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Allow Extra Time

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Study Skills & Tools All Ages Strategy

Skills

Anxiety Fine Motor Skills Working Memory Attention Processing Speed Visual Motor Speed

Allow Extra Time

If your student often struggles to complete assignments or tests in the allotted time

Instruction And Practice

  1. Objective: Students will be able to show their full knowledge and boost their self-confidence when they are allowed extra time on assignments or tests.
  2. Teacher Takeaways: a) Build in extra time or plan for an alternative time (e.g. study hall) for students to finish, so they can take the time they need without feeling rushed or giving up. b) Students might not end up using the extra time, but the comfort of knowing they have all the time they need can reduce stress and enable them to work more efficiently. c) As you budget extra time, have work prepared for students who finish early. This lessens the chance they will be disruptive and make your slower workers feel rushed.
  3. Considerations: Use this strategy when you want to see a student's best work or get a complete picture of what they know, not necessarily for every assignment or test. An alternative is to shorten the assignment for the student, rather than giving more time (e.g. fewer problems or give a shorter text to read for some students.)

Why It Works (the Science Of Learning)!

Some students work at a slower pace, whether or not they have an IEP. If the goal is to see a student's best work, extra time might provide a more complete picture of a student's grasp of the information and alleviate the stress of time limits.