How to get straight A's and A*s

The trick to getting decent grades is proper revision. This doesn't mean cramming the entire textbook into your head, nor turning your bedroom into some sort of post-it note modern art installation. The key to revision is to remember that you're revising for an exam, and all exams have a 'rubric'. There are certain things you have to do in an exam that you wouldn't if answering questions in another context. You have to know the mark scheme inside out. The best essay in the world won't get you an A* if you haven't properly hit AO3 on the mark scheme. Know which questions require you to do which, and which key words ask for the different AOs (this is for essay subjects). Otherwise you'll be wasting time in the exam writing stuff that isn't getting any marks. Look at old examination reports by the chief examiner. They'll highlight some of the common mistakes and have good advice for future candidates.

Past papers are absolutely your friend. In Science/Maths, you need to consistently be getting As in your practice/past papers without checking your notes at all. If you're not consistently getting an A in past papers, you won't get an A in the exam. Essay subjects are a bit different - chances are you can't mark your own papers accurately, although you'll still be able to check them against the mark scheme. Firstly, get your teacher to mark as many past papers as they are willing to. Secondly, focus on getting used to writing an essay in the time available during an exam. Time is perhaps the biggest constraint in essay subjects. Thirdly, plan ahead; you can normally predict to some degree what questions are going to come up. There's only so many questions they can ask, because the syllabus is only so big. Create model essay plans, and perhaps even try writing a couple that you think are most likely to come up (ones that haven't come up in recent years). Planning in advance will save you 5 minutes at the start of the exam, and the plan will probably be better than what you could produce in the exam off the top of your head.

This is taken from my profile with regards to revision:



However, revision is only half the battle. You also have to use your lessons effectively. If you leave a classroom still confused about the topic, then that was a bad lesson and normally means you've wasted it. Unless you asked the teacher questions until they started getting pissed off with you, you've learnt poorly in that lesson. And if you have done that, go over the content of the lesson soon afterwards until you understand it properly.

If you learn properly during the year, revision becomes so much easier, and you won't have to do as much of it.

I finished year 11 with 3 Bs and the rest As and A*s in my GCSEs. What worked best for me was exam specifications. Don't underestimate them -- they literally tell you exactly what you need to know. Some of my teachers printed them off and handed them around during revision sessions, but they're pretty easy to find on exam board websites.

Take advantage of after-school or weekend revision sessions. I didn't do this enough. That, and start revising early on! Don't leave everything to exam season because it piles up quicker than you would have thought. Retaining small bits of information over a longer period of time is recommended, especially as you may have more than one exam on any given day, and cramming two subjects' worth the night before, in my experience, is obviously not a good tactic.

Lastly, you obviously have the motivation to get what you want, which is essential in itself. But don't stress. All As will give you more UCAS points and open up all A-level/post-GCSE options, but people do best at what they enjoy. Don't worry if you find you're not equally good at everything, because the aim of GCSEs is to help you to choose what you want to do after school from what you're best at and what you enjoyed the most.

Work hard, do your best, listen to your teachers and you will do great. Good luck and well done. :-)

Thanks for the advice I don't understand how you are meant to learn mark schemes because a lot of people say that bit I don't understand how they help as every past paper has a different mark sche

Thanks for the advice when you said exam specifications worked best for you what do you mean did you memorise them ?

They gave me an overview of what the exam boards were looking for and what to focus on during revision, so that I'd be able to use my revision guides/the internet to look up what I didn't understand and to make sure I knew exactly what they wanted me to know -- keywords, techniques, facts -- if those topics came up in the exam.

Also, examiners' reports and past papers really helped when it came to essay-based subjects. Examiners' reports showed where past students had gone wrong and what they should have done, so that I could make sure I wouldn't make the same mistake, and past papers showed what in the syllabus had come up before, e.g. I studied a cluster of about 15 poems, so I focused primarily on the poems which hadn't come up before. :-)

thanks for for helping I really appreciate it did the poems that hadn't come up before come up on your real exams

No problem. :-)

Yeah, I was right and the exam turned out to be about two of the poems which hadn't come up before. :-)

Type up revision notes as you're taught the content. This fundamental method is limited only by your persistence, I got 10 A*s and 1 A by doing this.

I really want to get straight A's and A*s in my gcse's this year, please can you guys give me tips on how to achieve my goal. I was pleased with my end of year 10 results I got :

English- reading A
Writing C (messed up a bit)
Maths- B
Biology- A*
Physics-A
Chemistry-A
Religious studies- A
Textiles- A*
French- reading-C (did foundation paper so highest I could get was a C
Writing-D

I really really want all A's and A* s at the end of year 11

Any advise?

Learning to spell will help. I think you're looking for advice, not advise. Just a little thing to work on.

Hey It depends on your learning style. But for me it was past papers, past papers and past papers. I did around 50 to 60 past papers for my maths gcse revision and ended up scoring 98% on it as I had done the same types of questions that had come up a million times before. You get SO used to it, it doesn't even seem like you have to put effort into it by the exam.

To score well tbh you don't have to be clever, you just need to know how to pick up marks, so for me just go through the revision guide for your exam board and write everything down. And once you feel you know enough, start past papers and find your strengths and weaknesses, then iron those out by trying more past papers. (this works especially for the sciences and maths) with French - learn the vocab and REALLY make sure you pay attention in lessons.

With English it's trickier, however practice makes perfect, so try to do essays over and over again in the exact style you would in the exam, and once you get to grips with that it's a lot easier trust me! It really worked for me (I got 9A*s and 1A) It's good you're thinking about this now, it's the right time to! I went from a D to an A* in bio, in two weeks doing that. (crazy last minute revision) :')

If you have any questions pm me and I can try and help