Nat5 Prelims, Burnout and Studying-HELP!!

So my prelims (Maths, English, French, Chemistry, Physics, Computing and Geography) start on the 25th of november. I have a paper round so im tired a lot and when I come home to study I just dont have the energy to. My mum says i should be studying for 4 hours a day at least but personally i feel thats bs especially when ive been told by several teachers they dont count for anything. They cant even boost your total score with them if u do bad in actual exam anymore apparently but my parents are having none of it. Most of all I just feel burnt out and I dont actually do bad in school ive passed all my uasps so far and only once got under an A. Even on that occasion i got 84% and its normally 75 but they boosted the "A" requirements to 85%. I've done some study here and there but mostly just homework, assignments and revision for tests. I feel overrun and Burnt out and I've barely studied. Will I be ok? I'm not actually worried about doing below an A but I'm worried about how my parents will "react" to it.

As a sidenote i'd like to add I want to go to uni to study computing.

I have also linked a photo of the books i got for study. Are they any good?

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Reply 1

lewman99

11

I'd say that doing 4 hours a day is definitely excessive for prelims. Perhaps once you get to study leave it's a more reasonable figure, but then again you don't go into school in those times anyway.

But, even though prelims can't be used as evidence anymore, they're still important. It's good to get used to the idea of having a bunch of exams within a relatively small timeframe, getting use to a consistent study routine (note that consistent doesn't necessarily mean a lot of study time), and even just getting used to what the exam's going to be like (I've sat prelims for National 5s and Highers so far, and it's really similar to what isitting an exam's like). Naturally, prelim papers tend to be a bit shaky (a lot of them are produced by outside companies, so there might be a few janky questions), but they're a pretty good approximation anyway. They don't "mean" anything per se, but they're still important.

And I can give some advice for a few of your subjects (the ones I've done, at least):

* For Maths, the main thing to do is to practice questions. Make sure you can identify what you need to in a question, and make sure that you can carry out procedures (e.g finding the gradient of a lin) confidently. Make sure your fundamentals (like fractions) are solid, so you won't need to worry about things like arithmetic errors.
* For English for Close Reading, it's a good idea to read some articles from reputable newspapers or websites (it's good if you can find articles on topics you're interested in), and try and think about things like word choice, sentence structure, and other similar things you normally get in close reading. For critical essays, know whatever texts you're working on (if you're got more than 1 for the prelim, don't just spend all your time on one - you could get a really nice question for the other and get stuck with bad questions for the text you like), and keep your essay structued and clear. For the Scottish Set Text, it's especially important to know how different sections (i.e different poems/short stories/parts of a play) link together, particularly when it comes to certain themes. Again, make sure you're at least comfortable with all of them.
* For Physics, get really comfortable with the questions - that's a big chunk of th paper, and they can be useful for explanations too. Fro "using your knowledge of physics" questions , you can often bring equation or item from your data sheet, which can guide your answer along quite nicely. There's normally a question where you're not expected to know the physics as well - get comfortable with drawing and interpreting graphs.
* For Chemistry, make sure you're comfortable with calculations, that you know your way around the data booklet, and that you know general groups of things (e.g halogens). Know how to work with things like molecular diagrams and tables of data as well.

Reply 2

scottishgirl163

11

how did you even get the idea that you're getting A's in uasps when they are simply pass/fail and not out of a specific mark? also an a is roughly 70% so the idea that its 85% is utter nonsense

Reply 3

jweir211

OP

3

Original post by scottishgirl163

how did you even get the idea that you're getting A's in uasps when they are simply pass/fail and not out of a specific mark? also an a is roughly 70% so the idea that its 85% is utter nonsense

I mean that ive had above 75% in all uasps. the easiest way to explain it to my Mum wis like that cuz she doesnt really understand.

Prioritise the subjects you are weakest in. If you've limited energy, at least put it into the places that will make the most difference.

If your paper round is that tiring for you, you might want to consider letting it go. If you don't have time for everything then your priority should be your education, as you've said you want to go to university.

Reply 5

scottishgirl163

11

Original post by jweir211

I mean that ive had above 75% in all uasps. the easiest way to explain it to my Mum wis like that cuz she doesnt really understand.

Ahh I see, honestly don't stress too much about prelims I'm sure if you just keep working the way you are you'll be absolutely fine

Reply 6

BadboiQ

1

Original post by jweir211

So my prelims (Maths, English, French, Chemistry, Physics, Computing and Geography) start on the 25th of november. I have a paper round so im tired a lot and when I come home to study I just dont have the energy to. My mum says i should be studying for 4 hours a day at least but personally i feel thats bs especially when ive been told by several teachers they dont count for anything. They cant even boost your total score with them if u do bad in actual exam anymore apparently but my parents are having none of it. Most of all I just feel burnt out and I dont actually do bad in school ive passed all my uasps so far and only once got under an A. Even on that occasion i got 84% and its normally 75 but they boosted the "A" requirements to 85%. I've done some study here and there but mostly just homework, assignments and revision for tests. I feel overrun and Burnt out and I've barely studied. Will I be ok? I'm not actually worried about doing below an A but I'm worried about how my parents will "react" to it.

As a sidenote i'd like to add I want to go to uni to study computing.

I have also linked a photo of the books i got for study. Are they any good?

Cards against humanity is a good game lol

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Reply 7

Yammy

15

Original post by jweir211

So my prelims (Maths, English, French, Chemistry, Physics, Computing and Geography) start on the 25th of november. I have a paper round so im tired a lot and when I come home to study I just dont have the energy to. My mum says i should be studying for 4 hours a day at least but personally i feel thats bs especially when ive been told by several teachers they dont count for anything. They cant even boost your total score with them if u do bad in actual exam anymore apparently but my parents are having none of it. Most of all I just feel burnt out and I dont actually do bad in school ive passed all my uasps so far and only once got under an A. Even on that occasion i got 84% and its normally 75 but they boosted the "A" requirements to 85%. I've done some study here and there but mostly just homework, assignments and revision for tests. I feel overrun and Burnt out and I've barely studied. Will I be ok? I'm not actually worried about doing below an A but I'm worried about how my parents will "react" to it.

As a sidenote i'd like to add I want to go to uni to study computing.

I have also linked a photo of the books i got for study. Are they any good?

Since prelim are like halfway during the year, even getting 50% is fine. It just means you have the rest of the year+holidays to boost it to 80-00% You can't even appeal now so prelims are useless imo

Reply 8

Mya_scotland

6

Original post by jweir211

So my prelims (Maths, English, French, Chemistry, Physics, Computing and Geography) start on the 25th of november. I have a paper round so im tired a lot and when I come home to study I just dont have the energy to. My mum says i should be studying for 4 hours a day at least but personally i feel thats bs especially when ive been told by several teachers they dont count for anything. They cant even boost your total score with them if u do bad in actual exam anymore apparently but my parents are having none of it. Most of all I just feel burnt out and I dont actually do bad in school ive passed all my uasps so far and only once got under an A. Even on that occasion i got 84% and its normally 75 but they boosted the "A" requirements to 85%. I've done some study here and there but mostly just homework, assignments and revision for tests. I feel overrun and Burnt out and I've barely studied. Will I be ok? I'm not actually worried about doing below an A but I'm worried about how my parents will "react" to it.

As a sidenote i'd like to add I want to go to uni to study computing.

I have also linked a photo of the books i got for study. Are they any good?

My mum just bought me those books because I wasn't studying and my prelims start on Tuesday (I have 9 to do) I have the attention span of a fish and I am tired all of the time so I struggle to study too. I have borderline personality disorder which honestly is the worst thing when trying to study but keep going and you will get there. 4hours is way too much especially for prelims, I try setting a goal of 2 and a half hours a day with breaks.

Reply 9

BadboiQ

1

Original post by Mya_scotland

My mum just bought me those books because I wasn't studying and my prelims start on Tuesday (I have 9 to do) I have the attention span of a fish and I am tired all of the time so I struggle to study too. I have borderline personality disorder which honestly is the worst thing when trying to study but keep going and you will get there. 4hours is way too much especially for prelims, I try setting a goal of 2 and a half hours a day with breaks.

Is that like when ur 5 people in 1 person

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Reply 10

Mya_scotland

6

Original post by BadboiQ

Is that like when ur 5 people in 1 person

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It's similar to bipolar disorders in a way but this is what it is http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Borderline-personality-disorder/Pages/Introduction.aspx

Reply 11

ha.anon90

14

Original post by BadboiQ

Is that like when ur 5 people in 1 person

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Reachin4TheStars :ahee:

Omg

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Reply 12

TeenRose29

18

Original post by Habina786xx

Reachin4TheStars :ahee:

Omg

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Reply 13

ha.anon90

14

Original post by Reachin4TheStars

He wants to add your whatsapp lol he's abit shy lol

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Reply 14

TeenRose29

18

Original post by Habina786xx

He wants to add your whatsapp lol he's abit shy lol

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i would probably have to talk a bit more before I gave my number to him.. :s-smilie:

Reply 15

ha.anon90

14

Original post by Reachin4TheStars

i would probably have to talk a bit more before I gave my number to him.. :s-smilie:

Why? Tbh he's preserved himself all those years and he thought you were the right one. And i only tried to help. Not my fault if he's being a gyal.

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Reply 16

TeenRose29

18

Original post by Habina786xx

Why? Tbh he's preserved himself all those years and he thought you were the right one. And i only tried to help. Not my fault if he's being a gyal.

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Because I can't be giving my number out on a public forum without knowing someone quite well. It's not about preserving, or being a girl I barely talked to him so I can't exactly give my number out yet.

Reply 17

ha.anon90

14

Original post by Reachin4TheStars

Because I can't be giving my number out on a public forum without knowing someone quite well. It's not about preserving, or being a girl I barely talked to him so I can't exactly give my number out yet.