TIPS that will make this the best LEAP year ever and help with every test to come, too!
It’s that time of year again when the dreaded high-stakes LEAP testing looms over schools across the state. The mandatory LEAP 2025, or Louisiana Educational Assessment Program, is designed to provide insight into how well our schools are instilling grade-level skills and knowledge. But for families, it’s often a high-pressure time of stress and dread, especially with testing changing constantly and pass/fail attached.
Obviously, the best way to get a good LEAP score is to know the material and be able to recall and use it in a timely manner. Aside from that, there are things students and parents can do to make taking the LEAP and other tests a little easier.
Parents and teachers can start by going over these specific testing tips with their students:
- Pay close attention to all directions. Don’t just assume you’ll know how to fill in the blank or when to stop. Practice bubbling in answers.
- Use all the time. If you finish the test and have time left over, review your work. Make sure you’ve answered all the questions. Show your work and use proper punctuation.
- Skip the hard questions. Don’t spend a lot of time on the hard questions. Come back to them if you have time.
- Finish the test! If you’re running out of time on a multiple choice test, quickly scan what remains and take your best guess. You have a better chance of getting it right than if you write down nothing at all.
- Breathe deeply! Stress and shallow breathing cause each other. If you breathe more than 15 times per minute, your brain gets 40% less oxygen than what you need for normal functioning. This oxygen deprivation is often why kids who should do well on tests simply don’t. To reduce stress and increase oxygen levels, you can implement breathing exercises. Take a deep breath, briefly hold it, and slowly let it out. Repeat 5 times.
Parents can also help their child take a great LEAP with these:
- Make sure they get a good night’s sleep. Studies show a sleepy brain works harder and accomplishes less. Sleep deprivation decreases attentiveness, response time, memory, and performance.
- Feed them well. The right combination of foods can help students get that good night’s sleep and power up their brain. “Carbohydrates are associated with producing serotonin which can be a calming influence;” says Shreveport registered dietician and counselor Emily Cascio. “So, an extra serving of complex carbs, such as whole grains, at dinner or before bed can help initiate sleep. Protein is associated with making them more alert which makes it an essential part of a pre-test breakfast.”
- Hydrate. Even slight dehydration can cause a physical shrinkage of the brain and impair concentration and thinking.
- Be encouraging. Studies show kids do better work when praised for their effort, not for their grades or results. Instead of focusing on getting top scores, encourage them to work their hardest and try their best. The scores will follow.
- Practice. The Louisiana Department of Education website is loaded with materials to help kids with various LEAP tests. But don’t overdo it! After all, the LEAP is designed to test what your children know, not what they can cram in during test prep. However, seeing previous LEAP materials may reduce some of the stress as they will know what to expect.
If you are concerned about how well your child may do on the LEAP or how they are doing in school in general, call LearningRx Shreveport to see how brain training can help strengthen their cognitive skills. Call 318.797.8523 or email shreveport.la@learningrx.net. You can also learn more on our main website: Get Started.
To keep up with what’s happening in our center, sign up for our monthly newsletter here! You can also see where we will be appearing and what fun activities we’re hosting on our Events and Facebook page.