Tips to Help Kids Tackle Anxiety

As a mother who's navigated the stormy seas of parenting, I've seen firsthand the pressures that tests and tryouts can heap onto our children's shoulders. Today, I'm sharing heartfelt strategies to support your kids through anxiety-riddled tests, whether the elementary spelling test, ACT, or sports tryouts.  We'll explore how shifting the conversation from your child's abilities to God's guiding hand can make all the difference. 

I'll share three practical tips that can ease the burden of test anxiety for your little ones, including how to pray with them using scripture and the profound impact of sending a short but powerful encouraging note or text. We also discuss the importance of celebrating every success by attributing it to God's wisdom and support. 

Plus, I've put together a special resource just for you—a complimentary PDF of Bible verses tailored for testing times, ready to download below. Let's turn these challenges into opportunities to strengthen your child's faith and confidence.

Helpful Links from the Podcast:

• FREE PDF - Scriptures to Pray for Testing Anxiety
• Subscribe to The Helping Hand Newsletter
• Learn to Pray the Scriptures Podcast
• Building a Work Ethic

Scripture Shared in this Podcast:

• Colossians 3:23 - Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.
• Deuteronomy 6:4-9 - Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

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Thanks for listening!

Transcript

Heidi Host 00:00

Do you have weeks where you catch yourself coming and going? I realized that I forgot to send out last week's The Helping Hand Newsletter. It is clear that my family is fully immersed in the end-of-the-year chaos, whether that be orchestra or band concerts or end-of-the-year banquets. It is a busy time of year. But also included in end of the year activities are tests. Whether those are the AP or ACT exams or the end of the year finals, it feels like there's always another test around the corner for the kids. And let's face it, tests create a varying level of anxiety in our children, and for good reasons, because some of them hold very high stakes. They can alter future plans and dreams. But tests also provide a teachable moment to lead our children to not focus on their abilities but God's presence and wisdom. Let's talk about that today and discover how we can turn anxiety and test into teachable moments. 

01:09

Welcome back to Parenting to Impress your go-to podcast, to learn practical ways to love God and love others and impress this on the hearts of your children. I am your host, Heidi Franz, a mom who has made a lot of mistakes but has found grace and truth along the way. 

Today we're going to talk about three tips to help kids tackle test anxiety. #1 is pointing the child to God through conversations. Let me give you two examples. 1.  Hannah, you are a smart girl. You have worked hard. You are going to do great on this test. I believe in you. Or option #2… Hannah, I've appreciated how you have prepared for this test. Now it's in God's hands. I am praying that he will direct your answers and give you clear thinking. Remember that any correct answer is provided by the Holy Spirit, and don't forget to praise God for them. 

Do you see the difference between both of those conversations? The first focus is on the child you are a smart girl, you have worked hard, you will do great. I know you can do it. Versus, the second one sees God as the source of wisdom and teaches that child to give glory for the Holy Spirit's guidance. These conversations don't have to be long, but we want to continually remind our kiddos of God's presence in their lives. 

My kids would come home from school and say, man, I nailed that test, mom. And I would say, oh, no, no, remember, God is the one who provided those answers. God is the one who told you what to write down. We don't want to ever forget that any answer, any gift from God, the glory goes back to Him. 

03:03

The second idea to help kids with anxiety about testing is to teach them to pray the scriptures. With the help of some of my Facebook friends, I compiled a list of verses reminding us of truths specifically for test situations. I have created a free PDF that you can print to share with your child, and if you're unsure how to pray the scriptures, I encourage you to listen to the Praying the Scriptures podcast that we taped a while back. I'll include that link in the show notes, but here is an example of combining several different verses. 

03:45

Dear Lord, I pray for Bubs this week as he has his final exams in college. I pray that he would work at every question as working for you, Lord. I ask that when Bubs gets discouraged during the test, that he will remember that you only require his best work and when he struggles to come up with an answer, only require His best work. And when he struggles to come up with an answer, I pray that he would look for you for wisdom, for you give generously to all who ask, but when an answer comes, that he will see you as the provider of every good and perfect gift. Lord, I praise and thank you that this test does not define Bubs, for you have a plan to prosper him, a hope and a future. Find Bubs, for you have a plan to prosper him, a hope and a future. May he never forget this. Thank you, Lord, that you are always with him In Jesus' name. 

04:39

The third tip is to write an encouraging note or text to your child, just a simple reminder of the truth from the scripture or an encouragement to them prior to the test. Remember it doesn't have to be long. Just a few words can go a long way. I want to remind you and myself of one more point. Teachers use test scores to assess learning, progress and comprehension. But here's the thing…Every child is unique, with his or her own set of strengths and areas to grow. Because of this, it is unfair to expect every child to hit the same score, even in your own home. Instead, encourage each of your children to perform at their absolute best effort. 

05:22

When I sit down with my child to talk about their test and how it went, my focus is on their effort that they put in, not merely the number or the letter grade. Think about the verse Colossians 3.23: Work at it with all your heart is serving the Lord.  Because in reality, school is such a short portion of their life, but building a work ethic will last their entire life. 

05:50

Be sure to check out the show notes, print off your free scripture PDF, as well as check out how to Pray the Scriptures podcast. 

One more point that I feel somebody listening needs to hear. You know God doesn't expect us as parents to be perfect.  But in Deuteronomy 6:4-9, He tells us to impress upon our children, and I pray that helping your child through the anxiety of test taking is just one more way that you can be intentional. Whether the child is preparing for a spelling test or an AP test, or even trying out for a sports team, let's continually point our children back to the truths that God loves them and is with them. 

Announcer 06:37

We want to thank you for listening to the Parenting to Impress podcast. Be sure to visit ABCJesusLovesMe.com and check out the show notes for more information on topics shared in this episode. Please subscribe and share with your friends.