As this year’s NQ exams approach we continue our series of posts by parents and learners.

‘At the moment I am trying to be patient with my child as I know she is under a great deal of pressure, so I am also trying to shield her a bit from unnecessary distractions or extra demands on her time, ie if she is actively revising I won’t ask her to complete her chores within the household.

I am trying to almost cocoon her a bit from the noise and bustle of a busy house where she has older and younger siblings getting on with their lives. We have rearranged her room and provided a desk so she doesn’t have to study at the kitchen table (which is a nuisance for everyone) and has a place to leave her materials undisturbed. I am encouraging her younger sister, with whom she shares a bedroom, to play in other rooms to give her a bit of peace. I am fortunate to have the space to do this.

Similarly I am keeping an eye on her diet and sleep patterns to ensure she is getting enough to eat and drink and is not over tired. I will continue to do this until the end of the exams and will up the ante considerably in the days leading up to them. I encourage her to take a break from her desk to watch TV or go out with friends to keep her from overworking.

My dad bought her some specimen papers from SQA for a few of her subjects, Maths, Chemistry and Physics which have helped her become more familiar with the new type of questioning involved in the N5 papers. She has been provided with some revision booklets etc for some subjects from school but this has been very patchy. I have been web surfing to find any extra resources to plug gaps. The new revision guides from the NPFS will be very helpful in the next few weeks providing extra examples of questions for the N5 question papers.

I am trying to keep calm myself and not get worked up if she becomes anxious or stressed.I know that I have to provide support as she needs it and to suit her…’

Parent (S4 pupil)

More posts:
Parent’s perspective (National 4/5 boy & Higher girl)
Learner’s perspective (S4)
Another learner’s perspective (S4)

Take a look at the Parentzone website which has a guide to helping your child prepare for exams, with links to revision aids and specimen papers.