Summer exam results anxiety: How to keep your teen stress free while waiting

The summer holidays are underway in the UK, and despite offering a well-deserved break for students across the country, the long weeks off waiting for their GCSE and A-Level grades can prove to be a stressful period for teens. The A-Levels and GCSE results days fall on the 18th and 25th August respectively, just a couple of weeks prior to schools commencing in autumn, leaving plenty of time for students to second guess themselves, and parents to stress about whether they’ll receive the grades necessary to move onto the next stage of their life. MyTutor, the UK’s most trusted tutoring platform shares five ways you can help your teen make the most of their summer, stay busy, and focus on the future rather than stress about impending exam results.

Don’t keep talking about the exams

Teens can get bogged down in “what-if” thinking about what they could have done better, if they could have started studying earlier, if they reviewed the content enough, if they got that one question right, etc. If your teen feels as though some of their exams didn’t go how they expected, there’s no point working backwards and going over what they could have answered differently. If they already told you they are nervous about a particular exam, going over it, again and again, will only cause your teen to be driven mad by overthinking, and they probably did better than they think. On the other hand, if your teen comes out of the exam hall confident, it’s best not to question them on it, focus on the fact that they did their best and focus on the future. After all, what’s done is done!

Keep them busy learning about things they love

During the summer, teens can lose up to 40% of their learning gains made during the previous year. This can be avoided with just two hours a day of active learning, effectively keeping teens minds on top of their game while leaving little time to stress about the exams they took in June. MyTutor is offering summer courses which can harness their energy and put it towards a passion for learning how to solve the problems they care about. In “Science to Save the Planet”, teens will learn about environmental science and sustainability. If they are an advocate for racial justice and want to understand it better, MyTutor’s reading club dissecting “Natives” by Akala will help them understand how they can be a force for good.

Make sure they carve out some time to relax with friends

Life is all about balance, and let’s face it – during the summer months, your teen likely wants to spend more time with their friends than their parents right now, especially if they might be heading to university in the fall. Between a summer job and tutoring sessions, encourage them to carve out some dedicated time with friends. If they’re A-Level students, this summer may be the last time they see their hometown friends for a while, so a parent-free holiday of celebration could be just what they need to take their mind off exam results and celebrate their success in finishing school.

Make a plan for exam results day

Instead of being anxious about exam results day, plan something fun so they look forward to it. Do something that they like, whether it’s going out to their favourite restaurant, planning a family day outside, a trip to the city, or seeing a film they really want to see. Make it a day to show them how proud you are of them, about celebrating their achievements no matter the results say.

Stay positive

If you are worried about your teen’s results, it will rub off on your child and contribute to more anxiety throughout your entire household. Make sure you stay cheery and positive when it comes to their exams, after all, all you can do is prep for the next term. It helps to create alternate plans so your child has different avenues to go down if they didn’t get the grades they expected. Help them create a plan for three different scenarios: a ‘best case,’ a ‘could have gone better’, and a ‘worst case.’ This will help your teen stay positive and have a plan in place even in the worst-case scenario. Make sure each plan involves steps to move forward and explore their options while keeping on top of their grades. Online tutoring can be an essential part of these plans and keep your teens mind active during summer and throughout the school year.

MyTutor will be hosting 75 new courses throughout the summer, where kids aged 13-18 can take part in creative and educational programmes tailored to them. From courses in creative arts and cultural issues, to tech subjects, science, and reading clubs, rounded off with expert help in planning careers and university, MyTutor’s courses have been designed to make learning fun, exciting and interactive. Kids learn in groups of up to eight, so they can enjoy being social while discovering something new. The full list of courses along with booking information is available here, prices start at £12 for a two-hour group session and £90 for a five-day course.

Bertie Hubbard, co-founder of MyTutor, discusses the role that EdTech can play in helping struggling students:

“Many parents ask us how they can best support their children to make the most of their summer break, so we wanted to create a wide variety of courses that would interest and inspire students during the holidays. From tech courses that turn hobbies like gaming into potential careers, to expert help with uni prep and impactful sessions on science and the environment, our courses are designed to help students develop useful skills for the future, build knowledge in areas they are passionate about, and learn new subjects outside of the curriculum.

“MyTutor’s summer courses are led by highly-skilled tutors who, as current university students, are experts in their subject areas and act as relatable role models to our students. By running these engaging, interactive and sociable group sessions, we hope that teens can develop their knowledge in an area that they care about, whilst also meeting other like-minded learners for a truly memorable summer experience.”