Revision and exams can be a stressful time - good planning and preparation can help make things a bit easier....there is some helpful advice and tips on this page which you may want to try!

Planning

Work out how long you have left before the exam and plan how to use your time. Make a wall planner, put in the dates/ times of your exams in a distinctive colour and blank out times when you know that revision will not be possible, e.g. holidays and field trips in another colour. Try to plan revision down to subject and, if possible, topic level.

Preparation

Try to find out the structure of the exams of each subject. It would be helpful to find out how many exam papers there are for each subject, how many questions need to be answered and the required format of the answers (multiple choice, essay etc). How long is each paper? What percentage of the overall mark does each paper carry? Make notes to remind you of these facts for nearer the exams.

Practice using past papers

Using past papers will help you to become familiar with planning your time in exams, attempting all questions that need to be answered and allowing time for checking afterwards; planning answers, notes, and testing your memory for key points whilst you can still refer to notes.

Prioritise what needs to be revised

Prioritising allows you to spend more time revising areas that are unclear and confusing rather than spending too much time on areas that are well known or familiar. Prioritising also allows you to mix subjects and ensures that you don't revise any one subject for too long at a time.

Establish a place to study

Find a place where you can study without distraction for approximately one hour at a time. Some people prefer to study different subjects in different places whilst others prefer to study all subjects in one particular area only. Don't forget to remind other family members that you are revising. Concentration spans are limited so don't forget to plan a timed break, and stick to your plan even if there are more interesting things happening on television!

Organise your course work

Check that all of your course work is up to date and put the work into topic areas for each subject. Make revision notes based on your course work and use coloured highlighters to emphasise important facts or key notes. Making revision notes on index cards can be helpful; these can help you to be concise when making notes. They are also very portable and you can keep them in your pocket - but don't take them into the exam with you!

Tips for Exam Success

Before starting re-read the front page of the exam paper (the rubric) checking the number of questions you have to answer.

Divide your time between the questions according to the number of marks. Keep checking the clock. You must do justice to each question in order to do your best. If you don't answer all the questions you should, you will lose a lot of marks.

Read the questions twice to make sure you answer what is set rather than what you think has been set. Under pressure it is very easy to misread a question, or to read only part of it. Underline the key words in the question.

Plan - for essays jot down a brief plan using key words. Planning lets you answer the question that has been set, gives you confidence and helps you to think.

Answer your best questions first, but keep an eye on the clock.

Don't waste time writing all you know on a topic in the exam - the examiner wants to know if you understand and can discuss a subject.

Check - when you finish check the questions and your answers! You may not feel like doing this but it is vital.

Make corrections and additions clearly.

No time left - if you are running out of time, answer in note form the question(s) you have not done.