Five tips for beating exam stress
Are you preparing for exam season? Or looking for ways to help your child get exam-ready? Read five tips to help you beat exam stress.
Exam season is undoubtedly the most stressful time of year for students. Between cramming for the upcoming day and trying to maintain some semblance of normal life, it can sometimes feel like a meltdown is looming just around the corner.
Five tips for beating exam stress
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Leading school communication systems company Educator has rounded up five easy ways to destress during exam time, so that you can take the panic out of study season.
1) Get organised
An organised mind is a relaxed mind. So before frantically grabbing at notes, make sure you have a system in place to organise your thoughts.
Whether you prefer colour coding, creating spider diagrams or writing up a to-do list for each of your subjects, having a process that works for you will help to declutter your mind and leave you feeling much more prepared for exam day.
2) Stretch your legs
The wonders of exercise know no bounds. One of the best ways to destress is by doing some form of exercise every day. Sure, exercising might be the last thing on your mind at a time like this, but even a 15 minute jog can leave you feeling so much better as you release endorphins into your brain.
Research has also proven that exercise can boost your memory, so while you are destressing, you are also putting your brain in tip top shape to continue absorbing information.
3) Take a break
Putting yourself under unnecessary pressure to keep studying can have seriously negative side effects. Researchers suggest that the best amount of time to concentrate on a certain task before taking a break is 45 minutes to an hour.
Taking a short gap between study sessions will allow your mind to process the information you’ve been learning and relax for a bit.
Rather than running to Instagram, where you can get sucked in for – let’s face it – hours, try taking a short walk or meditating so that you can really give your mind space to stretch.
4) Plan ahead
Cramming for an exam the night before is enough to leave even the best students frazzled. Make sure that you have enough time to study by creating a study calendar for each of your subjects.
This will help to structure your life and take away the feelings of panic that often come with an impending exam. It will also help you be more productive each day as you can see your schedule laid out ahead of you.
5) Eat chocolate!
More specifically, dark chocolate. According to a study reported in LiveScience, dark chocolate is known to combat the stress hormone cortisol and has an overall relaxing effect on the body.
Chocolate also releases endorphins which act as a natural stress fighter. So, munch away as you face your notes and take in all the goodness of chocolate without the guilt.
Designed in partnership with schools, Educater is a person-centred communication and tracking solution.
Its modular approach reduces the administration burden in several key areas. It also fully integrates with leading schools’ management information systems such as SIMS, RM Integris and Facility CMIS.
