We already are into the spring standardized testing period for the ACT and SAT. As both parents and students know, this can be a stressful time for everyone, and homeschoolers may face some challenges unique to their non-traditional academic experience.

I asked Beth Buchanan, director of Cedarcreek Schoolhouse Academy, for her thoughts about homeschooling and standardized test-taking. Beth points out that homeschoolers may not have opportunities to prepare for standardized tests, unlike students in traditional school where practice sessions may be offered during certain classes or outside the regular school day. She adds that homeschoolers often are not used to working within the strict time limits of standardized tests, and they may not have much experience with the structure and formats they follow.

Even testing with a large group may be somewhat unsettling for homeschoolers, since they usually work alone or in small groups. And even if they don't apply to college, some homeschoolers will have to take one of the standardized tests to meet the graduation requirements of their homeschool organization.

Colleges generally don't make a distinction between homeschoolers and traditional school students related to required test scores for admission. However, we've learned from the homeschool community that many colleges seem to evaluate the scores more closely since they provide a nationally standardized assessment of college readiness and validate the homeschooled student's high school academic preparation.

For all these reasons, it's important for homeschooled students to familiarize themselves with the content covered and the type of questions asked on all the standardized tests they will be taking. Then take the next step -- practice, practice, practice.

Taking practice tests will help in two ways. First, as research has shown, just being familiar with the test format is beneficial and can save precious time when you're racing the clock. Second, you can use your practice test results to determine where you need to review and fill in knowledge gaps. Test prep books also provide some great information on the effect of guessing and other inside tips.

Our experience at Learning Lab with one-on-one tutoring and small-group preparation sessions for these tests has reinforced the common advice that targeted review and test practice can help students feel comfortable in the standardized test setting and do their best. So, don't just fret, get ready. On test day, you'll be very glad you did.

Contact Pat Elkins at pelkins@mylearnlab.com or 615-377-2929.