Revision Guide
[Document subtitle]
Third Year
This guide is here to help you to revise for your exams as effectively as possible. The guide contains a number of golden rules for improvement in exam preparation along with some useful tools that you and your supporting friends and family can make use of in planning for exams. Before you turn the first page just remember…… “Nothing worth having was ever achieved without effort”. “The difference between mediocrity and excellence is often a matter of effort”.
These famous quotes need to echo in your ears for the next few weeks because they make your situation very clear. It doesn’t matter how good a revision strategy might be for you that in itself will not be enough. Success in these exams is ultimately down to your effort and that means a consistent time commitment and other sacrifices.
Don’t be scared of that challenge, embrace it and you’ll get the rewards.
Name:
Tutor Group:
The Golden Rules Start Revision Early We don’t mean before sunrise, we mean that you need to start about 3-4 weeks ahead of the exams. This avoids MASSED LEARNING (known to most of us as cramming).
1. Revise a topic for a maximum of 45 mins (more than this and the ability of the brain to process information is significantly reduced). 2. Have lots of breaks. 3. Test yourself or get someone to test you and note your score/recall capability and what tripped you up. 4. Consider revising the same topic for 20-30 mins the day after to check you remember it.
Ensure a Social Media/Gadget Shut Down This will be tough for some of you but could be the make or break of your success in these exams. 1. Switch off your mobile phone. Incoming calls, texts, tweets and other things that go ‘bing’ or ‘bong’ are just too tempting. 2. Turn off your computer and iPad too, unless you are visiting revision websites that have been recommended by your teachers or using resources you have made in class on your iPad. 3. Try to keep all devices off for the whole time you are working, then when you have a break you can turn them on again.
The Golden Rules
Get help from friends and family
It’s often very useful and reassuring to get your parents, brothers and sisters or friends (study buddies) to be a part of your revision.
Ideas for involving others: 1. Get someone to test you on the topic you’ve just covered. They could ask you the questions you’ve been preparing for or listen while you try and remember the key terms. 2. Be the lecturer. Give a short lecture style presentation to someone. 3. Do a revision session with a study buddy? It can be really motivating to go through your revision journey with another student who is determined to make the most of their revision time like you. You can take notes together, complete past papers, test each other on key terms and play the revision games later in this booklet.
Get organised
The best way to start revision is to spend your first session for each subject getting organised. The next page has some tips to help with everything you need to be an effective and organised learner.
How to be an effective learner 1. Make sure you have a revision list for each subject, your teacher may give you this or you may create one yourself. 2. Make sure that you have all the revision notes, guides, text books and website links you’ll need for each subject. 3. Highlight the topics in each subject that you are less confident in. 4. Sort out your folders, pens, highlighters and plastic wallets and other revision stationery. 5. Organise your revision space. You can’t work effectively in clutter and mess. Spend 5 or 10 minutes each day making sure things are filed and neat in the right places, this will help you find things again when you next come to revise. 6. Stick your revision timetable in a prominent place on or near your revision space.
On the next few pages you’ll find some tools that will really help you to organise and prepare your revision.
Conduct for Internal Examinations These are our School rules for taking Examinations, don’t worry you will soon get used to them. All School Rules, including Dress Regulations, are to be strictly obeyed during the examination period
Acquaint yourself with the dates, times and places of your exams as shown on the timetable
Arrive at your examination room ten minutes before your exam is due to begin. Do not be late!
You must use a black pen / ink for all of your written answers.
Revision notes, private reading, books and any other paperwork are not allowed in the examination room unless authorised. All books and papers must be moved well away from the examination desks before the exam begins.
Mobile phones are NOT allowed in the examination room. Please leave your phone in your locker.
Seating for all examinations will be in alphabetical order.
Check beforehand if you are allowed to use calculators in your exams
You must stay in the examination room until the end of the time allowed for your paper. You will not be allowed to leave the examination room early.
Observe the SILENCE signs throughout the School at all times.
All incidents of malpractice will be reported to the HOY.
Preparing for examinations -In School Subject
English
Maths
RS
Physics
Chemistry
Biology
Geography
History
D and T
Topics to be covered in the exam
What will the structure of the exam paper be like?
Revision that will be covered in lesson time
Preparing for examinations -In School Subject
Italian
Classical Greek
Latin
French
Spanish
German
Art
Topics to be covered in the exam
What will the structure of the exam paper be like?
Revision that will be covered in lesson time
Preparing for examinations –At Home To help you to plan your revision sensibly it is important that you find out about times when you will not be able to revise and think about what subjects you might need to allow more time for than others.
Ask: •
Do you have any commitments in the week before the examinations?
• Do you have any regular commitments in the evenings or at weekends (e.g. music lessons, sports etc.)?
Do you find any subject difficult, that you will have to spend more time on than others?
Revision Strategies
Strategy One – Reading and note making 1. Use highlighters to emphasise key points. 2. Use different coloured pens to make learning more memorable. 3. Use different coloured sheets for each subject. This helps for organisation. 4. Use plastic wallets to keep your sheets together and organised
Strategy Two – Condense your notes onto REVISION FLASH CARDS When you transfer more detailed revision notes to flash cards you are aiming to try and recall all of the knowledge you need for answering exam questions from abbreviated notes such as key terms, dates questions or equations. Flash cards are good for testing yourself on key terms or processes too. You can put the answers or diagrams on the back so that you can check you are on track.
Strategy Three – Add some ART to make things vivid Adding your own pictures to some of your notes can be really helpful for knowledge recall. We are not talking awesome art, stick men will do! An image is often easier to remember than text.
Revision Strategies Strategy Four: Voice Recordings Can Help For some making a voice recording of your revision notes can really help to embed the knowledge in your long-term memory. This method saves you having to read the information again and again and instead you hear it. You can use your iPad or your phone. You can then plug in your earphones and listen to your revision at any suitable time.
Strategy Five – The Revision Dice Game This one is for the final stages of your revision journey. When you’ve made revision sheets and flash cards, try something different and play a game. Rules First choose which subject and topic you are playing with… Then if you throw a 1. Write down 5 key terms associated with the topic. 2. Draw a picture of a key process, theory or event to do with topic and label it accordingly. 3. Write a description or definition of the topic or a key term within it. 4. Invent an appropriate question about the topic which may be asked in the exam, write it down and answer it. 5. Do 2 minutes of flash card revision on the area that you find most difficult to remember. 6. Give a 2 minute mini-lecture on a key aspect of the topic.
Revision Timetables Making a revision timetable can be useful to plan your time. Use the template later in this booklet or use your own if you prefer. Remember: 1. It is important that you have regular breaks in your revision. 2. REWARD YOURSELF. Make sure you have lots of things to look forward to during your revision programme. 3. Be Realistic – it is unlikely that you will be able to revise for long periods of time. Set yourself realistic targets. 4. You will concentrate better and learn more effectively if you are in a quiet comfortable environment. Think about where you are going to revise. 5. Rotate your sessions between your ‘best’ subjects and your least favourite subjects. 6. In each subject, make a list of those topics you don’t know quite so well and revise those first.
Mon 16 May
Tues 17 May
Wed 18 May
Thurs 19 May
Fri 20 May
Group Base Assembly
Group Base No Assembly
Group Base
Group Base No Assembly
Group Base
Evening
Evening
Evening
Evening
Evening
Sat 21 May
Sun 22 May
Morning
Morning
Afternoon
Afternoon
Evening
Evening
Mon 23 May
Tues 24 May
Wed 25 May
Thurs 26 May
Fri 27 May
Group Base No Assembly
Group Base No Assembly
Group Base
Monday morning style assembly
Group Base
Evening
Evening
Evening
Evening
Evening
Sat 28 May
Sun 29 May
Morning
Morning
Afternoon
Afternoon
Evening
Evening
Half Term Mon 30 May
Tues 31 May
Wed 1 June
Thurs 2 June
Fri 3 June
Morning
Morning
Morning
Morning
Morning
Afternoon
Afternoon
Afternoon
Afternoon
Afternoon
Sat 4 June
Sun 5 June
Morning
Morning
Afternoon
Afternoon
Evening
Evening
Mon 6 June
Tues 7 June
Wed 8 June
Thurs 9 June
Fri 10 June
Group base No Assembly
Group base No Assembly
Group base
Group base No Assembly
Group base
Evening
Evening
Evening
Evening
Evening Exams are over – Enjoy an evening off!
3rd Year Summer 2016 Internal Examinations Timetable MATHEMATICS 1
(A)
9.15 – 10.45
Mon 6 Jun
11.15 – 12.45 Revision (30mins)
154
3A-1 21 3B-1 26 CWP H12 PJR H3
41
3-GE* 21 3D/GE1 10 3D/GE2 10 MGK H7 RLE H8 SLA H10
GERMAN R&W Paper (60 mins) 11.15 – 12.45
NON GERMAN Supervised Study
113
ENGLISH 2.15 – 3.45
Unseen Poetry & Descriptive Writing
154
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 154
(A)
9.15 – 10.45
Tue 7 Jun
11.15 – 12.45 Revision (30mins)
Religion & Citizenship
ITALIAN 7
R&W Paper (60 mins)
3-3 21 RSC H5
M3
M8
3/1
3/2
3/6 + 3/7
3-4 22 AAG H6
3-5 21 AJS H7
3-6 22 RSC H8
3/IL SRP SPORTS HALL
9.15 – 10.45
HISTORY
154
3-1 21 NJD H2
3-2 23 KPC H3
3-3 21 RKP H5
3-4 22 JMB H6
3-5 21 SB H7
3-6 22 NJD H8
121
3-1 FR 21 SJBA H2
3C 19 RLE H3
3D 16 MGK H5
3*1 EFB EFB H6
3*2 21 SJBA H7
3*3 23 JVJ H8
33
3/2 + 3/3 + 3/5
R&W Paper (60 mins) 11.15 – 12.45
NON FRENCH Supervised Study
3-7 24 SE H10
SPORTS HALL – please assemble in the Sports Hall foyer by 9.05am.
154
11.15 – 12.45 Revision (30mins)
3B-3 20 IR H10
M2
BIOLOGY
3-1
3-2
3-3
3-4
3-5
3-1 21 3-2 23 3-3 21 3-4 22 LSDM H2 MPM H3 JMBW H5 LCB H6
L3
3-6
3-7
3-5 21 3-6 22 3-7 24 STA H7 LSDM H8 MPM H10 3-7 24 KPC H10
L4
3/5 + 3/6 + 3/7
2.15 – 3.45
CHEMISTRY
154
3-1 21 ELT H2
3-2 23 SDG H3
3-3 21 CLCK H5
3-4 22 JD H6
3-5 21 EP H7
3-6 22 VAG H8
3-7 24 EP H10
9.15 – 10.45
MATHEMATICS 2
154
3A-1 21 CWP H2
3B-1 26 PJR H3
3A-2 25 RDJ H5
3B-2 23 GSW H6
3A-3 19 IR H7
3B-2* 20 JAT H8
3B-3 20 IR H10
11.15 – 12.45
LATIN GREEK
37 1
3/LA 17 3-3 LA 20 3-3/GK 1 JMM H7 CEG H8 JCH H10
NON LATIN/GREEK
116
3/1 + 3/5 names A-B
11.15 – 12.45
Supervised Study
2.15 – 3.45
PHYSICS
154
3-1 21 HD H2
9.15 – 10.45
D&T
96
3A-DT 15 HS H2
9.15 – 10.45
NON D&T
58
Supervised Study
SPANISH 11.15 – 12.45 Revision (30mins)
125
R&W Paper (60 mins) 11.15 – 12.45
NON SPANISH Supervised Study
2.15 – 3.45
GEOGRAPHY
L1
L3
3-2 23 JMF H3
3-3 21 RSS H5
3-4 22 JAAS H6
3-DT1 17 3B-DT1 17 3-DT2 15 SHB H3 AMLS H5 HS H6
3/6 + 3/5 names E-H
3/7 + 3/5 names I-Z
L4
M3
3-5 21 PEB H7
3-6 22 MM H8
3-7 24 LJH H10
3B-DT2 15 3 DT3 17 HS H7 AMLS H8
3/1 + 3/4
3/2 + 3/3 + 3/5
3/6 + 3/7
CL3
CL5
CL7
3-2 SP 23 3C/SP 24 GSPL H12 ML H10
29 154
3/4 + 3/5 names C-D
3/2
E9
(A)
Fri 10 Jun
3-1 21 3-2 23 RMG H2 AAG H3
3B-2* 20 JAT H8
2.15 – 3.45
(A)
Thu 9 Jun
M7 3/5+ 3/3 names M-Z
3A-3 19 IR H7
147
FRENCH
Wed 8 Jun
M6 3/4 + 3/3 names A-L
3B-2 23 GSW H6
GAMES
11.15 – 12.45
(A)
3A-2 25 RDJ H5
3-1 21 DMB H2
3D/SP 10 SRP H5
3*1 25 ML H6
3*2 24 SRP H7
3*3 19 GSPL H8
3/3 +3/4
3/6 + 3/7
M5
M7
3-2 23 GPH H3
3-3 21 LJG H5
3-4 22 3-5 21 BMW H6 DMB H7
3-6 22 LJG H8
3-7 24 GPH H10
Good Luck
For more information, ideas and guidance please visit the study skills page of the school website.