Helpful revision tips

Easter holidays have now come to an end, and hundreds of thousands of students across the country have upcoming exams. You only have to look at your school, college or university library to see that people study in different ways. Here are our top tips for productive revision.

People avoid studying because they think they have to sit there for hours on end. Wrong- when studying just tell yourself you’re going to study for 30 minutes. Put the timer on, work to your fullest in that amount of time and then take a 5-minute break. You will then feel more in the zone to keep revising. Put the phone out of reach, you don’t want to get caught up and be on it for hours on end.

Past papers are so handy because you can both practise for exam relevant questions and time yourself in preparation for your exam. You can then mark yourself and go back on the questions you got wrong to learn these. If you do 3-4 exam papers chances are that some of the questions that come up on the day will look familiar.

ask those around you to test you and give you feedback. Hand the book over to someone so they can question you and take note of any questions you didn’t answer as well as others. You can’t teach something and answer questions about it unless you know it inside and out. So, when you feel like you have learnt all you can, relay it all to someone and see if they understand.

The most important thing is taking the time to look after yourself. The more stressed you are, the less productive you will be when revising. Revising is important, but so is taking time for yourself. Go out for a meal with your friends, exercise or take a walk. It’s important to feel comfortable where you are with your revision without overdoing it so you can thoroughly enjoy your me time.

Start your revision early each day as your brain will be ready to work and it makes it easier. Not starting until the afternoon means you’re likely to be up later and trying to revise whilst tired. Starting and finishing roughly at the same time each day will keep you in a healthy routine.

Top tip! never revise too late the night before an exam, instead, have a good night sleep and get up earlier the next morning to go over summaries. This will be fresh in your mind ready for the exam.

There are various methods and revision techniques including flashcards, summaries, mind maps, group work and much more. However, not everyone will find each other’s revision technique effective and there is an element of trial and error in finding what works for you. Also, have in mind that what works well for one exam may not work the same way for another. This is all more reason to start early, as you need to take time to find out how you revise best

Whilst revising it can be easy to end up drinking excessive amounts of coffee and energy drinks and then binging on junk food. Eating a healthy, balanced meal will leave you feeling more energetic and focused. Going for the quick option instead of spending time cooking proper meals will not be beneficial in the long run.

As said before, this is especially important the night before your exam. But don’t think this doesn’t matter the entire of your revision period. It means that you can get a reasonable time to sleep and you will wake up earlier and be able to fit in more revision during the day time.

One of the most useful things to remember throughout the revision process is to stay calm and positive. If you have a bad day revising, don’t let it affect how you revise the next day.

The key is to work out how you revise most effectively and stick to it as best as you can. Ultimately, you will get out what you put in!