Contents:

1) Introduction

2) Revision Methods & Techniques

3) MUST USE Revision Websites

4) Maintaining a Revision/Life balance

5) Importance of a Revision schedule

6) Revision Schedule Examples

7) Revision Schedule Templates

8) 5 Step Exam Success Plan

9) The Days Before/Exam Day

10) Final Words

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Welcome to the Ultimate Revision Guide!
Firstly let me begin by telling you a little bit about myself and my experience
with Exams. Over the course of my time in high school I sat 15 Scottish SQA
exams (7 National 5s, 5 Higher's and 3 Advanced Higher's) and managed to
achieve an A grade in every single one of them. This was not due to being
"naturally smart" or "having a photographic memory" which are common
misconceptions amongst pupils. In fact it all came down to the planning,
organisation and efficiency of my revision. Luckily this is the knowledge I'm
going to be passing on to you!

Now you are reading this and find yourself edging ever closer to that scary
and intimidating EXAM PERIOD but it's not something to be feared at all. That
is because I will be showing you how to most effectively utilise your time to
revise as efficiently as possible so you to can Ace your revision and in turn
Ace those exams!

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Using a Variety of different Revision Methods and Techniques is integral to
drilling all the topic content and information in to your brain so it becomes
somewhat second nature when answering all types of questions on exam day.

The Methods and Techniques we will be covering:

● Blurting
● Active Recall
● Use of flashcards
● Creating Mental Associations
● Past Paper Questions
● Quick Fire Revision Method
● Feynman Technique
● SQ3R Reading Method

1) Blurting
Blurting is where you carefully read over a section of content, exam
specification or useful equations etc. and then covering up/hiding this
information and writing down as much that you can remember as possible. So
here is how you can do it based on your specific revision:

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Pick a focus

Decide on a specific topic you want to focus on. This could be a theme from a
novel in English or an experiment method in biology. You can choose to create
a prompt sheet that triggers memories of the topic which you can glance at if
you get stuck. Or you can go hardcore and do it straight off the dome!

Time to Blurt!

This is the fun bit. Relying purely on your memory, Write EVERYTHING you can
remember from the topic on to the page. Don’t worry about it looking pretty,
take as long as you need to do this and see what you can remember. This
technique will expose the subjects you’ve mastered and those that need a bit
more TLC. You’ll see how much you really know. (As exams edge closer, it’s
best to give yourself a time limit for “blurting” to intensify study sessions!)

Marking

At this stage you can look at their prompt and see if you can squeeze out any
more knowledge. Once this is done, compare the blurting map to your
previous notes and see how much you remembered. Give yourself time to fill
in the gaps in another colour by writing down everything you didn’t remember.
Spend some time reviewing the blurting session and do it again in a week to
consolidate your knowledge.

This technique also works great for pair and group work which is amazing for
active revision sessions with friends! The goal is to find something that works
for you and give yourself the best shot at achieving your best. Give blurting a
go it’s one of the best revision techniques around! Trust me...

2) Active Recall
Active Recall is where you attempt to remember something you have learned
prior to your revision. Yes, I know what you're thinking: "Is that not just the
same thing as Blurting?"... When comparing, it is similar however active recall
does not involve reading over the information immediately before but instead

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reaching deep into your memory and ‘Brain dumping’ anything you can
remember from when you initially learned the material. The act of doing this
helps to develop your Long term memory and in turn is why it is such an
important method. So make sure you get Actively Recalling as part of your
revision!

This should be a method used in the early stages of your revision schedule as
it provides you with somewhat of a baseline.

3) Use of Flashcards
Based off my personal experience Flashcards are one of the BEST tools to aid
you in your revision. Flashcards should be used to hold the most
important/key content within a Specific topic in order for you to carry out
constant reflection. For Example Key words and their definitions or Common
exam questions and their subsequent answers.

Further to this the beauty of creating flashcards is you are able to mix both
pictures and words! This crucially allows you to make mental associations and
connections which in itself is its own revision technique (2 for 1, you cant get
much better than that!)

So the main points to make sure you follow when creating and using your own
Flashcards is:

● Keep them short and straight to the point

● Aim to include only Key information
● Use pictures and colours-Be creative!
● Write only 1 question and 1 answer per card
● It's all about repetition (take them everywhere with you)
● Say your flashcards out loud while revising (This is extremely helpful)

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4) Past Paper Questions
Past Paper Questions are essential to your revision and will be crucial in your
preparation for the Exam. Past Paper questions can easily be found for free
online through the exam boards website as well as possibly on your personal
school website. I would recommend at least 3 Past paper Questions per
revision day and ensure the questions you complete are relevant to the
content you had been studying prior.

SQA past papers: (National 5, Higher, Advanced Higher)

https://www.sqa.org.uk/pastpapers/findpastpaper.htm

AQA Past Papers: (GCSE, AS LEVEL, A LEVEL)

https://www.aqa.org.uk/find-past-papers-and-mark-schemes

SAT Past Papers: (College Board)

https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/sat/practice-preparation/practice-tests/paper

5) Quick Fire Revision

Finally, the most basic but also most effective method... QUICK FIRE
REVISION. To put it simply quick fire revision involves studying for a short
period of time then taking a quick break, then studying for a short period of
time, then taking a quick break and so on...

For Instance throughout my Revision I would follow this quick fire revision
plan:

40 Minutes Revision, 20 Minute break

I would complete this around 3 to 4 times throughout the day to ensure high
quality and efficient studies. Furthermore this method can be adaptable to

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better suit you (For example 30 mins on, 30 mins off or 45 mins on, 15 mins
off. This is totally up to you!)

My Recommendations for this method:

● Turn your phone/mobile off during revision period

● Make sure to utilise your break period (e.g go for a walk, get something
to eat, spend time with family)
● Ensure full focus during your revision period. You've not got long so
make it count!

6) Feynman Technique
The Feynman Technique is a learning framework that helps you develop a
deep understanding of any given topic.

It involves four key steps:

1) Set the stage

2) ELI5 (Explain it to me like I’m 5)
3) Assess & Sudy
4) Orgsnize, Convey & Review

Step 1: Set the stage

What’s the topic you want to learn?

Starting with a blank page, write the topic at the top and jot down everything
you know about it.

Read & research the topic.

Add any new learnings or insights as you develop them.

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Step 2: ELI5

Here's where it gets unique:

Attempt to explain the topic to someone without a base understanding of it

(i.e. a “child”).

On a blank page, write down everything you know about your topic—but
pretend you are explaining it to a child.

Use simple language!

Step 3: Assess & Study

Reflect on your performance. Form an honest assessment.

How well were you able to explain the topic to a child? Where did you get
frustrated? Where did you turn to jargon?

These are the gaps in your understanding!

Read and study more to fill them.

Step 4: Organize, Convey & Review

Organize your elegant, simple language into a clear, compelling story or

narrative.

Convey it to a few others, then iterate and refine accordingly.

Review your new, deep understanding of the topic.

Remember: Simple is beautiful.

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7) SQ3R Reading Method
This useful strategy aids reading comprehension and is especially helpful for
difficult textbook material. Each part of the process is helpful by itself, so do
not feel that you must follow all of the steps. Use what works for you!

Survey

Before you begin a new chapter, skim the material and get a feel for the main
topics and ideas in the text. The process below should take 5-10 minutes.

● Read the introduction

● Look at the headings and subheadings
● Look at the pictures, charts and graphs (anything visual)
● Read the chapter summary
● Look at the study questions at the end of the chapter

Question

Use questions to guide your reading.

Take the first heading in the chapter and turn it into a question before reading
the paragraphs in that section. For instance, if the heading is “A Limited
Partnership”, read it as “What is a limited partnership?” Now you have created
a purpose for reading because you are looking for the answer to the question.

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Read

As you read look for answers to the questions you created. Use the following

tips when reading:

● Usually the first sentence of each paragraph states the main idea.
● Look for transition words such as next, for example, in contrast, in
addition, to help you follow the author’s point.
● Make notes in the margin or in a notebook as you read. Paraphrase main
points and ideas; do NOT simply copy information from the textbook.
● Highlight only the most important points. Too much highlighting can
make it difficult to separate the main point from support details.

Recite

After reading, look at the questions you created or those at the end of the
chapter.

● Can you answer them? If you cannot, go back, reread the appropriate
sections, and take notes.
● Take the time and recite or recall whatever you can
remember as soon as you finish reading.

Review

After you study new material, it is extremely important to conduct an overall

review within 24 hours for maximum comprehension and memory. You can
lose 80% of what you have learned if you do not review within the next day.

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Now I am going to share with you a list of extremely useful revision resources
Websites that I personally used in order to achieve top marks in my exams:

1) Quizlet - Quizlet allows you to create and use virtual flashcards as well as
carry out a range of game based quizzes on your specific subjects:2

https://quizlet.com/en-gb

2) BBC Bitesize - BBC bitesize is a free online study support resource for
school age pupils in the United Kingdom. It contains videos, step by step
guides, activities and quizzes by level and subject:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize

3) MindMeister - MindMeister is an online mind mapping application that

allows its users to visualize, share and present their thoughts via the cloud:

https://www.mindmeister.com/

4) Get Revising - Get Revising is a website that provides a variety of different

revision tools to aid you in your revision. For example Homework support,
Mind map creation and past paper questions. They are all specific to to GCSE
and A-level subjects which is even better!

https://getrevising.co.uk/

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5) Youtube - Finally one you may not expect to be here is Youtube. Youtube
was imperative for me during my revision. I was able to find videos and online
teachers that helped me gain a better understanding of the content and
information within the subjects I was doing:

https://www.youtube.com/

Maintaining a revision/life balance is crucial to staying motivated and

increasing productivity throughout your studies. The best way to ensure this
is through choosing a day off each week where you do absolutely no
homework or revision. Use this day to relax, go out with friends, spent time
with family and essentially take your mind off the idea of revision all together.
For example I would always take a Saturday as a day off. This allows you to
reset your brain and not overwhelm yourself with the revision at hand.

If you begin to feel like you're struggling to cope with the stress make sure to
speak up and talk to someone, whether that is a teacher, a friend or family
member.

However the best way to control a revision/life balance is by creating a

Revision schedule or plan which leads us on perfectly to the next section…

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Having a Study schedule is the first and most important step to your revision
journey. It provides you with a clear and concise pathway to acing your final
exams. The main benefits to having a Revision Schedule are:

● Reduces levels of stress as you will feel more organised

● Allows you to manage your time a lot more efficiently
● Increased productivity levels (a study plan with to-dos for each day will
help you avoid procrastinating for your exam)
● Helps you prioritise essential areas of study

Overall a revision schedule personalised to you is essential in attaining a

better score in your final exam. So with that being said let's MAKE ONE!

Now it's time to bring everything we have learned so far together (The
methods, techniques and online resources) and turn that into an effective
revision schedule that best suits you!

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I will be showing you both a monthly schedule (less detailed) and a weekly
schedule (more detailed) I followed in order to go into my exams feeling as
confident as possible. I have based it around revising for 3 subjects however
these examples can be easily modified in order to make it specific to you and
the number of subjects you are currently studying for.

Before you get stuck in to some of the examples and start to think about your
own study plan, one of the most common questions that gets asked when it
comes to revision is...

HOW MANY HOURS A WEEK SHOULD I REVISE?

To answer this, I would Recommend around 10-15 hours a week, or 3 hours per
subject. However this is totally subjective and depends on factors such as if
specific subjects require more revision than others.

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Now let's use a more detailed weekly schedule to incorporate some of the
revision Methods we have learned! (the exact schedule I used for my exam
Period last year)

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Now it's time for you to build your Study Schedule using the Template links
below which can be edited in Canva by Clicking: File > Make a Copy. Good
Luck!

1) Monthly Revision Template:

https://www.canva.com/design/DAFdkmzuLUg/cftQrDHC3BgAzJuNEj3BYQ/vie
w?utm_content=DAFdkmzuLUg&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=li
nk2&utm_source=sharebutton

2) Weekly Revision template:

https://www.canva.com/design/DAFdl0vgfC4/9wy7XOlZFxXSfTXd3RYVAA/view
?utm_content=DAFdl0vgfC4&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2
&utm_source=sharebutton

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 Revise/work through all content within subject (Using the Methods &
techniques we have talked about)

Complete a Full Past Paper from the Exam Boards websites provided

Fully Mark the past paper you have completed, taking note of the the
questions you have got wrong and the topic/sub topics it relates to

Focus your revision on these topics/sub topics that you struggled with on the
past paper (once again utilising the Revision methods & Techniques)

Sit another Past Paper Exam and notice your results begin to improve!
(REPEAT)

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Well Done! you've made it this far and your exam is in a few days. So now what
should you do? Should you begin to do things differently? The answer to your
question..absolutely not, continue to do what has been successful for you and
your revision so far, whether that is using flashcards, blurting, youtube videos
or Quizlet. Just keep at it! The only thing I would personally recommend is that
you slightly increase the amount of Past paper questions you complete so you
feel fully comfortable with the style of questions you will be asked on EXAM
DAY….

So today is the day, it's exam day. Here are my tips to handle the stress you
may feel and ultimately perform as well as you possible can:

● Start the day with a good breakfast and give yourself plenty of time to
get to the exam hall.
● Bring a few flashcards with you in order to activate your short term
memory just before you enter the exam hall.
● ensure you take everything you will need for the exam (pens, rulers,
calculators, water etc). I would make sure to bring a highlighter as well
as they can be very useful in highlighting key information within each
question
● Once the exam is finished, forget about it, don't spend too much time
going over it and enjoy the feeling knowing that it is over.

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Congratulations You Have Completed The
Ultimate Revision Guide!
You now know everything I knew before going into my exams and more! I want
you to Make use of the Methods & Techniques we have learned as well as the
revision schedule templates that are provided. I would also hugely recommend
that you utilise the 5 step exam success plan that we discussed in section 8! I
hope this Guide has helped you to get a hold of your revision and put you on
the path to Acing both your Revision and your Final Exams. All the Best! You
will do great.

If you have any questions please feel free to message us on instagram or Tik
Tok: @theexamplanner

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