Supporting your learner through feel good exams
The three step approach that turns exam season into something worth celebrating
Picture this:
your child's bedroom door has been closed for hours. Inside, textbooks are stacked like miniature towers, sticky notes adorn every surface, and their forehead bears the crease of concentration (or is it worry? panic? exhaustion?).
Final exam season has arrived.
For many households and classrooms, May brings a particular kind of tension—one that can leave both adults and young people feeling helpless, frustrated, and exhausted.
But what if I told you that exam season could be different? What if, instead of stress and last-minute cramming, this period could become one of confidence-building, self-discovery, and yes—even beauty?
The Problem with How We Approach Exams
Most approaches to exam preparation focus on content cramming and psychological tricks. Students are told to memorize everything, use mnemonic devices, and employ test-taking strategies that might help them guess better.
But in the stress of an actual exam, this approach often fails our learners. Why?
It keeps hidden what real studying actually looks like
It increases anxiety by treating exams as threatening obstacles
It disconnects learning from the joy of discovery
It creates a sense that success depends on outsmarting the test, not demonstrating knowledge
A Feel-Good Alternative:
The Awakened Approach
At Awakened Learning, we believe in transforming exam prep from a dreaded marathon into a meaningful journey. Here's how you, as parents and educators, can help guide this transformation:
1. Connection + Capacity > Content
Help your learner sandwich study sessions between energy-topping-up experiences that prioritise connection and capacity. Begin the day with a favourite breakfast. End with a short walk together or a few minutes of a beloved hobby. These aren't “rewards” for studying—they're ways to release the pressure valve, they’re critical prevention pieces for isolation, and they’re essential wellbeing engagements that actually help learners consolidate knowledge and articulate their learning.
Morning ritual suggestion: Five minutes of looking-forward-to contemplation or journaling, envisioning three things they're excited about that are coming up on the horizon.
Evening ritual suggestion: A "Today I discovered…," or “Today I helped…” dinner conversation.
2. Transform Multiple Choice from Psychological Game to Knowledge Assessment
Our "Cover and Match" method (featured in this month's downloadable resource!) revolutionizes how students approach multiple-choice tests:
Cover ALL potential answers with a hand or paper
Read the question as if it's a short answer question
Solve it independently in the margins
Arrive at YOUR answer independently
Only then uncover the options and match to your solution
Move on with confidence
This six-step approach rejects the deception built into many exams and puts the power back in the learner's hands.
3. Define Success Beyond Grades
Before those final timed assessments begin, co-create a "Success Portfolio" with your learner that includes:
Three learning goals for each subject (beyond “get an A”)
Two specific concepts they want to understand deeply, clearly, and confidently
One way this knowledge connects to something they care about, like a future, hoped-for career path, or a cherished activity
When the exam is over, revisit this portfolio together. Reflect on the journey, the overlaps, and the non-exam triumphs, even if small and nuanced, not just the grade achieved.
Let's transform exam season from a period of dread to an opportunity for beautiful learning.
Wishing you kind learning,
xo Deena
