Best way to revise?
HMO
Posts: 42,213 Forum Member
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Exams don't actually kick in until the middle of May but the one I seem to have to prioritise is Science because I have 4 exams to retake (out of the 5 we've done already) and one to do so there's a lot there. The rest, I think there's less pressure. The Year 10 retakes are near the end of May and the others are in June. A P.E exam and an R.E exam in May also.
I have my revision book - how can I get everything memorized quickly so i can then focus on other subjects?
I have my revision book - how can I get everything memorized quickly so i can then focus on other subjects?
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Some prefer to make copious notes, some prefer to read and re-read the study material.
Gcse bitesize?
Preferably using every coloured felt tip at you disposal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5mqbKs1PoI
Putting in the time is important, and regular but short breaks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gk5R9GmIsAs
I personally write out facts, and make flash cards and get people to test me on them.
Some people find this pointless and only revise by reading facts, etc.
http://www.buildyourmemory.com/roman.php
It's largely useless for my subject but for fact remembering it's handy.
Spend at least as much time testing your knowledge as learning it.
By which I mean, a lot of people look at notes and get that nice feeling of familiarity, which makes them think they know the material. It's not until they start the exam and are tested on what they know that they realize which parts they don't actually know. You need to test yourself using flashcards or something similar. A good way is to imagine that you have to give a presentation on the topic and you can't use any notes. There might be 12 subtopics in the topic you're learning about, and each subtopic has 5 associated facts to remember. So you would start by prompting yourself with the subtopic and recalling the 5 facts from memory. Once you've got that, aim to memorize the names of the 12 subtopics without a prompt. In such a way you would be able to recall 60 pieces of information about a single topic.
This is how I passed several exams - my mother listened patiently, bless her. This is how you find out if you understand what you're trying to learn.
I revised by using visual memory tricks. Such as breaking a sub-topic into chunks, which I memorised at my own pace, and associated each chunk with a film, novel or song. For example: Sedimentary rock = Pet Sematary. Remembering this title triggered a recollection of the info chunk associated with sedimentary rock.
Weird, but it worked for me.
With Maths, just practised exercises for days -- exam papers were handy. English, did a lot of reading. I'm very good at remembering dates, figures and vocab, which helped with History and Spanish.
I could never just sit there with a revision book and read.
http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/391823/On-your-marks-for-exam-season
I like words and colours, no symbols or diagrams.
I agree wholeheartedly with all the people who suggested that you pretend to teach it, or lecture the topics to someone else.
Also plan your revision so you make best use of the time available. Keep the plan dynamic - if you are struggling with something, then adjust the plan to suit rather than stick rigidly to it. Make sure you include breaks to get away from it - go see a film, a football match or whatever you fancy.
Try and find what you do and do not need to remember. For maths, you quite often get a formulas book so no need to remember specific formulas - you just need to know how to use them properly.
Good luck!
Plan a lesson on the topic you're revising, ie pretend you need to get the correct and concise info across to someone else. Then stand up in your room, performing the leson to your posters / teddies or whatever.