A few months to go and the season of taking entrance exams to science high schools starts once again. If you are planning to have your kids take the exams, I’m giving you some tips which I practically used for my daughters who have successfully passed the rigorous exams.
1 Ask your child first if he or she really wants to study in a Science High School. Not all kids desire to study there, despite the advantages parents would like them to realize. No matter how you prepare your child, if he or she is not up to it, you’ll both just end up with a broken heart. I’ve heard students in review centers actually said “Kaya lang naman ako nagre-review dahil sa gusto ng parents ko.” As expected, those children did not pass.
2 Visit the school prior to the exams or even before applying to take the exams so both of you can have the feel of the school where the child will potentially go to if ever he or she passed. It will give you a bird’s eye view of the school or give you hints on what you might need to prepare (transportation, facilities of the school, etcetera).
3 Enroll your child in a review school. Even if you think your child is intelligent already, if you’ve got the budget, enroll your child into a review center. The center will prepare your child emotionally and mentally for the exams and stocked knowledge is very important in entrance exams. My daughters told me that as they remember there were questions about advanced subjects, while there were some that were taught to them years before.
4 Encourage your child to have interest in reading which can enhance his/her vocabulary. There are kids who really don’t like reading books with too much texts so find books or publications which have stories or graphics with subjects you can both talk about. Reading comprehension and verbal ability questions are most often part of entrance exams.
5 You can find affordable workbooks or worksheets in National Bookstore or other bookstores that your child can practice on. I also found some websites like Help Teaching.com where you can generate worksheets for free.
6 Philippine Science High School sell reviewers inside the school. You can maybe borrow one from a previous PhilSci examinee or buy one or two volumes if you have the budget. The questions may or may not appear on the exams but they will definitely give you a hint on how difficult or how the questions on the exams will most probably be like.
7 There are schools like Quezon City Science High School that gives a pre-examination orientation. Take note of the schedule and attend it as much as you can because they give instructions which are crucial for your child to be able to take the exams on the examination day without hassle. Entrance exams start on time which means you need to assess all the activities you need to do before the time of exam to avoid being late ( location of the exam, time, parking, date of exam e.g. consider if it will be a weekday or weekend, ID’s needed, pencils and snacks allowed).
8 Prepare everything you need the day before the exam, and this includes the clothing and baon of the child. There are exam rooms that are air-conditioned and your child should feel comfortable while taking the exams. Don’t forget the snacks and water.
9 Be with your children on the day they will take the exams, as much as possible. Take a vacation leave or just give your full support to your child. Have breakfast together and create a calm atmosphere before the exams. Avoid the “sermon” muna and talk about something happy. This will lessen the pressure on both of you and your child will be able to fully concentrate while taking the exams.
10. Teach or tell your child to pray before the exams, while you on the other hand, can pray while your child is in there taking the exams. This is the part when you have done your part and God will do the rest. Not all students or parents who wish to get in a certain Science High School can make it but if you seek guidance and blessing from the Higher Power, you will be sure that whatever the outcome, it will be the perfect one for you and your child.
To you parent and student who will be taking the exams, we’ve been there, felt all the pressures. The challenges will not be definitely over after the exam but for now, just do your best in reviewing, take the exams well, and prepare for the best results. Good luck and hope to hear from you after you take the exams.
Great tips, Mommy Lani. Congratulations to your daughters for passing the science highschool exams! 🙂
Thanks, hope to be able to help other parents and students through this post 🙂
True! My son is in PSHS and he enjoys it a lot though there are a lot of schoolworks. If you have a smart child let him/her take the exam. This school is an environment where they can appreciate and nourish their gift.
Number one is very important. The child really has to want to go to a Science High School, especially that the academic standards here are high and would require a significant amount of effort and commitment from the child.
My nephew and niece are both graduates of Manila Science High School and I know the pressure.
Thanks for the tips, Mommy Lani! My son is in fifth grade this year and next year entrance exams na rin ang pagkakabalahan ko, haha. 🙂
My kids are still in elementary, but surely, most parents will agree with me na ang bilis ng panahon and soon, they’ll be taking entrance exams in highschool na. Hehe. Great tips mommy and will surely keep these in mind 🙂
I took my chance in Manila Sciece HS before, but failed LOL. Wala naman kasing review-review nun, I think review centers or reviewers will help a lot.
nice tips mother. I like that you have mentioned that parents should consider if their kids like to study there or not. Sometimes kasi desisyon lang talaga ng parents 🙁
Very helpful! My hubby and I wanted our daughter to go to Phil Sci or MaSci also but she doesn’t want to transfer na since most of her friends will still study in the same school.
Magandang consideration din yan mommy edel. Malaking adjustment sa bata pag may mga close friends sya na mahihiwalay. I remember when I was in first year in Highschool, I felt terribly lonely. Although magco cope naman ang mga bata, still malaking adjustment on their part.
Reading this made me recall the time when I took the exams myself a long time ago. Review centers were not known back then and the school I was in did not even provide review sessions to prepare. My mom and I did the reviewing using the NEAT review books I think. I passed all exams from 3 different science highschool too.
I am glad to know that review centers and even review materials are now available. It makes preparation so much easier. 😊
Wow, I’ve alway thought of you as beauty and brains.
Will keep this in mind. Pangarap kong mag-Science High sila Ella at Eli.
To your daughters, they’re beauty and brain! Congrats, Mommy Lani!
Thank you mommy Richelle!
I adore your kids for such determination. Also, you are doing a good job for guiding them!
Thank you for sharing this tips mommy Lani. Congratulations to your daughters! Galing nila nakapasa sila, balita ko din medyo mahirap talaga ang exam.
Congratulations to you Mommy Lani and your daughters for passing their exams.
I will be sharing this and bookmarked too for future reference. 🙂
My daughter passed the Entrance Exam In Manila Science High School she said the exam is composed of conputation and essay.. almost all of the questions dont have choices. you need to compute for your answers..
On her preparation for the exam I bought a reviewer and she just study at home and answer 10 -20 questions a day before the day of the examinations.. It was hard and exausting as she said because you need to take the exam at 7 am and finished it by 12.. They stayed in the room for almost 5 hrs and just eat snack while doing the exam..
lucky her she passed it and now in Grade 7.
Congratulations! All that hard work paid off naman diba!
May I ask how will I know if my child pass the entrance exam in quezon city science highschool?
Hi Maggie, thanks for visiting my blog. If you are asking about knowing the results of the exam, I am not quite sure if the guidelines this year is still the same as last year. As per last year, there were instructions given to the parents even before the exams were given. I hope you attended the orientation if they scheduled one for the parents. Last year, they sent letters and textmessages to those who passed. They did not release a list of passers unlike previous years.
Thank you for you reply. My son took the exam last jan 25. May I ask what month they will send the mail? Is the QCSHS will inform the school that their students pass the entrance exam?
Hi Maggie, from my experience, they did not inform the school and they did not post a list. Last I know of, they will call the parents and send a mail if your child has passed. I am not sure if that’s the same instructions for the entrance exam takers this year.
Hello, thank you for these tips.
I’m checking out for reviewers coz we wanna take advantage of the lateral exam PSHS is giving out this year for incoming Grace 8 & 9.
🙂
Glad to be of help and goodluck to you and your child!
Hi tweenselmom. May I ask if you have contact info of QC Science HS? Do they have an official website where I can check their Senior HS entrance exam /admission process ? Thanks.
Hi Arlene! thanks for visiting my blog. I am not aware of any official website or facebook page for Quezon City Science High School, only those which were created by alumni members. For any matters about QCSHS, from my experience, we usually go to the school to inquire. Since we don’t have plans of transferring my kids to another school when they go to senior high, I did not acquire any info about this. However, I’ll do my best to ask if ever I’ll be in QueSci anytime soon.
Greatly appreciate your prompt reply! More succes on y informative blog!
Hello. Is there a particular review center that you can recommend? Thank you 🙂