Tips for writing essays

Usually in the question they'll give you a hint as to one of the things you can write about. For example, one of my exam questions may be something like "To what extent was the USSR responsible for the Cold War?" (Maybe that's a bit simplified but you get the idea). First I'd look for ways in which the USSR's actions WERE responsible. I'd look at each of these points and think, is the USSR wholly to blame or was anybody else involved in these? Then I'd think of somebody else who could have caused the War (USA for example). I'd do the same thing for this point. Then I'd usually try and find a third factor that may have caused the Cold War and do the same for this. Then when I go to write my answer up I'll have an essay with each theme gully evaluated since I looked at each point in the way I described earlier. Remember to order your point THEMATICALLY and not chronologically.

Feel free to post an example question and I'll help you to pick it apart. I doubt I'll know much, if any, of the content but I should be able to give you some tips on where to start.

Revision wise, it all depends on how you learn best. Personally, I go through the textbook, using my notes and the internet to help, and cover everything really broadly so that I get a general idea of it all. Then using bullet points and spider diagrams I'll cover key areas / themes so that I can start linking points together. Next, once I'm happy with my general knowledge, I'll look at some exam questions and start making essay plans, going back and making more spider diagrams if I'm not happy with something. Use the mark schemes to help you to get a good idea of what events etc might be useful for certain questions.

I hope this helps! Feel free to ask me to clarify anything, or if you have anything else to ask.