DIFFERENT WAYS TO REVISE + a few tips

Although I’m relieved to have finally reached that 6-week holiday point (that every student in the UK counts down for from the beginning of the school year) I’m aware of the fact that I’m transitioning to Yr 11, and that revision will be vital for my upcoming GCSE’s next year.

I know that revising can be difficult and tedious at times, but here are DIFFERENT WAYS TO REVISE + a few tips –

CREATING FLASHCARDS

I never used to understand what the big deal was about using these, but in subjects where I’m required to know the definitions of key terms (mainly), the outline of studies or even quotations, I’ve found using flashcards really useful!

Most of my flashcards are for Psychology, as we got forced to make them because there are SO many key terms for each sub-topic, but they’ve helped me to memorise the TEXTBOOK definition – rather than my own made up waffle.

If you don’t have flashcards, you could either make your own or you could use Quizlet, which is a free app that allows you to create your own study sets, or save time and learn from one’s that people have already made.

What I like about Quizlet is that there are so many different ways in which you can learn your flashcards, for example: you can do a test, that has a range of questions such as, multiple choice, true or false, matching pairs and written.

You can also set reminders to revise your study sets, which is helpful if you’ve got quite a few to learn! Click the image above if you’re interested.

 

USING A WHITEBOARD

I love using my whiteboard to quickly brainstorm ideas before I write them up in best. Especially with maths… goodness – it’s nice to erase my many mistakes and ensure that I’m 1000% accurate before I mess up my notebook.

 

CREATING MIND-MAPS/ POSTERS/ BOOKLETS

Mind-maps are great for outlining information in its most basic form, making them easy to revise from. They’re quick and simple to make too, which really saves time!

Posters are a go-to if you’re a visual learner like me – I love hanging them up in my bedroom!

I tend to make booklets for broader topics, for example – for English I made a booklet of all the key quotes/themes of Romeo and Juliet, An Inspector Calls and the poems we’re learning in our anthology. They do take a while to make, but they’ll be worth it for when it comes to your exams!

 

READING

Yes, it’s boring, but it’s always good to just read up on topics every once in a while to freshen up your knowledge.

The revision guide above was given to us by school, but they only give a general outline which isn’t very helpful. They cover many subjects, but for science especially, I’d recommend using the CGP books. They go really in depth, and have helped me a lot in previous trial exams!

If you want to read online, I’d suggest using these websites (if you do these subjects!)

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Bitesize

ENGLISH LITERATURE

Bitesize, No Fear Shakespeare

SCIENCE

Bitesize, Save My Exams

PSYCHOLOGY

Simply Psychology

SOCIOLOGY

Bitesize

HISTORY

Bitesize

WATCHING VIDEOS 

Again, if you’re a visual learner, watching videos can be effective when it comes down to revising – plus you hardly have to do anything.

I don’t think videos alone are necessarily the best form of revision, but combined with some of the other methods should be okay, and hopefully work well for you!

Here are some good websites/ channels that I use! –

MATHS 

Corbett Maths, Maths Genie

ENGLISH LANGUAGE + LITERATURE

Mr Bruff, Mrs Whelan

SCIENCE

Freesciencelessons

A FEW TIPS

MAKE A TIMETABLE- and revise in intervals that are neither too long or short, here’s mine –

DON’T REVISE IN THE SAME PLACE – switch up every now and again, and constantly keep your space fresh to learn in

BRING YOUR DRINK AND SNACKS BEFORE YOU REVISE – procrastination is a huge NO, just think – if it’s already there, you won’t have to get up later 😉

TURN YOUR PHONE ON SILENT- seriously.

KNOW YOUR SPECIFICATIONS OFF BY HEART- how do you expect to do well if you don’t even know what’s required from you?

REVISE WAY BEFORE YOUR EXAM- the chances of a big exam being randomly dropped on you is unlikely (and out of order) so, if you know the dates PLEASE don’t leave it until last minute – it’s so stressful

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