How do you revise for A-Level History?
Hi, I’m a year 13 student, and have been struggling to remember all the content for history, there’s just so much! Does anyone have any tips for history revision? I feel like flashcards don’t really work, I use them for my other subjects, but there’s just too much detail needed for history that I can’t fit it on flashcards. Also, how do you remember all the dates?! Any help would be greatly appreciated. 😊
Reply 1
Hey!
I am an A level history survivor and got an A this summer (not far off the A* frustratingly!!!!). It's a very difficult A level but when you approach it the right way it's more than manageable.
Can I ask which exam board and modules you're doing?
For context, I did AQA Britain 1851-1964, Challenge and Transformation, and the Cold War 1945-1991.
The most helpful thing I did was blurting - writing out everything I knew about a given topic or theme or time period. This is good as it helps you know what you don't know. From this u can make prompt cards where you have a word/theme/topic/person/time period on the front and then the knowledge u need on the back. Quizlet is great for this - I swear by it. I also loved using Quizlet for little prompts and questions no matter how small e.g. what year... who did x... etc.
Other things that were really good for me were recording myself on a voice note reading my notes so I could listen to them on a walk etc. Also doing quick fire essay plans for 5 mins too. I also stuck post it notes around the house!!
If I could tell u one thing I wish I did differently it would be spend more time on essay practice and technique rather than cramming knowledge - better to have a few key facts per theme that u can manageably remember than cramming it all in but being weaker when writing, or being tempted to just knowledge-dump in the exam (it prevents u from doing this).
Hope this helps!
I am an A level history survivor and got an A this summer (not far off the A* frustratingly!!!!). It's a very difficult A level but when you approach it the right way it's more than manageable.
Can I ask which exam board and modules you're doing?
For context, I did AQA Britain 1851-1964, Challenge and Transformation, and the Cold War 1945-1991.
The most helpful thing I did was blurting - writing out everything I knew about a given topic or theme or time period. This is good as it helps you know what you don't know. From this u can make prompt cards where you have a word/theme/topic/person/time period on the front and then the knowledge u need on the back. Quizlet is great for this - I swear by it. I also loved using Quizlet for little prompts and questions no matter how small e.g. what year... who did x... etc.
Other things that were really good for me were recording myself on a voice note reading my notes so I could listen to them on a walk etc. Also doing quick fire essay plans for 5 mins too. I also stuck post it notes around the house!!
If I could tell u one thing I wish I did differently it would be spend more time on essay practice and technique rather than cramming knowledge - better to have a few key facts per theme that u can manageably remember than cramming it all in but being weaker when writing, or being tempted to just knowledge-dump in the exam (it prevents u from doing this).
Hope this helps!
Reply 2
Ohana198
OP
5
Original post
by iislip623Hey!
I am an A level history survivor and got an A this summer (not far off the A* frustratingly!!!!). It's a very difficult A level but when you approach it the right way it's more than manageable.
Can I ask which exam board and modules you're doing?
For context, I did AQA Britain 1851-1964, Challenge and Transformation, and the Cold War 1945-1991.
The most helpful thing I did was blurting - writing out everything I knew about a given topic or theme or time period. This is good as it helps you know what you don't know. From this u can make prompt cards where you have a word/theme/topic/person/time period on the front and then the knowledge u need on the back. Quizlet is great for this - I swear by it. I also loved using Quizlet for little prompts and questions no matter how small e.g. what year... who did x... etc.
Other things that were really good for me were recording myself on a voice note reading my notes so I could listen to them on a walk etc. Also doing quick fire essay plans for 5 mins too. I also stuck post it notes around the house!!
If I could tell u one thing I wish I did differently it would be spend more time on essay practice and technique rather than cramming knowledge - better to have a few key facts per theme that u can manageably remember than cramming it all in but being weaker when writing, or being tempted to just knowledge-dump in the exam (it prevents u from doing this).
Hope this helps!
I am an A level history survivor and got an A this summer (not far off the A* frustratingly!!!!). It's a very difficult A level but when you approach it the right way it's more than manageable.
Can I ask which exam board and modules you're doing?
For context, I did AQA Britain 1851-1964, Challenge and Transformation, and the Cold War 1945-1991.
The most helpful thing I did was blurting - writing out everything I knew about a given topic or theme or time period. This is good as it helps you know what you don't know. From this u can make prompt cards where you have a word/theme/topic/person/time period on the front and then the knowledge u need on the back. Quizlet is great for this - I swear by it. I also loved using Quizlet for little prompts and questions no matter how small e.g. what year... who did x... etc.
Other things that were really good for me were recording myself on a voice note reading my notes so I could listen to them on a walk etc. Also doing quick fire essay plans for 5 mins too. I also stuck post it notes around the house!!
If I could tell u one thing I wish I did differently it would be spend more time on essay practice and technique rather than cramming knowledge - better to have a few key facts per theme that u can manageably remember than cramming it all in but being weaker when writing, or being tempted to just knowledge-dump in the exam (it prevents u from doing this).
Hope this helps!
This is really helpful thank you! Well done for your A, that’s my aim!
I’m doing AQA too, but different topics: ‘The Quest for Political Stability: Germany 1871-1991’ and ‘Wars and Welfare: Britain in Transition 1906-1957’.
What kinds of things did you write on the post it notes? And where do you recommend I get practice questions from?
Thanks!
Reply 3
Original post
by Ohana198Hi, I’m a year 13 student, and have been struggling to remember all the content for history, there’s just so much! Does anyone have any tips for history revision? I feel like flashcards don’t really work, I use them for my other subjects, but there’s just too much detail needed for history that I can’t fit it on flashcards. Also, how do you remember all the dates?! Any help would be greatly appreciated. 😊
I did AQA A-level history in 2024 and got an A.
I recommend:
•
mind maps condensing all your topics into 1 or 2 pages
•
essay plans for as many questions as you can find
•
blurting
Reply 4
Ohana198
OP
5
Original post
by erin11I did AQA A-level history in 2024 and got an A.
I recommend:
I recommend:
•
mind maps condensing all your topics into 1 or 2 pages
•
essay plans for as many questions as you can find
•
blurting
Reply 5
Original post
by Ohana198Thank you! Where do you recommend I find past questions? 😊
I recommend websites like revision world or the exam board website to start with, and then you could always ask your teacher to try come up with some extra questions for you - my class did that and we felt so much better going into the exams
Reply 6
Ohana198
OP
5
Original post
by erin11I recommend websites like revision world or the exam board website to start with, and then you could always ask your teacher to try come up with some extra questions for you - my class did that and we felt so much better going into the exams
Ok thank you!
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