What's the essential piece of advice you'd give to someone starting their A-levels?
Scroll to see replies
Many people say that A-Levels is REALLY REALLY HARD, This will scare you and you might not do so well because of it.My cousin even opted to do FSC. (Pakistan's own board) because of this, AFTER doing O-levels.So he wasted an year.
A-levels aren't going to be as hard as you think they're going to be. Chill out. Take a breather. Don't sweat before you go back to school.
Work just a little bit, and often, and you'll keep up no problem.
Work just a little bit, and often, and you'll keep up no problem.
Start working hard right from the beginning! A-Levels is like a journey and you can't expect to get top grades with just hard work a month before the exams (unless you're naturally really really smart). So, just start working from the start - doesn't have to be intense work just perhaps doing a question every day.
Pick subjects you enjoy, not just subjects you think you're good at.
Do work little and often throughout the year so the work doesn't all build up for the end of the year
During the Christmas and Easter holidays go to somewhere where you know you will concentrate and not get distracted eg the library and bust out some solid hours there getting lots of revision done so you're completely up to date with the work
Leave recent past papers for like a week before your exam
Try and find past papers for your subject dating back to 2002/3/4 and use these old papers throughout the year just to get s general practice with questions then nearer to your exam do the past papers that are currently on the website
Learning mark schemes are important but knowing the content in the textbook is equally important
Read read read examiners reports- this is especially useful if sitting edexcel
For subjects like Maths literally just do questions again and again, don't waste your time writing notes (?) some people in my maths class would write notes summarising how to do certain methods. This is a complete waste of time, you're much better off doing lots of questions to get the hang of technique. I would strongly sdvice doing Solomon past papers as well, as these are harder so prepare you for the worst essentially. Again when doing past papers, do them from like 2002, for maths this will be easy as there's so many out there
Flash cards flash cards flash cards
Go to drop in sessions for your subjects if your school/college offer them at lunch times if you have any questions
Try to max out on your coursework, so if an exam does go badly you've got some insurance to fall back on
Teach your fellow classmates concepts if they're stuck. Teaching something will really drill it into your head and tells you, you understand it
Use your study/free periods wisely. It's very tempting to sit in the common room and tell yourself you'll do the work when you go home, but it's SO much easier to work really hard in your study periods and get lots done, so that when you go home you can relax
If you get the chance, quickly review things you've studied during the week on your weekends
During the Christmas and Easter holidays go to somewhere where you know you will concentrate and not get distracted eg the library and bust out some solid hours there getting lots of revision done so you're completely up to date with the work
Leave recent past papers for like a week before your exam
Try and find past papers for your subject dating back to 2002/3/4 and use these old papers throughout the year just to get s general practice with questions then nearer to your exam do the past papers that are currently on the website
Learning mark schemes are important but knowing the content in the textbook is equally important
Read read read examiners reports- this is especially useful if sitting edexcel
For subjects like Maths literally just do questions again and again, don't waste your time writing notes (?) some people in my maths class would write notes summarising how to do certain methods. This is a complete waste of time, you're much better off doing lots of questions to get the hang of technique. I would strongly sdvice doing Solomon past papers as well, as these are harder so prepare you for the worst essentially. Again when doing past papers, do them from like 2002, for maths this will be easy as there's so many out there
Flash cards flash cards flash cards
Go to drop in sessions for your subjects if your school/college offer them at lunch times if you have any questions
Try to max out on your coursework, so if an exam does go badly you've got some insurance to fall back on
Teach your fellow classmates concepts if they're stuck. Teaching something will really drill it into your head and tells you, you understand it
Use your study/free periods wisely. It's very tempting to sit in the common room and tell yourself you'll do the work when you go home, but it's SO much easier to work really hard in your study periods and get lots done, so that when you go home you can relax
If you get the chance, quickly review things you've studied during the week on your weekends
Have a clear idea of what you want to do as soon as possible so that you can get involved in whatever is necessary in Year 12 and 13. Of course this is not easy and it is perfectly fine to not know, as long as you have an idea by the time you applied. I wasn't firmly set on what I wanted to do until then.
I would also say apply to a summer school - not just to tick boxes on an application but also to get a feel for what uni is actually like.
Oh, and have fun. You only get to be that young once
I would also say apply to a summer school - not just to tick boxes on an application but also to get a feel for what uni is actually like.
Oh, and have fun. You only get to be that young once
I took humanities/social sciences so this may be more relevant for those students:
-Only take subjects you are genuinely interested in, not subjects you happened to do well at during GCSE
-Be prepared to mature significantly in your writing and learning styles, A level is a big jump up from GCSE. I have seen the jump catch people off guard pretty badly
-Complete all set work on time or within a reasonable time period, feedback is absolutely essential for A level exam success
-Listen to and take seriously the feedback given in mock exams, it really does matter at this level
-Embark on study of your subject that isn't included on the mark schemes, especially for humanities subjects. Examiners love nuance points and will reward them. For example, I included quotes from a book on globalisation from a theorist that wasn't on the mark scheme, and got extra marks (Politics)
-Start revising during the Easter holidays, find a revision technique that works for you. Past papers are essential regardless of the subject, and go over the mark schemes as well. In the month leading up to exams, you've really got to be putting at least an hour in every day, and then 4 or 5 at weekends. This is important if you are aiming for the high grades.
-Only take subjects you are genuinely interested in, not subjects you happened to do well at during GCSE
-Be prepared to mature significantly in your writing and learning styles, A level is a big jump up from GCSE. I have seen the jump catch people off guard pretty badly
-Complete all set work on time or within a reasonable time period, feedback is absolutely essential for A level exam success
-Listen to and take seriously the feedback given in mock exams, it really does matter at this level
-Embark on study of your subject that isn't included on the mark schemes, especially for humanities subjects. Examiners love nuance points and will reward them. For example, I included quotes from a book on globalisation from a theorist that wasn't on the mark scheme, and got extra marks (Politics)
-Start revising during the Easter holidays, find a revision technique that works for you. Past papers are essential regardless of the subject, and go over the mark schemes as well. In the month leading up to exams, you've really got to be putting at least an hour in every day, and then 4 or 5 at weekends. This is important if you are aiming for the high grades.
remember to treat yo self
Bv prepared to work harder and give it your all in exchange for a bright future
Posted from TSR Mobile
Posted from TSR Mobile
I cant wait to do my a levels
Don't take A Level Maths without at least an A at GCSE. Do not do Further Maths without an A*. Lastly, Don't do A2 Physics without at least AS Maths.
P.S R.I.P ****ers
Posted from TSR Mobile
P.S R.I.P ****ers
Posted from TSR Mobile
Just because you excelled at GCSE doesn't mean you will at A levels. A levels is a HUGE step up with 3 times the workload set on top from the get go. Don't over do yourself, only take the subjects you need for your chosen career. I made the huge mistake of taking 4 A levels when I needed 3 and that extra free time means A LOT.
As soon as you start A levels and get the work, start making notes. Experiment with different learning techniques to find what is best for you as there is nothing worse than only learning them just before your exams.
Making notes as soon as you get the work means less work closer to exam time and will give you more confidence coming into exam time. They will be easy to revise and go over. I shortened my notes to key points and read over and over until I could recite it.
Make sure you understand the work you are given. It's okay to recite something back but examiners like to pull up questions that require you to think outside the box.
EXAM PAPERS ARE YOUR BEST FRIEND! Practice the **** out of those bad boys and look at the mark scheme, specifications, and even examiner notes. These will help you understand what the examiner likes to see in an answer.
And A levels aren't the end of the world. They are hard work, but not the only option for opportunities
As soon as you start A levels and get the work, start making notes. Experiment with different learning techniques to find what is best for you as there is nothing worse than only learning them just before your exams.
Making notes as soon as you get the work means less work closer to exam time and will give you more confidence coming into exam time. They will be easy to revise and go over. I shortened my notes to key points and read over and over until I could recite it.
Make sure you understand the work you are given. It's okay to recite something back but examiners like to pull up questions that require you to think outside the box.
EXAM PAPERS ARE YOUR BEST FRIEND! Practice the **** out of those bad boys and look at the mark scheme, specifications, and even examiner notes. These will help you understand what the examiner likes to see in an answer.
And A levels aren't the end of the world. They are hard work, but not the only option for opportunities
Original post by She-Ra
Your A-levels are done, you're now officially a little bit older and a little bit wiser 
So what's the essential piece of advice you'd give to someone starting their A-levels?
This is a golden thread. Join in with the discussion before 26 August 2016 to be in with the chance of winning an iPad air 2!
Other golden threads:
So what's the essential piece of advice you'd give to someone starting their A-levels?
This is a golden thread. Join in with the discussion before 26 August 2016 to be in with the chance of winning an iPad air 2!
Other golden threads:
Spoiler
I think the ESSENTIAL piece of advice is to pick subjects you love (not which look good) and don't skip lessons! It's so easy at college to avoid lessons as the teachers don't catch you up on it and it's YOUR job for missing content/homeworks - everytime is builds up and builds up until you reach a point where you feel overwhelmed, especially if you have 4 AS subjects!
Bottom Line - Pick things you love to avoid skipping
GoodLuck!
Original post by JoeyTr
If you want to be good at something you have to put in the time, if you want to be great at something you have to put in a lot of time. It's as simple as that, when it gets to Feburary/March before exams, if you want A*A*A*+ you better be prepared to consistently pull 80-100 hour weeks. If you fancy 3A's+ then probably like 60 hour weeks. All in all: When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
100 hour weeks?Are you being serious?
Original post by JoeyTr
If you want to be good at something you have to put in the time, if you want to be great at something you have to put in a lot of time. It's as simple as that, when it gets to Feburary/March before exams, if you want A*A*A*+ you better be prepared to consistently pull 80-100 hour weeks. If you fancy 3A's+ then probably like 60 hour weeks. All in all: When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
This is ridiculous. I worked 12 hours a week, volunteered for 5 hours (so i had 3 evenings and 1 weekend day for everything else). A week i probably did 20-30 hours of revision and managed A*AA its ridiculous to think anyone needs 60 hours!!!
Posted from TSR Mobile
Make sure you know and understand each section you're learning. Go to extra lessons or spend extra time outside, don't just move on until you can do it all perfectly 90% of the time at least.
I slacked like that on maths. I usually find it pretty simple so I would just attend lessons and work in those. All the sections I went through I would do okay in and would understand my mistakes when checking it and I figured I'll just revise before the exam. I did that and got an overall C while I could've easily gotten an A.
I slacked like that on maths. I usually find it pretty simple so I would just attend lessons and work in those. All the sections I went through I would do okay in and would understand my mistakes when checking it and I figured I'll just revise before the exam. I did that and got an overall C while I could've easily gotten an A.
Don't be a **** and mess around in year 12 or 13. I suppose it's different now because they are standalone qualifications but having a poor year in one of them meant you could salvage yourself only so much unless you did a tonne of resits and even then there is no guarantee you will get what you need. Just be smart about it and know what your actually there for. Unis have to base their decision on whether to make you an offer and something and your first year grades will be a large part of that
Quick Reply
Related discussions
- Art GCSE final piece
- Junior IT role/job
- No portfolio for Uni! Help please?
- Year 11 advice?!
- is epq useful at all?
- graphic design portfolio query
- Digital Marketing Student needing some advice!
- Question about uni applications
- Student finance urgent help
- abrsm or trinity for piano
- Newcastle partners
- worried about a-level choices
- Cambridge MML Application Advice
- I don't know what A- levels to drop/switch
- Need help with starting a essay for uni
- any photography a-level students here?
- Getting into teaching without a degree?
- Applying for composition - some advice
- Biochemistry without maths?
- Can't decide on a 3rd A-Level!
Latest
Trending
Last reply 11 hours ago
Edexcel A Level Politics Paper 1 (9PL0 01) - 21st May 2024 [Exam Chat]A-levels
10
Trending
Last reply 11 hours ago
Edexcel A Level Politics Paper 1 (9PL0 01) - 21st May 2024 [Exam Chat]A-levels
10
