Revision for Yr 9 exams

[DsRevision]

Ds has his exams starting the 2nd week back in the new year. As he’s missed exams the past 2 years due to lockdowns we are both pretty clueless when it comes to revision.

I know some people will think that yr 9 exams don’t matter but I want him to get some practice in revising. But I haven’t a clue how much he should be doing per day - he’s already saying that he feels under pressure from us.

Any useful tips or tricks? My GCSEs were all coursework so I really don’t understand how to revise

@DsRevision my dd is in the same position and in year 19 and has not sat exams due to covid!

Going my ds who is now in year 12 best to do a plan- sit down with him and work on a plan which is realistic but will give him confidence..he will know what topics to revise

Thank you - have you any thoughts on how much they should be doing each day?

@DsRevision sorry meant Year 10...

Each child is different- some like learning in the morning like my ds whereas I am learning my dd likes doing it in the evening.

It is best to decide on quality rather than quantity- so when he completes a topic your dc feels accomplished.

Don't give a set amount of hours...just work together and ask your child how long it would take abs is it achievable in one day or more and how would you like to spread it...my dd is very vocal if she can't achieve it in a day! Plus remember it won't always go according to plan...not in amthe mood...this is part of them learning . I rather they do a little bit and well rather than spend 2-3 hours for the sake of it and learn nothing...

Always best to have something look forward too

Ds has just done his mocks at the end of November and school suggested that doing 3 or 4 20 to 30 min sessions for each subject per day. Break down into topics what they've studied for each subject and then do 20 mins or so going over it by either reading, note taking mind maps, online resources such as maths watch etc and then have a little recap at the end of the session maybe with someone asking questions on what they've just done. The main idea is to do little and often so it doesn't seem like an insurmountable amount of work.

For year 9, I’d have a good few days just resting over the holidays and then aim for 4 hours of revision a day on the other days. When he goes back to school, I’d expect 2 hours of revision on school nights and then 4 hours a day at the weekends during his exams.

The key thing at this stage is to get into the routine of revision- so he should be making and sticking to a revision timetable, and be able to see a connection between hard work and results.

I’d also aim to continue with a study routine even after his exams so that he’s ready for year 10 and 11. Making revision a part of his daily routine really helps to build up the self-discipline and work ethic needed for GCSEs.

Agree that revision is about finding what works for them. Both my DDs have found the act of making flashcards v effective though - questions/main topic on one side and then answer/ finer details on the other. Literally the making of them does half of the work for them and then they have them ready for future revision of the same topics. This can be v helpful in Year 9 for subjects that have some content carry over to GCSE. It works best for content driven rather than skill-based subjects - Sciences, History, Geography.