How do you structure a day of revision?

AislingDM

If you operate by doing revision in any sort of structure, I'd love to hear about it! If you don't have 'much' of a structure I'd love to hear about that too? I know some people have coursework, exams and dissertations due so I'm sure we could all use the supporting tips

AislingDM

During my A-levels, I found doing 50 minutes of work then taking a ten minute break to walk around my house quite useful equally sometimes I used to ten mins to go on my phone haha x

Maisy

It's been a while since I had to do revision

I remember making a revision time table for GCSEs. During the school week, I would do an hour of revision every day after school, and I would alternate the subjects so I was doing a different subject every day. Then during school holidays, I just followed my school time table but with added breaks. So I'd start at 9am and do an hours revision, then I had a 10 minute break, then did another hour. Then I'd have a longer break (which would be my break time in school) followed by an hours revision, with a 10 minute break and another hour, before a lunch break and then maybe do another hour of revision or not, depending on how I feel. I'd be finished by about 3pm. And again, I'd alternate the subjects but I'd also spend more time on subjects that I wasn't very good at.

A-Levels were harder since the work was larger in quantity and also more in depth too. I normally would normally make notes from my school books and then write them out to memorise them but this didn't work too well for A-Levels and I wish I had more revision tips when I had done them!

AislingDM

That is actually so smart!! because that way you just try to keep us the same timetable/routine. And so very true about a-levels, lord were they stressful, as you say making notes isn't the same by that point I've heard a lot of people doing a-levels say that condensing their notes at different stages helped them? so maybe that works

Former Member

I actually don’t usually have a structure. I found that making a timetable with specific subjects at specific times didn’t really help me. What I do now I’m at uni is make sure that I write my notes up from all the lectures that week before the week is up, that way I don’t get behind. When I was at sixth form I used to condense my notes into mind maps and make sure I’d done the half terms worth of notes before the half term was up. I just work on what I need to. This way has always worked for me and helped me to not fall behind.

I write up notes in the evening most of the time because I like to watch TV whilst I’m doing it so it’s slightly more chilled than writing assignments lol. I then do any assignments and things when I have bigger chunks of time.

I love hearing about others ways of revising.

Former Member

What has worked for me is breaking down the thing I am revising for into certain subjects, and assigning a day/half-day/however long I need to each subject. At Univresity, my modules are broken into weekly topics so it makes it really easy to schedule.

I find breaking it down like this motivatse me because I have my own self-imposed time constraint and there is something tangible to fall behind on!

Remember to take plenty of breaks, and that your break isn't solely staring at a screen, as that can really tire you out. If I can, I like to go on a short walk to energise myself.

Although, I do think what works for one person might not work for another!

AislingDM

@Dandelion that acc sounds so very cool! And you're so so right, everyone revises differently, like even you being able to write notes with TV on mightn't work for others, but could be a more relaxing (and therefore, better for the actual learning) environment to study in for you! I also think it's a pretty solid idea to have rough timeframe expectations of yourself (e.g., like finishing the notes b4 half term) because then you can try to hold yourself 'accountable' to whatever progress you'd like to/are able to make

@Jordan this is really interesting too!! I think your point about breaks being a range of different things is so key, like sometimes we just want to scroll TikTok or Instagram, but sometimes it's great to push yourself to walk downstairs/to another room even! Changing up the day's routine is pretty awesome, and some say it brings novelty which kinda restarts your brain, so you're ready to get back at the revision

Former Member

I've always found that making lists of things I need to revise and working on them in my own time is a very useful method. I do this instead of giving myself a set amount of time to study a subject and then moving onto a different one as I often get disheartened if I get behind schedule and once that happens the whole revision process gets a lot more stressful lol. I feel like the lack of structure here is actually a positive as it gives me enough time to spend on something so I can do it correctly without rushing it which I would do if I was under time constraints. Also, the lack of structure allows for some wiggle room as tasks can often take longer to complete than anticipated, which would interfere with the whole schedule if my revision day was set out in a rigid structure.

Also, ticking off tasks that I have done gives me some extra motivation as I can see that I am making progress some progress

I find it useful to make one big list of everything that needs to be done and then each morning I can pick ones that are of high priority and make a smaller list so I do not get overwhelmed with massive amounts of tasks.

Former Member

I find making a breakdown sheet of the curriculum really helpful, like a tick list of each study, topic, etc. and i tick when i've read over them, then when ive made revision materials for each, and lastly when i feel "exam ready" for the topic. you can usually find the break downs of subjects on the exam board site- mine were all AQA

AislingDM

I am really loving seeing how differently each person is able to revise/learn - @robyn2918 those tips for going on the exam board website is pretty awesome and @SGooner I love that a lack of 'traditional structure' is what encourages you to learn, it really just reinforces that there is no 'one way' to revise

Azziman

I used a combination of methods - used the revision timetable as it's the best way to manage studies around other commitments. But it was a bit more flexible, because at the start of each day, I wrote a list of topics I wanted to revise and remember. If they were harder, I'd take longer, and vice versa. That way, I still had structure, but didn't feel the need to stop early or sit at my desk longer than I needed to. And it's also a source of motivation for me personally, because it's like setting and achieving goals for the day x

Former Member

I write down the list of things I need to cover, then write a schedule giving time limits to each task... often it doesn't work out LOL. Depending on how close an exam is, I will revise more or less
The MOST important thing is making sure you are satisfied and happy - take regular breaks and then come back to information later as it acts as a rehearsal which makes you remember more !!
I also deleted TikTok when I began revising as it draws me in and destroys my days lool.