Making the most of the mocks
Emma Hills provides us with top tips and tricks on how to ace and maybe even enjoy revision.
Revising can be a really hard thing to do, especially if you keep putting it off and telling yourself you have loads of time. I personally struggle to stay focused and I know that lots of other people do too. Different revision methods will work for different people so hopefully there is something here for you.
Highlighting is often argued to be ineffective but everybody, including me, loves to do it. It seems productive to highlight what you don’t know but it is what you do with that that counts the most. Instead of doing the highlighting and then leaving it, find effective ways to study that information such as getting someone to test you on it or use ‘look, cover, write and check’. Highlighting has a thumbs up from me as long as you aren’t just trying to brighten up your work (although this is always a bonus)!
Flashcards are another personal favourite; I find them simple yet so effective! Flashcards aren’t everyone’s cup of tea but they are handy, compact, concise and offer you the chance to test yourself. I also love putting them into piles depending upon what I know and what I don’t know, mainly for the satisfaction of it, and making sure that I learn what I really need to learn. As well as good old fashioned paper flashcards, you can now get them on devices using flashcard apps such as Quizlet which show you your progress and save the trees. It’s a win-win situation.
BBC Bitesize! They always have the information that you need and they have videos, activities and quizzes - very useful! It is such an easy way of revising because you can specify what you need and they will more often than not have it. The videos are usually pretty enjoyable too. The quiz is a sign of progress and success that highlights the areas that you don’t know so that you can fill in the gaps before completing the quiz again a few days later. Don't stop til you get 100%!
YouTube is used by 122 million people daily but typically to watch our favourite channels on our sofas; YouTube can be used for revising too. There are 100+ studying channels that can help us out. If you're stuck on something - anything - the chances are someone will have made a video explaining it for you. I have watched many for school and think they are really helpful.
Online or in-person tutoring can be an expensive option but undoubtedly it’s one of the best. Having that extra support and guidance can be really useful to some people and you have more time to ask questions as it isn’t like a class where there is only one teacher and 30 other people wanting to ask questions. I haven’t ever had a tutor (unless you can count my Mum!) but I know other people who have received tutoring and found it incredibly beneficial to their learning experience.
Studying with others and testing each other is another solution to revision struggles. You can find people, whether that’s friends or family, or test you. Being tested is a good way for to learn because you are putting yourself in that test environment so it is almost like a warm-up to the actual test. It's a great way to revise vocabulary. Overall, being tested by others is a wonderful technique but independently revising is also important.
Don't forget that the most important direction will come from your subject teachers - who will be able to point you to revision materials on Firefly or Google Classroom, as well as other useful providers like Hegarty and Seneca.
There are hundreds of other ways to revise such as posters or sticky notes . Remember to take a break as it is important to give your brain a chance to focus and process all that information going in.
Good luck and happy revising!
Emma Hills, Y10
Revising can be a really hard thing to do, especially if you keep putting it off and telling yourself you have loads of time. I personally struggle to stay focused and I know that lots of other people do too. Different revision methods will work for different people so hopefully there is something here for you.
Highlighting is often argued to be ineffective but everybody, including me, loves to do it. It seems productive to highlight what you don’t know but it is what you do with that that counts the most. Instead of doing the highlighting and then leaving it, find effective ways to study that information such as getting someone to test you on it or use ‘look, cover, write and check’. Highlighting has a thumbs up from me as long as you aren’t just trying to brighten up your work (although this is always a bonus)!
Flashcards are another personal favourite; I find them simple yet so effective! Flashcards aren’t everyone’s cup of tea but they are handy, compact, concise and offer you the chance to test yourself. I also love putting them into piles depending upon what I know and what I don’t know, mainly for the satisfaction of it, and making sure that I learn what I really need to learn. As well as good old fashioned paper flashcards, you can now get them on devices using flashcard apps such as Quizlet which show you your progress and save the trees. It’s a win-win situation.
BBC Bitesize! They always have the information that you need and they have videos, activities and quizzes - very useful! It is such an easy way of revising because you can specify what you need and they will more often than not have it. The videos are usually pretty enjoyable too. The quiz is a sign of progress and success that highlights the areas that you don’t know so that you can fill in the gaps before completing the quiz again a few days later. Don't stop til you get 100%!
YouTube is used by 122 million people daily but typically to watch our favourite channels on our sofas; YouTube can be used for revising too. There are 100+ studying channels that can help us out. If you're stuck on something - anything - the chances are someone will have made a video explaining it for you. I have watched many for school and think they are really helpful.
Online or in-person tutoring can be an expensive option but undoubtedly it’s one of the best. Having that extra support and guidance can be really useful to some people and you have more time to ask questions as it isn’t like a class where there is only one teacher and 30 other people wanting to ask questions. I haven’t ever had a tutor (unless you can count my Mum!) but I know other people who have received tutoring and found it incredibly beneficial to their learning experience.
Studying with others and testing each other is another solution to revision struggles. You can find people, whether that’s friends or family, or test you. Being tested is a good way for to learn because you are putting yourself in that test environment so it is almost like a warm-up to the actual test. It's a great way to revise vocabulary. Overall, being tested by others is a wonderful technique but independently revising is also important.
Don't forget that the most important direction will come from your subject teachers - who will be able to point you to revision materials on Firefly or Google Classroom, as well as other useful providers like Hegarty and Seneca.
There are hundreds of other ways to revise such as posters or sticky notes . Remember to take a break as it is important to give your brain a chance to focus and process all that information going in.
Good luck and happy revising!
Emma Hills, Y10