The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) made standardized testing mandatory for the majority of America’s public school educated students. Teachers have found creative ways to combat the additional stress.

“Across the nation, educators are trying a variety of methods — including beach days, barbecues, flute music and fun hats — to ease student test anxiety as schools face increased pressure to improve their scores under NCLB,” an article on CNN.com reported.

Gregory J. Cizek, an education professor at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, said relaxation techniques can help take the edge off students’ test anxiety.

“We need to somehow take the stress off the kids, and somehow make those days as normal as possible,” said Brent Swartzmiller, principal of Wayne Trail Elementary School in suburban Toledo, Ohio.

The stress relievers seem to work well with most kids. “The test was hard,” admitted Asia, 11. “But the activities were the fun part.” She participated in the Beach Day at Taylor Elementary School following a rigorous day of tests. The students there also enjoyed a pajama day earlier in the week.

Helping students deal with stress is a normal part of the school counselors responsibilities. But with the increase in standardized testings, school counselors and teachers must work together to find the right mix of activities to help students perform while remaining relaxed.

Share your own ideas for how school counselors and teachers can relieve stress associated with standardized testing. Or, if you need a few ideas, check out Schools try beach days, barbecues, to relieve test stress on CNN.com.