Testing is an important part of your child's educational program. Testing provides useful information for you and your child's teacher and helps you plan a better program. As a parent, there are several things you can do to make testing a good experience for your child.

1. RELAX - Testing is usually a fun experience. Often a young child sees testing as a series of games. You can help your child by telling them that testing is usually O.K. and he will only do things that other children his age can handle. Children do not take special tests because they are dumb or because they are bad people. Special tests help teachers make learning easier for their students by finding out which things are easy for a child and which things are hard.

2. REST - A child with plenty of rest is more able to think clearly and stick with a job. It is important to be sure your child had enough sleep for two or three nights before testing.

3. BE HONEST - The truth is, some parts of the testing will be easy for your child and some parts may be hard. Most school tests are made for children between the ages of 6 and 16-so some questions are very, very easy and some are quite hard. Some parts of the test can be like puzzles- nobody gets all of a puzzle right the first time. Usually only the questions that are "just right for a child your age" will be asked. Nobody expects your child to get everything right. If your child asks you about this, tell him.

4. PREPARE - Your child will do as well as he or she can on tests. Don't try to teach her any test items you might know. Don't try to give her practice answering questions. You really won't help your child do better on these tests. You probably will make your child nervous. Instead, spend time thinking about things that might help the tester. Make a list of important information from when your child was little (when she walked and talked, what illnesses she has had, any special fears she may have). Get ready to tell the school what you think might be the problem.

5. TRUST - Trust your school. The teachers and principal of your school will try to help you understand what the test will be about. They cannot give you copies of the test book. After the tests are given, they cannot give you a copy of your child's answers. They will give you a report of how your child did on the tests.

For more information on this or other topics related to the needs of children with disabilities, call or write MPF/SPIN (Special-needs Parent Information Network) At: P.O. Box 2067, Augusta, ME 04338: 1-800-870-7746 (In-State Only) or 623-2144.

This fact sheet is paid for through grants from the Federal Department of Education and the State of Maine Department of Education, utilizing funds under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.