Spring is here—and with it comes testing season. WIDA, NYSESLAT (check out this blog post about NYS moving from NYSESLAT to WIDA), and state tests bring a level of pressure that many of our students feel deeply. But this time of year doesn’t just have to be about test prep. It can also be an opportunity to support students emotionally and build their language skills at the same time. You’ve probably seen it before. A student stares at the page and doesn’t write anything. Another rushes through just to be finished. Someone else looks overwhelmed, even though you know they understand the content. It’s easy to assume this is an academic issue—but often, it’s not. It’s emotional.
Disclaimer: In this blog, the terms ESL students (English as a Second Language), ELLs (English Language Learners), and ML (Multilingual Learners) are used interchangeably. While “Multilingual Learners” is becoming the more widely accepted term, “ESL students” and “English Language Learners” are still commonly used in various contexts. My aim is to be inclusive and clear to all readers, regardless of the terminology they are familiar with.
Acknowledge the Feeling First
Before we jump into strategies, it’s important to recognize something simple but powerful: it’s completely normal for students to feel nervous during tests.
From a psychological perspective, a little bit of stress actually helps the brain stay alert and focused. But when students don’t understand what they’re feeling, that stress can quickly turn into anxiety. Their brain goes into “fight, flight, or freeze,” and learning takes a back seat. That’s why naming and normalizing emotions matters.
When we tell students, “It’s okay to feel nervous—your body is just getting ready to try something important,” we reduce the fear around the feeling itself. Instead of thinking something is wrong with them, students begin to understand that they can handle it.
For ESL learners, this is also a powerful opportunity to build emotion vocabulary—words like nervous, frustrated, confident, and overwhelmed—so students can better express and make sense of their experiences.
What’s Really Going On?
For many students, especially ESL learners, testing brings more than just academic demands. It brings pressure to perform, fear of making mistakes, language processing challenges, and sometimes past experiences of struggle. So even when students are capable, their brain signals that the situation is overwhelming. That’s when they shut down, rush, or give up.
What Actually Helps (Without Adding More Test Prep)
During this time of year, adding more worksheets or practice tests often doesn’t solve the problem. What makes a real difference is teaching students how to handle what’s happening inside them while they are taking the test.
1. If–Then Plan Strategy
One way to support students is by helping them manage their emotions in the moment. You can guide students in creating simple If–Then plans so they know exactly what to do when stress shows up. For example:
“If I feel stuck, then I will skip the question and come back.”
“If I feel nervous, then I will take three deep breaths.”
When students have a plan, they don’t have to panic—they have something concrete to do.
For ESL students, this is also a natural way to practice the first conditional (If…, then…), making grammar meaningful and immediately applicable.
2. Fixed vs. Growth Mindset
Another powerful shift comes from addressing students’ internal thinking and explicitly teaching them how their brains work. Many students don’t automatically know that their brains can grow and develop with effort—they need to be taught this directly.
When students understand that learning is like exercising a muscle, they begin to see mistakes and challenges as part of the process, not as signs that they’re “not smart.”
This is where the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset becomes important. In a fixed mindset, students believe their abilities are set—they might think, “I’m just not good at this.” In a growth mindset, students understand that they can improve with practice, effort, and the right strategies, "I don't know this yet, but I am working on it!".
Teaching this helps students see struggle as a normal and necessary part of learning.
3. Thought Reframing
It is also very helpful to teach students how to shift their self-talk. Many students think, “I can’t do this” or “I’m going to fail,” which increases anxiety. You can model how to turn those thoughts into something more helpful:
“I’m stuck” → “I’ll try the next step.”
“I can’t do this” → “I can try my best.”
This also connects to ELA skills, as students learn about internal thinking—what we say to ourselves—and how it influences actions and outcomes.
4. Creating Test-Day Mantras
Giving students time to practice positive self-talk—and even create a short personal mantra like “One question at a time”—helps them stay grounded during testing. This can be extended through choral reading or partner practice, giving students a chance to build fluency, pronunciation, and confidence in speaking.
5. Setting Simple, Clear Goals
It also helps to give students something clear and manageable to work toward. When a test feels too big, students can feel overwhelmed before they even begin. By setting simple goals, students can focus their attention in a more productive way. You might guide them to aim for completing every question, staying focused, or improving in a specific area.
For ESL students in particular, this builds confidence because success is not only tied to language ability, but also to effort and persistence.
Bringing It All Together: SEL + Language Learning
All of these strategies do more than support students emotionally—they also create meaningful opportunities for language development.
- When we acknowledge emotions, we teach feelings vocabulary.
- When students create If–Then plans, they practice grammar in context.
- When they reframe thoughts, they build language for internal thinking and self-expression.
- When they practice mantras, they strengthen speaking and fluency skills.
You can extend this even further by:
- Having students write their own If–Then plans (writing + grammar)
- Creating class charts of helpful self-talk (vocabulary + speaking)
- Using sentence frames like “I feel ___ when ___, so I will ___”
- Role-playing test scenarios (speaking + real-life application)
You’re not adding more—you’re making your teaching more intentional and efficient.
Why This Matters Beyond the Test
These strategies are not just about test performance. When students learn how to calm themselves, shift their thinking, and stay focused on a goal, they are building real-life skills. They are learning how to manage stress, work through challenges, and keep going when something feels difficult.
That’s what creates resilient learners. And those are the skills that will support them far beyond any test.
Check out this blog post about NYS moving from NYSESLAT to WIDA and grab this free How Do We Move Students from One Level to the Next? Actionable Strategies for Teachers.
Would you like to get more freebies, exclusive deals, ESL tips, crafts, and classroom culture ideas? Sign up for my weekly newsletter!
0 Comments