A brief introduction to some key revision skills for KS3 and above.

3. Can you remember school’s phone
number? +90 390 404 03 75

4. How to Revise
A brief introduction

5. Methods of Revision – General advice
• The method that does
not work is to do little or
no work at all!

6. Highlighter Pens
• Use highlighter pens to pick out the key points
in your notes. You could, where appropriate,
colour code these, so that sections in a certain
topic are in a certain colour. Whenever that
topic comes up, the same colour is used

8. Reduced notes
• Some people like to produce reduced notes,
which have the key points alone on them

9. Cue Cards
• Reduced notes can then go on cue cards. You
can easily put them in your pocket and look at
them again when you have a few spare
moments…

10. Mindmaps

11. Bullet points
• Making bullet pointed summaries of key
sections of notes can be useful. It works well
for some!

12. Post it notes:
• Stick them up in the house where you will come across them…
Key words – Key formulas – key questions etc.

13. Revision StrategiesVisual Approaches
• Make full use of charts and diagrams in textbooks and
handouts.
• Create spider diagrams using colours and images.
• Highlight key points, using colour coding e.g. yellow for
arguments for, orange for arguments against (stick to the
same code throughout!).
• Write 5 key points on a Post-It note and stick over a
paragraph of text.
• Stick Post-It notes in particular parts of your room.
Visualise these areas to help you recall the information.

14. Revision Strategies
Auditory Approaches
• Read the text aloud - in situations where you
need to be quiet, read ‘under your breath’.
• Make up questions about the topic and ask
someone to test you.
• ‘Teach’ someone else what you have learnt.
• Read the information into a digital voice
recorder and listen to it frequently.

15. Revision Strategies
Kinaesthetic Approaches
• Create a ‘video’ of a text in your mind’s eye as you read it.
• Write out the main points on the back of an index card
(around 5 per card). Write a question for each point on the
front of the card and ‘flip’ between questions and answers.
• Write down key points on coloured Post-It notes. Stick the
notes in different places in your room and recall that place to
help you remember the information.
• Draw a flow diagram containing the main points.
• Make up actions to go with the key words/ideas you need to
learn.

17. Teach someone
We take in:
• 10% of what we see;
• 20% of what we hear;
• 50% of what we see and hear and
• 95% of what we teach someone else
(Barwood 2005).

18. General points:
• Some people like to use the same documents
constantly
• Especially if they are colour coded, they
actually become able to picture the page in
their minds
• Others prefer variety, as they find it terribly dull
to use the same thing again and again

19. General points:
• So, you might want to look at the same topic in
your own notes, then on a website, then in the
textbooks
• If you learn by repeatedly rereading a text,
that’s fine.
• But try some more active learning methods
too. You may be pleasantly surprised!

20. Revision Strategies
• Around 70% of what you learn is likely to be forgotten
within 24 hours - you must review the information
regularly after the first learning.
• For each topic, spend around 10 minutes going over
your revision notes within the first 24 hours, a day
later, then weekly until the time of the exam.
‘All learning without
reviewing is like filling
the bath with the plug out ’
(Hughes 1999).

21. DON’T!
• Revise in bed. You will fall asleep!

22. DON’T!
• Revise in a noisy place
which is full of
distractions

23. DON’T!
• Decide to dictate everything you have written
onto tape or ipod or mp3 or any other digital
innovation! You will be in Year 13 by the time
you have finished!
• By all means dictate key ideas selectively

24. DON’T!
• Decide to write again every single word you
have ever written since starting your study. It
does not work and you will not have time for
that

25. Do!
• Eat and drink plenty
• Keep revision sessions short and sharp
• Review what you have done
• Revise the bits you hate or find hard first then they
are done!
• Be honest with yourself.
• Turn off Facebook/phone/twitter/
• Youtube/Snap Chat etc.

28. Grit
• In many different investigations, one
characteristic emerged as a significant
predictor of success. And it wasn't social
intelligence. It wasn't good looks, physical
health, and it wasn't I.Q.
• It was grit.

29. • Grit is passion and perseverance for very long-
term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is
sticking with your future, day in, day out, not
just for the week, not just for the month, but
for years, and working really hard to make that
future a reality. Grit is living life like it's a
marathon, not a sprint.

30. • A study of US public schools. Shows that
grittier kids were significantly more likely to
graduate.
• More self discipline and strength of character
you have the more likely you are to succeed.

33. Good
luck