If you do choose to prep for the ERBs, Bright Kids NYC and Aristotle Circle seem to have a monopoly on the market right now. Priced from $300 to $500, you can purchase a “kit” that contains two workbooks, one for the parents and one for the student, and a set of blocks. If you have the resources available, go right ahead and purchase one of these excellent workbooks.

If you choose not to purchase the useful yet overpriced workbooks, it is fairly easy to create similar worksheets (for free). If you have already purchased the workbooks and your child has finished most of the exercises, you can also create new ones (for free). Additionally, after your child has a good handle on some of the exercises and concepts tested on the ERBs, some parents might opt to create exercises that are a bit more difficult. This way, when the child gets into the actual testing room, the exercises will seem like a piece of cake compared to what they have been practicing with. Following the same line of thought, after your child is successfully able to count to 100, counting to 10 starts to seem like child’s play (pun intended).

While the ERB company warns parents about prepping for the test, oddly enough, it also offers parents a glimpse of each section of the test on its website. To view, click here and then on the “Click Here to Download What to Expect on the ECAA” link.

How to Create and Customize Your Own Coding Exercises

Coding Key (Insert your own code: draw a big circle around one animal, draw a horizontal line through one animal, and draw a vertical line through one animal. Don’t be afraid to use a brand new copy of the same worksheet, but make sure to vary the code. Have your child draw a small circle in one animal, draw a plus sign in one animal, and draw a big circle around the third animal. Use your imagination, there are an endless number of possibilities for this exercise.)

Use Microsoft Word to create additional sheets. Click on the “toolbox” and then on the “object palette,” which will provide you with ample shapes to play around with.

Recommendations:

Ask for suggestions from friends who have already gone through the process.

Most parents who have successfully prepped their children for the ERBs are knowledgeable enough to teach a class on the subject. In my experience, those parents are more than willing to share information about how they helped their children to prepare.