Pro tips to prepare your kid for a Science Olympiad
Why do science Olympiads happen? Their main aim is to help students discover a love for the subjects in question, by taking them outside the set school syllabus, and making science come alive. Keeping that in mind, get your kids to not just study deeper, but also enjoy the process of discovering how science is all around them. Participating in an Olympiad will help your kids do just that. Take the example of Hindustan Olympiad, which is open for students of class I to class XII and is scheduled to start from the month of March. This national level competition will test a student’s skill and knowledge in all subjects including science. The last date of registration is 7th March. Participating in HT Olympiad can be a wonderful way of realising for students that their subjects are living around them and are not just confined to books. Here are a few tips for kids to prep for a Science Olympiad.
Help your child be aware of the syllabus
Patterns provide clues, but they also keep changing. Science Olympiads are competitive exams. So make sure you have checked the website thoroughly to know the exact syllabus and rules. Then get your kid to practice previous papers. So they will study current material, but also look at previous resources. If they get a different paper, they will not become nervous or feel lost.
Use the right references
Start by taking your child through the ICSE or CBSE school books. NCERT books can really help. You will find previous papers of HTS Olympiads online. Once you have seen these, you will get an idea about the pattern. For any science Olympiad, a lot of books and tests are availale online. Use them for your kid. You will realize that books kept aside as reference can actually become important texts.
Balance Olympiad prep with regular studies
Don’t let your child ignore regular school studies for the sake of the Olympiad. They can juggle both. Science Olympiad syllabi all over the world are made in tandem with board syllabi. Use these tips to put your kids’ existing school texts to use for the science Olympiad preparation.
- Colour code important information in school texts, notes and practical notebooks for future references in science Olympiads to make it less time consuming for kids
- Divide the subjects into related chunks that your kid finds easier to tackle on a conceptual level
- Encourage them to prepare brief notes from school books for linking with the science Olympiad syllabus
- Encourage them to understand, not just mug up
Allow them to have activity breaks too, so that kids don’t get pressurized or bored.