Over the next few minutes, I’m going to speak briefly about how you can best prepare yourself for exams – namely…

I intend to explain why revision is vital for you at your current stage of school and plan to offer you practical suggestions about how best to go about preparing for exams.

Without doubt, exams are among the most difficult things which you will face in Grosvenor– WHY?

There’s loads of them! Taking 1 or even 2 papers in each of 3, 4 or even 5 subjects is very hard.

There’s lots of pressure to them! Often, you will be asked to tackle perhaps 2 or even 3 exams in one day – that’s really hard to do.

They’re harder than work I did in Forms 1-5 – especially if left to the last minute!

Having ABILITY and INTELLIGENCE

Working STEADILY and CONSISTENTLY

Learning from

MISTAKES

CARING enough about YOUR MARKS

Taking ADVANTAGES of opportunities

for EASY MARKS

The KEY THINGS that

lead to EXAM

SUCCESS

1. Make your own revision notes.

You’ll learn as you write and, once you’ve

got them finished, you’re halfway there!

2. Be sure!Be certain that you know exactly what you need to

revise.3. Concentrate on the

positives.Revise by thinking that each

time you do it, you are making the exam easier.

5. Don’t overdo it.Concentration goes after a

short period of time, so make sure that you take regular

breaks.

4. Try new

things.Experiment

with new ways of learning: variety beats

boredom!

7. Focus Avoid making pointless

notes. Look at past exam papers and see how

questions could be asked.6. Be confident.Think positively about exams and you will take in more information.

One of the key skills you need to master in exam periods is time management – or how to use your time best!

One way of organising this is by use of a revision

timetable – and these can be effective for some people.

However, they can be unrealistic until you get

them right.

Nevertheless, you need to plan revision well in advance.

Another of the key skills you need to master in exam periods is concentration – or how to use your head

best!FIND YOUR

BEST TIME

OF DAY!Do tasks that need

most concentration

at times when you

are mentally and

physically fresh. If

you are tired and

hungry, your ability

to concentrate will

be reduced!

REMOVE DISTRACTIONS!Noise, uncomfortable surroundings and interruptions from other

people all affect your ability to concentrate. Find a quiet, comfortable place to study, away from people, the computer and the TV. Keep

this space as uncluttered as possible.

SET A GOAL!Decide on a goal for each revision session. Try to achieve this by the end of the time. Keep breaking revision down into smaller pieces and reward yourself when you do exactly what you planned.

BREAK TIMETake short breaks, get up and

walk around. When we move,

blood is pumped around the

body and more oxygen is

sent to the brain.

One way to avoid distraction when revising involves your MP4 player – but music does not help everybody!

Nevertheless, your MP4 can be useful when revising. Look on iTunes for podcasts to help you with subjects that you might find harder – most are free!

If you’re really keen, try iTunesU or www.gcsepod.co.uk – these are great for stuff on exam preparation.

Here’s a few other things which help to improve your concentration...

CHANGING THE SUBJECT

It’s better not to concentrate on the same

subject for too long. You will absorb more

information if you change subject or topic

every one or two hours.

REWARD YOURSELF

Give yourself an incentive when revising. By having something to look forward to when you finish your work, you are more likely to get stuck in and learn more!

LOOK AT PAST QUESTIONS!A way of getting away from reading notes and textbooks is to look at past questions – work through and test yourself on what you know. Seek answers to gaps in your understanding.

Don’t think that revision is something that always has to take ages – you can sometimes use very short periods of time for revision.

5 or 10 minutes may be enough to remind yourself of a part of a course.

Short periods are useful for revising word lists, dates or formulae – use revision cards here and you can look at them on the bus.

For some people, 3 or 4 short sessions like this might be more useful than one big block.

You’re not on your own with revision – Grosvenor can help in lots of ways.

Ask your teachers for help ASAP if you require some help – don’t be shy or leave it too late!

Look for revision tips and materials on the C2K network – they’re free for everyone to use. Go to:

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