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Anxiety Is:

A feeling of worry, nervousness or agitation in relation to an experience such as performing in front of a large group of people, competing in a sporting event or even taking a test/exam.

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Test Anxiety is:

A feeling of worry, nervousness or agitation in relation to getting ready for a test and during the test. Students who suffer from test anxiety tend to have mental blocks, concentration difficulty and are distracted easily.

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The Two Types of Anxiety

Anticipatory: feeling of distress occurring while studying for or thinking about the exam.
Situational: feeling of distress occurring while taking the exam.

It is important to be aware of when anxiety attacks you so that you may use strategies in and out of the exam situation to manage the anxiety.

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What Causes Test Anxiety?

>Lack of preparation!

>Past experiences of blanking out or performing badly on exams.

>Focusing too much on the outcome.

>Focusing too much on how other classmates and friends are doing.

>Issues outside of school distracting you from studying for or concentrating on exam.

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How Does Test Anxiety Affect Kids?

Test Anxiety affects kids in 3 ways:

Physiologically

Behaviorally

Psychologically

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Physiological reactions may include:

> Increased heartbeat

>Tense muscles

> Perspiration

> Dry Mouth

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Behavioral reactions may include:

> Inability to make decisions, act or express yourself.

> Difficulty reading and understanding questions on an exam.

> Difficulty organizing your thoughts.

> Difficulty recalling or retrieving terms and concepts.

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Psychological reactions may include:

> Feeling apprehensive or uneasy.

> Feeling upset.

> Having self-doubt or negative self-talk.

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What are some ways to deal with test anxiety before the exam?

Prepare well and in advance!

Check your attitude!

Relax!

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How can you prepare well and in advance?

> Gather information about the exam.

> Set up a study schedule.

> Review material often throughout the semester.

> Test yourself.

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Gather information about the exam

Know as much as you can about the exam so you can study in a way that will help enhance your performance.

> What kind of test am I going to take?

> How much time will I have?

> What material will be covered?

> How will the test be graded?

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Set Up A Study Schedule

Put specific study times into your schedule and determine study tasks for each review session.
Below is an example of a student's review schedule one week before exam:

Weekend	Monday	Tuesday	Thursday	Friday
Gather materials- old exams, notes, and homework. Study Chpts 1 & 2	Review Chpts 1 & 2; study 3 & notes	Review Chpts 1, 2 & 3; study 4 & notes	Put hard to Remember material on a master study guide.	Final review of Study guide.

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Review material effectively and often throughout semester

Conduct review sessions 10 minutes a day for each class. Seeing, hearing, or interacting with the class material often will help you remember it.

Study in short spurts (an hour or less) and take breaks rather than studying straight through for several hours.

Aim for understanding the material, not just memorizing.

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Test Yourself

Understanding the material when you are looking at it doesn't mean you will remember it on the exam.

Tips for testing yourself:

* Make flash cards

* Use chapter tests in your textbook

* Turn each section heading into a question

and then try answering it

* Look away from each section you are

studying and reiterate (to yourself or to a

study partner), verbally or in writing, what

that section is about.

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How can you check your attitude before the exam?

Change negative self-talk into positive self-talk.

Keep in mind that one exam is unlikely to make or break your whole future.

If issues outside of school distract you, jot them down on a piece of paper so you can

come back to deal with them later.

For chronic anxiety or depression, talk to a professional

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Relax

> Learn stress releasing strategies that you can use in and out of the exam situation.

> Practice the techniques so they become easy to use.

> Other ways to relax:

* Exercise-walk, run, yoga, etc

* Listen to music that soothes or motivates you

* Stretching

* Meditation

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Quick Relaxation Techniques

Tense and Relax

If sitting in a chair in class, you can use your chair to help you with this exercise.

> Place your feet flat on the floor in front of you.

> With both hands, grab the underside of your chair.

> Push your feet into the ground and pull on your chair upward. Tense your muscles, holding for 5 seconds.

> Release your pull and relax your feet, letting your body go limp.

> Repeat as necessary

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Breathe

3 Deep Breaths

> Inhale through your nose, taking in air as if filling

your abdomen

> Hold for 1 second.

> Exhale through your mouth or nose, slowly

(make sure you exhale by completely pushing out

every last bit of air).

> Repeat two more times.

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Body Scan

> Start at one end of your body and focus on a specific muscle or muscle group.

> Concentrate on how that muscle feels. Is it tense?

> Consciously release the tension in the muscle.

> Continue throughout your entire body.

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Guided Imagery

Imagine that you are going away from where you are right now and traveling to a place where you want to be. This place maybe a warm beach, tropical forest, a cozy room, a pool of water....you decide.

What does this place feel like? Is it warm or cool? Are there soothing breezes or comforting sun rays? Is there a refreshing mist or shower of rain?
Is it bright or dim? What kind of light is there? Daylight? Candlelight? Moonlight?
What aromas does this place have? Spring flowers? Pine trees? Citrus fruits? Salty seaside air? Fresh cut grass? Coffee? Mint?
How does this place make you feel? Peaceful? Tranquil? Refreshed? Beautiful? Strong? Confident? Whatever the feeling, embrace it and hold on to it.

Now as you journey back to here, hold on to that feeling and bring it back with you.

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What strategies can you use to relieve anxiety during the exam?

TAKE A BREAK. STOP FOR A MINUTE, TAKE A DEEP BREATH, ROLE YOUR SHOULDERS, CLOSE YOUR EYES AND TAKE ONE MORE DEEP BREATH BEFORE YOU OPEN YOUR EYES AGAIN.

ASK A QUESTION (UNLESS TAKING ONLINE CLASS EXAM). BREAK THE UNCOMFORTABLE SILENCE BY ASKING THE INSTRUCTOR A QUESTION

MOVE ON TO AN EASIER QUESTION. IF BEING STUCK ON A QUESTION IS FRUSTRATING YOU, MOVE ON AND COME BACK TO THE CHALLENGING ONE LATER.

USE POSITIVE SELF-TALK. TALK TO YOURSELF BY USING POSITIVE AND MOTIVATIONAL WORDS TO GUIDE YOURSELF OUT OF THE ANXIETY.

USE YOUR QUICK RELAXATION EXERCISES. ALLOW YOURSELF A TIME OUT-TAKE A FEW BREATHS, TENSE AND RELAX, OR DO A QUICK STRETCH.

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Three Stages Of Test Anxiety

> Before the exam

> During the exam

> After the exam

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Before The Exam

Remember to gather information before the exam.

Remember

Prepare well by setting a study schedule, reviewing often and testing yourself.

Prepare

Get plenty of rest and eat well the day before and day of exam.

Get

Know strategies for different test types: multiple choice, short answer, matching and essay.

Know

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During the Exam

Do an information dump! Before you begin answering, jot down hard to remember formulas and terms on the margins or back of exam.

Survey exam. Before you begin answering, take a quick look at the whole exam. This may help you decide where to begin and how much time to spend on each question.

Read directions carefully and underline key terms and phrases.

Do easy questions first. They may give you clues for the more challenging questions.

Relax! Use your strategies to calm yourself and breathe, you go this:)

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After the Exam

Reward yourself and celebrate doing a great job! Keep practicing positive self-talk.

Analyze your exam.

* What went well and what didn't?

* What type of questions did you find most challenging and Why?

Make and implement a plan to do even better next time.

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