A and A* students... Share your revision tips

I actually work better in longer sessions, but try shorter bursts of 1hr, with 10 min breaks.. and dont watch tv as a break, as its really hard to leave something halfway.. have a snack or talk to/call people instead.

Clearly reading over stuff isnt helping.. so try rewriting notes but in your own words.. without looking at the originals, and then compare with the originals. Add in anything you missed out, and focus on these missed out bits.

Also, you said you have done past papers, but do you also mark them? I would suggest you do a paper without printing off the mark scheme first, then mark it and ask someone if you had no idea how to do a question. Once youve done a couple of papers per module, you should notice which topics/types of questions you struggle with, so concentrate on these.. re-revise them, ask for specific questions on those topics etc.. dont waste time on the bits you already know.

Anyway thats what I did, and ended up pretty good GCSE/AS.. hope this helps!

Reply 181

Crissy501

Original post by freakingout

:O :O :O
when exactly should we start revising if we have exams on jan??
i havent started it yet :O :'(

Start now. You dont have to go all out right now, just start easy by reading the first work you did. I tend to read all my notes again and again first till I pretty much know the stuff by heart. and then a few weeks before exam start testing yourself via past papers and questions in the textbooks. Dont know if this will help with you.

Reply 182

StakedSalmon

1

Original post by trollman

You just aren't good enough. If you work very hard and are pretty intelligent you will get As.

Also this depends on the subjects you do, say english would be practising essays? Science learning the textbook front to back and doing lots of exam Qs. etc

What a load of bull. No matter how many pull ups you do in a day, no matter how hard you work at it, you won't be making any difference to the size of your calve muscles. None whatsoever. Same logic applies to revision; sure, you can spend hours and hours sitting there and reading the same material repeatedly, you simply might not be wired to learn that way, but it doesn't mean you're stupid.

Reply 183

FlippinEl

8

Try out different revision methods and find the best for you- I learn mostly from copying things out neatly ( I can't take in a sheet of typed up information). Discussion and debates are also essential to understand for me - in history we have debates almost every other lesson, this encourages us to get more involved rather than just memorizing facts.
Give yourself breaks
Play classical music while you study
Eat healthily
See your friends

Reply 184

haaaza23

2

Original post by lilzoldier

Why did you only do two Alevels?

..I did 4.

Reply 185

inspiringsoul

I badly want an A* in physics and math. Im doing edexcel though. :frown:

my exams are on jan 2011..
hope I get through well.

Reply 186

Vanny17

OP

19

Original post by Jaredss

Constantly revise stuff- that way the stuff at the beginning of the module wont be completley lost come actual revision time ( and save yourself the hysteria that follows).

For chemistry I spent about 10 minutes every day writing all the reactions I needed to know and their mechanisms

Same with Bio, except it was all bullet points and flow diagrams

Do past papers throughout the year, dont just do them a week before the exam. You need a lot longer to figure out how the mark schemes work- most of it is just memorising certain phrases

Thanks very much for the advice. I started studying from september and have exams in January. I went through some past papers as i went along but have only started coming through it throughly. Have i been doing the revison right? So i should go through ALL the past papers in the aqa website yes?

Reply 187

LifeIsGood

12

Original post by Vanny17

Thanks very much for the advice. I started studying from september and have exams in January. I went through some past papers as i went along but have only started coming through it throughly. Have i been doing the revison right? So i should go through ALL the past papers in the aqa website yes?

Haven't read your first post, what subject are you doing with AQA?

Reply 188

sarah.likepie

Mindmaps. Seriously, they are the best thing ever.

Reply 189

Mr Inquisitive

16

Past papers, using your time wisely in classes to make detailed notes from which you can read and revise from, and making sure you control your time efficiently. No one can work productively for a time period of four hours straight...

Reply 190

A level Az

16

I get my passion from people who I admire, and often look up to. I find that I have all the revision techniques, such as past papers, copying notes, various books to work from, but if my hearts not in it, then nothing goes in and its all a waste of time.

Stephen Fry - Sent to prison when he was 18, works his ass off once he's out, gets a job to pay for fees, gets into Queens College, Cambridge, and is now considered a "national treasure".
Emma Watson - Gets AAA in her A Levels while at the same time shooting scenes for the Harry Potter movies - revising on set.
Friends/Peers - Who put in more effort, even for lower grades at times. And then of course, the students who excel me in academia.

And many more people.

If they made the effort, why shouldn't I? Comparing my circumstances with theirs - I've got it easy. What I'm saying is, you need the drive, otherwise all the "revision" in the world won't help.

Reply 191

Vanny17

OP

19

Original post by Mr Inquisitive

Past papers, using your time wisely in classes to make detailed notes from which you can read and revise from, and making sure you control your time efficiently. No one can work productively for a time period of four hours straight...

I consistently studied since september and made notes so that is alright :smile:

When should past papers be done though, i only started doind them today and my first exam is on the 18th. :redface:

Reply 192

Vanny17

OP

19

Original post by LifeIsGood

Haven't read your first post, what subject are you doing with AQA?

Biology and Chemistry

Reply 193

Ferrari

One of the best threads made on this forum

Reply 194

Mr Inquisitive

16

Original post by Vanny17

I consistently studied since september and made notes so that is alright :smile:

When should past papers be done though, i only started doind them today and my first exam is on the 18th. :redface:

Your notes sound fine then. Past papers should be started soon, today if possible. If your first exam is on the 18th you have plenty of time and should get your A grade. :smile:

Just go through the papers, see anything you can't do, bring it to TSR and get help with it. After you've done quite a couple of past papers you'll know the exam style more and wont be too surprised by anything they spring on you in the actual exam.

Reply 195

Hippysnake

19

post removed

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 196

Ocarinaoftime

2

What I do is revise for 30 minutes, then do something else for an hour xD

During times when i need to study, I also remove a couple of posters from my wall and put the revision notes up in bold ink so they're basically screaming out and me and grab my attention every time I walk past.

Another thing I do which helps me a lot, but might make you looks silly is too recite what you've learned aloud, as if you're teaching someone else the thing you've learned because you try and break it down in a simple way for them to understand - if that makes sense. :P

Reply 197

ilyking

truthfully speaking, you can't get away with just hard work. You need to have some intuition.

I know loads of really thick people who worked there asses off and they got away with C's (even at GCSE level).

Reply 198

Vanny17

OP

19

Original post by Ferrari

One of the best threads made on this forum

Thanks

Reply 199

Vanny17

OP

19

Original post by Ocarinaoftime

What I do is revise for 30 minutes, then do something else for an hour xD

During times when i need to study, I also remove a couple of posters from my wall and put the revision notes up in bold ink so they're basically screaming out and me and grab my attention every time I walk past.

Another thing I do which helps me a lot, but might make you looks silly is too recite what you've learned aloud, as if you're teaching someone else the thing you've learned because you try and break it down in a simple way for them to understand - if that makes sense. :P

I did this. It is very helpful

A and A* students... Share your revision tips

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