Questions to ask yourself before revising. Where should I work?

What equipment do I need?

How long do I revise for?

What should I do when I revise?

Revision Environment A room or area you can work undisturbed and

possibly leave work between sessions

Good lighting, adequate ventilation and an even temperature (too warm can make you sleepy!)

Desk and chair that are comfortable

Background music – only non-lyrical or classical music and only if it doesn’t distract you! You can use your favourite music as a reward between sessions.

Equipment

School books and text books Pens and paper Revision cards (paper cut into quarters) Highlighters Folders to organise revision notes Blue tack – for putting up diagrams, tables,

charts

Food, drink and Exercise - Other tips to help Improve your revision.

Do some exercise to work off tension, improve blood circulation and give your mind a break!

Drink plenty of water! It is needed for the proper functioning of the electrical impulses in your brain. Drink a glass for every 10 kilos of your weight per day!

Avoid high sugar foods, fizzy drinks, tea and coffee whilst revising, these will stop you learning so well!

Brain Gym and Stress Relief

Wake up both sides of your brain by juggling for a few minutes!

Switch off stress or exam panic by massaging the front of your head – this increases blood flow at the front of your brain where your thinking is taking place.

How Long To Revise for?

Research shows that your attention span for revising is about 30-40 minutes at a time, with a break of at least 15-20 minutes doing something else.

Do not do more than 2 sessions back-to-back i.e. with only a short break in between.

What to do when revising

Make sure your revision is ACTIVE!

Manipulate the material as you are reading it through.

Use some of the study techniques suggested when you discovered your dominant learning style.

A Revision timetable

Before doing any revision it is worth making sure you have completed all class work/homeworks – you can’t revise properly from incomplete notes!

Create a revision Timetable:- In order to make sure you cover all the

information work out how many subjects you have exams in and how long you have to revise for each one!

Working in 30-40minute sessions spread your revision slots across the revision period (3 weeks including next week and Easter holidays).

My Revision TimetableMonday Tuesday Wednesday

Wk 1 2 subjects (30-40 mins each)

ENGLISH

MATHS

Forgetting and Re-capping

The following day spend 5 minutes for every session the day before skimming over the revision notes you made – if you don’t do this the information you worked hard to commit to memory will decay through not being used.

However, by investing just a little bit of time reminding yourself your brain trace gets refreshed and reinforced, meaning you will forget less, meaning your initial efforts won’t be wasted!

My Revision Timetable

Monday Tuesday

Wk 1 2 subjects (30-40 mins each)

ENGLISH

MATHS

2 subjects (30-40 mins each)

FRENCH

GEOGRAPHY

5min recaps of each of yesterdays topics

ENG, MATH

How to use your Timetable

Stick to it! if you do you will find you gain in confidence as you realise you know more and your motivation will improve.

Cross off sessions completed – this visually reminds you how much you have done.

Give yourself rewards – what works for you- chocolate, sweets a magazine, a short session playing your favourite game.

Re-cap 1. Make sure all notes are up to date 2. Make a revision Timetable 3. Get the right equipment! 4. Create a good study environment 5. Find some active revision strategies that suit you 6. Stick to the Timetable 7. Test yourself! 8. Talk to other people about what you’ve learnt. 9. Exercise your body 10. Drink plenty of water, have a good diet and get a

good night’s sleep! Give yourself rewards for achieving your revision

goals!