Log-out or temporarily disable social media like Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. The effort of logging in or enabling it will deter you and after a day you’ll start to forget about it- you lose a lot of time to vines and stranger stalking! Also, science proves that our brains have optimum irritation levels - basically we work better if we’re a little too cold, or on a rigid chair. sit to a desk or table- its more formal and re-creates the environment you’ll be tested in. Yet feel free to get down to it in your jammies- you can wear comfy clothes on the day. Some people like to designate one specific study-place, while others enjoy moving between the their room, the coffee shop, the library, and other study-places to break up the monotony. Choose whatever works best for you and your habits. Some studies show that studying information in different places allows you to compartmentalize the information, making it easier to recall at a later date if you can associate the information with the location. Some students find studying in public to be more effective, making it more difficult to watch television or fiddle with other distractions found in the home. Know yourself and head your bad habits off at the pass.
Alternatively if this isn’t your style and your life is more unpredictable, write up a tick list/ to-do list of all the subject areas or units you need to cover. You can do a separate colour or page for each of your subjects and see clearly exactly what you’ve covered or what needs doing. This allows for chunk revision or a variation of topics in one day.
You could revise throughout the year by spending 15 minutes each day making notes you’ll be able to rely upon later. By doing it in short stretches, you will remember more and feel less stressed. A month before your exam, you will have finished all your notes so you can spend a few hours a day reviewing notes and doing timed writing practice. If your exam is a long way off, (although this is probably not the case for 80% of you) after each lesson write up your new notes on a flash card (it only take a couple of minutes!) and keep it with your work. This way you’re consolidating your knowledge and saving time and panic at the end of the year. If you are the 80% of last-minute panickers with 7 exams in 8 days just around the corner - DO NOT PANIC - it is NEVER too late. You’ve already started the journey here, and stressing out is the last thing you need to do. Prioritize the most urgent and important topics on your schedule. For instance, if you have one exam happening on Monday and another on Wednesday, spend more time studying for the Monday exam as it’s happening first.
Also, you could: highlight your notes/book, mind map/summarize the ideas on each page or TEACH what you’ve learned to a friend or family member. The best test of knowledge is if you can teach it-remember: “If you can’t explain it simply- you don’t know it well enough. " (Albert Einstein) By turning your revision into an activity you must participate in, you can liven it up a bit and help your memory work more effectively. Ask open-ended questions of each text or subject you revise by writing questions in the margin, or on a separate sheet of paper. Try to think about the consequences should certain elements of it be changed, or should certain features occur differently. Whether it is science or history, small changes can make big differences and your thinking process is the important part.
Periodically, Try to repeat the process of summary, writing down on a separate sheet of paper what you know about a given topic or subject without consulting your books or your previous notes. Compare your new notes to your old, finding what you’ve left out and what you still need to memorize. [4] X Research source
If no one’s around, pretend you’re on TV or the radio being interviewed about the topic. Ask yourself a series of questions and reply as succinctly and clearly as you can, pretending people are listening and wanting to learn all about it.
Try to stick to your schedule. Make sure to check off topics and subjects as you accomplish revising them. It may even be a good idea to reward yourself with a treat on the completion of a target to help you get there. It is a good motivation to not consider giving up as an option.
Find ways to test each other, playing revision games as challenges. Use flash cards or structure your study sessions like a quiz game. Chat online if you haven’t time to catch up in person. Make sure your revision time with friends is spent actually revising. You may actually be better off revising with classmates you’re not friendly with to make it productive.
You may need emotional support as much as other support and if you can trust in someone to talk to about your anxiety or worries, this can help you to offload many unneeded troubles to a caring listener. Even having someone, you can trust like this available online or by phone is better than no one.
