Here is a list of 10 Do's that you should stick
to when you revise. It doesn't work for everyone, but in general I think you
should stick to these guidelines.
1. Make a revision
timetable
These are always extremely helpful
to make you stick to your timetable and actually do your revision. So many
people tend to procrastinate and end up doing nothing at all during the day, so
making a good timetable is key. Try and make it as realistic as possible. Making
a timetable that makes you do 10 hours of work a day is not realistic, and is
damaging to your motivation. Try to give yourself breaks in between sessions. One or two hours per day will improve your grades significantly
2. Give yourself motivational breaks or treats
The worst part about revision is
getting yourself motivated. Once you actually start some revision, it isn't too
bad, but it's the initial stage that people get stuck on. It's kinda like the
pre-nerves before an exam, or before a speech or a performance. Once you
actually start the exam or begin the performance, your nerves die down. With
revision, the tricky bit is to get yourself started, and once you're in the
mood and in the zone, you should be free to go.
Either give yourself a break, or a treat. For example, make yourself do 1 hour of revision, then a 15 minute break. Or give yourself some sweets. Just that extra injection of energy!
Either give yourself a break, or a treat. For example, make yourself do 1 hour of revision, then a 15 minute break. Or give yourself some sweets. Just that extra injection of energy!
3. Put on some music
Some people may say music distracts you from your
work, but I find that it keeps you entertained and free from boredom, so it
prevents you procrastinating. Just put your music on a nice playlist, and let
it run in the background - nothing too loud or disruptive, but just so that it
puts you in the mood for work.
4. Make your own revision notes
4. Make your own revision notes
This is strongly recommended. By making your own notes, you
are at the same time learning them, finding out what you know and don't know,
as well as putting everything you know in order and brainstorming them. I'd say
that making your own notes is the single most important part of revision and
actually getting to know the content.
5. Highlight and annotate your notes
Making
things stand out is key to learning from your notes. Try using different
coloured highlighters, and annotating on the margin. Experiment and work out
what is best for you. I find that highlighting in different colours make things
stand out.
6. Regular exercise
Scientists say that regular exercise is important for your concentration and I'm not going to argue with them. Rather than just staying in your room and trying to do 10 hours of revision a day, go outside and go for a run or play football with your friends. Although you should be working hard for your exams, you should equally reward yourself with something you like doing, like playing football, or another hobby. Something physical. This will make your mind sharper and allow you to focus on your work when you have to.
7. Drink lots of water/fluids
Scientists say that regular exercise is important for your concentration and I'm not going to argue with them. Rather than just staying in your room and trying to do 10 hours of revision a day, go outside and go for a run or play football with your friends. Although you should be working hard for your exams, you should equally reward yourself with something you like doing, like playing football, or another hobby. Something physical. This will make your mind sharper and allow you to focus on your work when you have to.
7. Drink lots of water/fluids
This also helps with your concentration. An easy
way to know whether your hydrated enough is to look at the colour of your
urine. It should be a very pale yellow, and not a strong yellow!
8. Try and work in the mornings and relax in the
evenings
It depends on the person, but usually people work better in the mornings and less so in the evenings. Depending on what suits you most, make your revision timetable accordingly. If your a morning person, make sure you do majority of your work in the morning and afternoon, and give yourself a treat in the evening! If your an evening person, do the opposite, although I would recommend the former. Getting up early, doing your work, and then relaxing in the evening is a perfect combination of working as well as giving you a treat in the evening. Perfect for motivation.
It depends on the person, but usually people work better in the mornings and less so in the evenings. Depending on what suits you most, make your revision timetable accordingly. If your a morning person, make sure you do majority of your work in the morning and afternoon, and give yourself a treat in the evening! If your an evening person, do the opposite, although I would recommend the former. Getting up early, doing your work, and then relaxing in the evening is a perfect combination of working as well as giving you a treat in the evening. Perfect for motivation.
9. Go through lots of past papers
Getting a rhythm of what the exam board's papers
are like is your responsibility. Your teachers should help you out with this and
supply you with plenty of past papers. If they don't give them to you, ask. You
should find that although the exam board changes the paper every year, the
syllabus does not change, and so the questions they can ask you are very
limited. Every year, there are questions that are asked over and over again, or
are tweaked very slightly. It is in your interest to learn the answers to those
questions. Make sure you look at the markscheme and see where the marks are
awarded. Exam technique is key.
You can compile a sheet of questions and answers
that you want to memorise. Make sure you go through the past papers after
having made your notes and learning them. There is no point simply doing past
papers before you have started your revision. This is a waste of a past paper,
and if there are a limited number of past papers available, this is the last
thing you want to be doing. As you come nearer your exam, you want to be doing
those past papers to get a feel for the exam and asking your teacher any
questions which you are struggling with!
10. Make flashcards
If there are things you keep forgetting time after
time and you just can't remember it, make a flashcard. Hole-punch all your
flashcards and attach them all together using a treasury tag (or a piece of
string). These things are so small that you can carry them around with you
everywhere you go. It's so easy to learn things on a flashcard, because it's a
small piece of card. There's only one information you need to take in when you
read a single flashcard, rather than a whole page of A4. It's much more
satisfying to read, and you will have learnt that annoying fact in no time!
Cool, A+ for me
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