Half term revision tips

At this time of year, it's really common for young people to be told to revise for their exams; it is far less common for them to be shown what to do. Here's a strategy that has worked for loads of my students over the last two decades. Even better, it can be done completely tech-free.

We so often tell teenagers to revise and don't always tell them what this means and they end up reading through their books getting more and more overwhelmed instead of feeling more confident. Now more than ever, young people feel under extraordinary pressure to memorise huge amounts of information for their GCSEs; I put this together to help alleviate some of that pressure and help them make the most of the time they spend studying. These revision strategies are supposed to help students feel calmer and more in control, not give them something else to stress over: if it looks like they are finding half term revision stressful, I recommend stopping straight away and doing something unconnected with school. 

This revision technique uses a stack of flash cards. They can be white or colourful or lined or plain- whatever is most appealing. (They're usually really cheap anywhere that sells stationery or online The Range/B&M/supermarkets etc for a pack of a few hundred.)

There are loads of ways these can be used but the key thing is that students make their own flash cards, rather that getting subject specific ones that are already filled in. Making them themselves helps forge the neurological links that help us remember. 

Once they've got their flash cards, here's how I suggest using them for English:

Making cards:

Shakespeare/novels:

• On one side of the card, write a quote, on the other who said it and what they were talking about/ who they were talking to.

• Quote on one side - themes it links to on the other.

• Quote on one side - techniques it uses on the other.

• Quote on one side - where it appears in the play/novel on the other.

• Quote on one side - other quotes it could link to on the other.

Poetry:

• Title of a poem on one side, on the other poems it could be compared to.

• Title on one side, poet and themes on the other.

• Title on one side, three short quotes from it on the other.

• A theme on one side, a list of poems which use that theme on the other.

• A line/short quote from a poem on one side, the idea it alludes to/technique it uses on the other.

Language:

• A language technique on one side, what it is used for/ an example on the other side.

• Question number (from exam paper) on one side, what they are expected to do for that question on the other.

• Use for synonyms and vocabulary building - a straightforward feeling on one side (happy, sad, positive, negative) and more complex synonyms on the other (delighted, thrilled, over the moon, speechless, gobsmacked, content, rapturous)

Using cards

• Play dominoes - match quotes card to other quotes with a similar theme (individually for plays/novels or all of poems jumbled up)

• Check knowledge - Ask someone at home to quiz them using their cards

• Stick quotes cards up in places they go to often and change them often - e.g. Shakespeare by the toaster, check Macbeth quotes while waiting for toast, poetry in the bathroom, read quotes while brushing teeth.

• Playing pairs - spread out cards, pick a pair and justify why they match (shared theme, similar technique etc)

• Test themselves - flick through, asking and responding to questions.

Other subjects (not my specialism - excuse the vagueness)

Maths - Formulas on one side, what it's used for on the other 

History  -Event on one side - dates/key factors on the other

Languages - phrases on one side in English - in target language on the other

One of the lovely things about this is that making the cards is of as much benefit as using them is. They don't have to be made from memory, using a thesaurus (online or on paper), the books (electronic or on paper) or their school books/google classroom makes for excellent revision. 

I'd love to know if this is something you have tried at home and how it worked for you.

I hope you have a lovely half term and that everyone gets plenty of rest.