How to Get Your Child to Ace the NNAT

I often hear from parents whose children have taken the NNAT test. These typically consist of 2 types of parents: those whose kids aced the test, who want to share their wisdom, and those whose children fell short, who want to know what they did wrong. In the spirit of helping those whose children still haven’t taken the exam, I wanted to share what I think are the most important things to do when preparing your child for the NNAT test:

 

Start early: The process is competitive, so it’s important to start preparing your child as soon as you know they’ll take the test (or earlier, if possible). Ideally you’ll want to give your child at least 6 months to get a running start so they can ace the test.

 

Develop a plan: Determine when you’ll work with your child, and the materials you’re going to use. If possible, plan out the hours of each day that you’ll work with your child on preparing for the NNAT. Keep in mind that the test can take a while, so you’ll need to get your child’s attention span up to snuff. This is another reason that starting early is important: you can start with 5- or 10-minute prep sessions, then work your way up to a half-hour or 45 minutes.

 

Work with a variety of materials: Don’t just work with a single 100-question workbook. The problem is that, within a week of getting started, your child will have memorized not only the questions but the order in which they appear. They might get “better” at answering the questions, but in reality they’ll just be robotically spouting the answers in exactly the order they’ve seen them before. Be sure to use online materials  so your child doesn’t get burned out.

 

Of course, there are so many other factors that go into what kind of a score your child will bring home on the NNAT test. The most important thing is your dedication and that you make sure your child knows you’re with them 100%.

 

The NNAT and Embarrassment

We’re here to talk about the NNAT, but let’s talk about parenting in general for a moment. As a parent, one of your biggest concerns – whether you realize it or not – is that your child will embarrass you. Parental embarrassment takes many forms: a tantrum in the grocery line, repeating gossip that was supposed to be kept a secret, or acting up on a long trans-Atlantic flight.

But one thing that likely embarrasses you without your even realizing it is when your child doesn’t perform well academically. If your child has ever brought home a quiz with a C+ or even a B circled in red ink at the top of the page, you’ve likely cringed and had to fight off the urge to crumble up the paper and shove it into the nearest trash can.

And no doubt part of your motivation to sufficiently prepare your child for the NNAT is that you want to be able to brag to your friends that you have an exceptionally smart little one. After all, if your child makes the cut on the NNAT, they’ll have a shot at making it into a prestigious Gifted and Talented program or private school!

If you’re realizing this is true, and feeling ashamed – don’t! Being embarrassed when your child doesn’t live up to your expectations is perfectly normal. It’s just part of being a parent in today’s hyper-competitive world: we’re constantly bombarded with other parents’ boasts about how great their children are. Every time you turn around, it seems like you’re hearing about someone else’s darling child, whether it’s that they were admitted to a prestigious private school, became head of the soccer team, or are “an Honor Roll student,” as the ubiquitous bumper sticker never fails to remind us.

And don’t worry, there are plenty of ways to cope with parental embarrassment.

So put your anxiety to good use: get your child ready for the NNAT test! It’s the best way to make sure you’re able to brag to your friends, and not the other way around!

The NNAT and “Good Parenting”

All of us NNAT parents have encountered those moments when we’ve felt overwhelmed with one too many life commitments and guiltily realized that we weren’t giving “all” to our child(ren).  It’s a horrible feeling when you know you’re just flying by the seat of your pants as a parent when you’d prefer to be receiving those coveted “gold stars” for serving as the homeroom mom, the playdate organizer and the queen of baking!  But rest assured, overburdened parent: it’s OK, you’re not alone … and you may well be deserving of a silver star, which is nothing to sneeze at!

Hypothetically, if you were to ask your NNAT child(ren) how you were doing as a parent, how would they grade you?  Would they put you on the honor roll or the Dean’s List? Or would they suggest that you stay after school to brush up on your parenting skills?

While contemplating this idea, I ran across a shocking note from a daughter who apparently didn’t think her mother was doing the best she could (to put it mildly). As described in this story, the note said, “You’re a terrible mother, I hate you. I’ve always wanted another mother, anyone but you.”

Believe it or not, the mother who got this note wasn’t neglectful or mean: she had simply told her daughter to wear warmer clothes on a particularly cold day. To me, this is proof that venomous hatred from your child does NOT mean you’re a bad parent. To the contrary, it may actually mean that you’re doing your job. Think about it: would you be a good parent if you gave in and let your child wear clothes that wouldn’t keep them warm on a cold day?

The same goes for NNAT prep: your child may not like it. You can make it fun – but it’s still not the same as playing video games or running outside. And guess what? If you believe in your child’s success, you have to be willing to have them be upset with you for making them prepare for the NNAT test. Once they’re old enough to understand, they’ll thank you for it.

Nobody Said Prepping for the NNAT Would be Easy

Even parents with kids smart enough to qualify for the NNAT test can’t avoid celebrity news. I certainly know that every time I go to the grocery store, I’m confronted with magazines like People Magazine and The National Enquirer that bombard me with celebrity gossip, “he said/she said” stories, hearsay and even downright lies.  It seems that our world has gone mad when the top story on the news is that Kim Kardashian’s wedding cost $12 million – really, this is considered “news”?  And, who cares what Lindsay tweeted today or how many times Us Magazine claims Brad and Angelina are for SURE breaking up this time? I don’t care, do you?

Furthermore, on the rare occasion that I tune into the news and they’re actually reporting real, substantive, world events, it’s usually depressing and disheartening. Added to the stress of preparing your little one for competitive tests like the NNAT, the endless and overwhelming “news cycle” that has become a part of our daily lives is almost too much to bear.

That’s why I’m always ecstatic to hear some good news from parents who prepared their kid for the NNAT test and not only survived, but saw their kid excel on a test that’s renowned for being difficult and competitive. These feel-good stories vary in their location, background, and details, but one thing remains constant: the parent cared enough to ensure that their little one was prepared for the NNAT test when the big day came. As with anything in life, you don’t just “do well” on the NNAT. You have to put in hours, days, weeks of preparation. And, again, as with anything else, at times that process will be frustrating, exhausting, overwhelming. But the upside is that it will give your child a much better chance of acing what could be the most important test of their lives.

Preparing for the NNAT test is a lot like training for a marathon. And, just like training for a marathon, nobody ever said preparing for the test would be easy. But it will be worth it.

 

NNAT Parent: You Are Not Alone

As a parent of a child taking the NNAT test, I know it can sometime feel like you’re going it alone. I’ve heard from countless parents who are told that “there’s no way to prepare for the test,” or that “preparation will disqualify your child, so don’t you dare try it.” In fact, you might be among the many parents who have been told this. If that’s the case, don’t let it break your spirit; rather, let the words light a fire in you to make sure your child is on the right educational path.

Think about it: would you put your four-year-old on a 10-speed bicycle without first teaching them how to pedal a small bike with training wheels? Would you throw your five-year-old into the pool and tell them to swim without first teaching them the basics of water safety? I certainly hope not!   So why on earth would any halfway-conscientious parent send their child into a life-changing NNAT test with no exposure to the topics involved or the questions asked – it’s like putting your child on a mountain bike without a helmet, or in the pool without a lifeguard: they’re going to get banged up during the process, and quite possibly mentally scarred as well. No parent should want their young child to embark on such a brutal – and ultimately doomed – endeavor.

So don’t let your child go it alone. Pull together NNAT practice materials that will get your child ready for the test in a way that makes them truly prepared for the test and for everything that will come afterwards. That’s the best part about getting ready – they’ll be prepared for so many other tests and challenges that lay ahead. If you’re the kind of parent who wants to make sure their child is fully prepared, this is the only way to go.