when students focus on or write about something they value and why it is important to them.
  3. Try Relaxation Exercises
    If they are stressing the night before the test, kids can do a simple relaxation exercise by lying down, closing their eyes and focusing on their breathing. Then they can focus on tensing and releasing the muscles in their shoulders, arms, stomach, legs, and so on.

Having to take a test is bad enough. If your student is one of the many who struggle with test anxiety, the anticipation, panic, and worry over forgetting everything can make assessment unbearable. Hopefully one of the short exercises above will help to alleviate some of the test-taking stress this month.



–Nina Parrish, M.Ed.
Parrish Learning Zone, LLC

                                       ~Nina

Nina Parrish, M. Ed.

Nina Parrish, M. Ed.

Co-Owner and Director of Education

Proud mom of two adorable girls. Teacher who has developed an education business that started at a kitchen table and has grown into a thriving small business... Click here to Learn more about Nina.

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Ms Brown was wonderful with tutoring my child in Algebra ll.
Pam Cantrell Burton
Pam Cantrell Burton
2020-10-14T16:15:51+0000
Parrish Learning Zone helped my daughter with on-line SAT and college essay preparation. She not only scored in the top 90 percentile on the SAT after working with Lauren Cannavo, she especially benefited from the tutoring she received for her admission essays. My daughter was accepted at Notre Dame, UVA, William and Mary, and received scholarships to George Washington University and the University of Alabama. She was initially deferred at the University of Chicago and waitlisted at University of Michigan and Emory University. She eventually chose not to remain on the waitlists and committed to UVA.Lauren also advised our daughter regarding her submission of a 20 page essay on community service for DECA, a high school business club. Our daughter, along with her partner, won second place in her category at the DECA state competitions in 2019 and 2020, and received second place at the DECA international competition in 2019.Lauren was not only a top-notch professional, she really cared about our daughter and was so pleased about her accomplishments. We are so very grateful to her and Parrish Learning Zone.
Marijayne Kruus
Marijayne Kruus
2020-05-11T21:51:37+0000
Mr. Chaves is an extremely gifted chemistry teacher. It's such a difficult subject--my son was drowning by the time we found PLZ. This was truly a last ditch effort on our part. Mr. Chaves was able to turn that ship around after only 4 lessons and my son passed the SOL! He was able to distill difficult concepts in a way that made them comprehensible and he was patient and kind and gave my son the confidence to succeed. His actual eacher expressed surprise and made a point of telling him he didn't know how he did it but he was impressed. It takes a gifted teacher to get results like that.I only wish we'd found PLZ and Mr. Chaves in the beginning of the school year.
Wendy Zelazny
Wendy Zelazny
2018-06-08T02:05:15+0000
Highly Recommend
Anne Kater Reeves
Anne Kater Reeves
2018-06-07T22:46:05+0000
I highly recommend Parrish Learning Zone. My daughter was able to achieve the SAT score she was aiming for with the help of her Math (Mr. James Slane) and English (Mrs. Lauren Cannavo) tutors. Not only did they help her with practice tests but they also boosted her confidence in taking the SAT. The owners (Nina and Jay) were always prompt in answering my emails. They are very accommodating and worked around my daughter’s schedule (thank you Shiela for all your help in finding available dates for my daughter to meet with her tutors). Thank you Parrish Learning Zone for helping my daughter achieve her goal!
Beth Yankovich
Beth Yankovich
2018-03-23T20:29:18+0000
I can't say enough good things about Parrish Learning Zone. My son has historically suffered from low reading comprehension. I felt he needed a little extra help so I contacted Parrish Learning Zone. The owners at Parrish matched my son with the perfect tutor for him, they developed a rapport almost immediately. He is now in 8th grade and doing well in all his classes. My son is very active in school sports and the staff at Parrish are always very accommodating. They always reschedule with no problems. My son even likes to go early to chat with Sheila.
Beth Kent
Beth Kent
2017-11-08T18:59:11+0000
Awesome! Very structured and student focused - they identified the areas of weakness and turned those into areas of strength in a very short amount of time. I loved the communication from the tutor and the company. I received a specific report of my child's tutoring session including improvements and areas that needed continued work. I received reminders of upcoming tutor sessions - which I needed!! I felt the individual attention and service was worth every penny AND found the prices to be much more reasonable that other tutors in the area. I would HIGHLY recommend Parrish Learning Zone to any parent that needs to find highly competent tutoring help for their child. Parrish is simply the best!
Michele Hiltbrunner Freemyers
Michele Hiltbrunner Freemyers
2017-03-14T15:53:50+0000
An excellent place to take your kids for any tutoring needs! PLZ is a very personalized and hands on service! Both of my teenage boys have been through here for various reasons and I know we will continue to make use of them!
Tammy Elms Mosco
Tammy Elms Mosco
2016-06-02T12:20:59+0000
I am extremely thankful to Parrish Learning Zone. I have a son that is a freshman in college majoring in mechanical engineering. I am so glad that we found out about the Parrish Learning Zone because they were very caring and really worked hard around my sons high school football schedule to ensure that he received all of the needed instruction in order to do well on the SAT testing. It was a great investment for his future. I believe this experience prepared my son for the transition to college life. He was able to attend a top engineering college and to play football there. My daughter is a senior in high school now and was admitted into two of the top ranked public schools in Virginia. She will be a freshman at one of these schools next year. She also was enrolled in the Parrish Learning Zone for preparation for the SAT. I am again thankful to the Parrish Learning Zone and feel that this was a great long term investment into their futures. I would strongly recommend the Parrish Learning Zone to anyone looking for an environment that offers a caring and knowledgeable approach to educating students. They are the best.
Angela Jackson
Angela Jackson
2014-05-15T00:39:39+0000
Andrew Powers
Andrew Powers
2014-02-09T12:32:29+0000

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