NAPLAN, or the National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy, is a national, annual assessment for approximately one million Australian school students in Years 3, 5, 7, and 9. Students in Year 3 and their parents can feel especially overwhelmed, as that’s their first time going through the assessment. Learning more about the program and how to prepare can be of immense help to your family.

The Purpose and Importance of NAPLAN

For Educators and the Educational System

The ultimate goal of this program is to help the Australian government see if students are reaching important literacy and numeracy goals. It also allows educators to track their student’s progress and improve their learning programs accordingly.

For Students

What about the students? What would a better or worse result from NAPLAN mean for them? Like all standardised tests, NAPLAN isn’t a measure of a child’s academic potential and intellect. However, it can be very beneficial:

• It can help a student assess important life skills, including seeking employment, completing paperwork, and performing arithmetic.
• If a child isn’t performing as well as the average student for their age group, teachers can encourage them.
• If a child is a higher-performing student, teachers can identify and push them.

The most worried group regarding the test are likely the parents. That’s understandable, knowing they want only the best for their children, including intellectual development. So, they’re often anxious about the results and how they would reflect on their beloved.

What Is the Best Prep for NAPLAN?

If you’re a parent of a child taking the NAPLAN, we get you and your wish to help your kid succeed. The best way to achieve that is to prepare your child by getting familiar with the test and the different skills it evaluates and to practice with the help of Year 3 NAPLAN books. Here are some tips on how to get the best prep for the exam.

Practice with Year 3 NAPLAN Books

Although the publically published NAPLAN papers from 2008 to 2011 and 2012 to 2015 are available for download, they don’t have answers or solutions. These papers can help a child identify their areas of weakness only if completed with the help of a teacher, tutor, or parent. The best and most enjoyable approach to prepare your child for the test is to use an interesting year 3 NAPLAN book for each skill.

Naplan exam questions may differ from what your child is accustomed to, which can be confusing. You can help them become accustomed to the exam’s phrasing by having them practise with the Year 3 NAPLAN books. That’ll lessen the child’s anxiety and eliminate their fear of the unknown.

The most important part of learning through practice questions is that you may assist your child in filling up any knowledge gaps by helping them take corrective action. That means they’re picking up the knowledge required to apply it successfully to other problems.

There is a Year 3 NAPLAN book good for practising different abilities, such as language conventions, reading, writing, and numeracy. Certain options combine different skill sets for which work best once the child gains confidence in each area. Your kid can use a timer to complete the task once they have mastered how the test works.

Practice books aren’t affiliated with the NAPLAN project and are issued without the support of the Australian government. Nonetheless, they’re a great tool to help your child master the test, gain confidence and reduce anxiety. In addition, you can utilise these books for general revision purposes or as a tutoring tool for your kids independently from the exam.

Get to Know the Online Platform

Your child will take the exam using the new online method or the conventional paper format, depending on their school. The public can now use the internet platform via a demonstration site provided by the NAP. You can help your child go to the website and get familiar with it because it has many features that can help them manage their time and tasks, like drag and drop, interactive features, and tabs. That way they can avoid wasting ten minutes learning where to click and how to use the internet platform, meaning they can start responding to the enquiries quickly. Considering that the exam is timed, that’s essential.

Help Them Find Their Learning Style

The seven learning styles are visual, auditory, logical, physical, social, and solitary. If you have already determined your child’s chosen learning style, you can develop strategies to help them understand the questions and enhance their recall of facts. For example, if your child learns best by visual aids, having them highlight the question’s keywords may be beneficial. If your child learns best by touch, have them memorise the nine times tables on their fingers or through play.

Encourage Your Child to Think Positive

Your child will inevitably encounter questions they don’t understand while practising. Make your kiddo think: “I’ll give it a go” instead of “I can’t answer this, I’m giving up” or “It’s too hard.” Help them understand the question, break it down, and give a solid example. They’ll get better at solving problems and learn to attempt every question.