First thing’s first…DON’T PANIC about revision! Lots of you felt unprepared for your mocks, but that’s what mocks are for – they show you what you need to do for the real thing. The best thing you can do is REVISE! For those of you who have been revising for some time, well done! Use this page to check that you’re on track and to get some fresh ideas. For those of you who haven’t started your revision yet, it’s definitely not to late to START! Here are some ideas of how to get organised. You do not need to start with all of these suggestions, just take them one at a time and get used to revising sooner rather than later SO THAT YOU CAN FEEL CONFIDENT ABOUT ACHIEVING YOUR BEST!

Prioritise – Between now and your Paper 2 mock at the end of January, you will be studying Public Health. Make this your priority for the next month! There is no point in spending all of your evenings studying American West whilst neglecting Public Health! Get this nailed now and that’s a whole paper in the bag! Not only will you learn about Public Health over the next month, but the main focus will be on source analysis, so that’s two birds with one stone because you need to be good at that for paper 1 too!! If you feel you have time, it might be an idea to make some revision aids that are read to use once your paper 2 mock is done and dusted. We will be starting class-based revision classes as soon as you sit your next mock (so Jan – May), and we will revisit both Medicine Trough Time and American West, as well as the skills you need to answer the questions. Lots of people did not complete the paper correctly, so exam technique will be a priority in those lessons. DO NOT REVISE NORTHERN IRELAND.

Taking notes in lessons – without notes, what will you revise from? For Public Health, make sure you take notes during your lessons and spend some time reading through the topic book and making notes. You’ve all been given handouts for Medicine Through Time and American West, so if you didn’t take notes in the lessons, use these. Don’t just read them, you need to understand them, so put key points into your own words. Note taking is a skill that needs to be practised, the more you do it the better your notes will be and the easier revision will be. Take note of the language used in the handouts (ie signifies, infers, implies, suggests, contradicts) and use this type of language in your own notes to get used to it (the examiners love these types of words).

Organise your work into folders/books for each topic – If everything is kept in order, you’ll know where everything is when it comes to revising. It’s so important that you bring your workbooks with you to every lesson so that your work is kept together. If you would like a folder to keep worksheets in, then ask Mrs G next lesson.

Create revision aids as you go – For each topic, create different types of revision aid. You won’t know which revision aids work for you until you’ve tried them, so don’t leave them until the last minute, experiment now! There are lots of ideas on the internet, but start by trying things like spider diagrams, flash cards/post it notes, creating a game like Blockbusters to test each other, mneumonics or tables and charts. You could start by making some now for American West whilst it’s fresh in your head (one for homesteaders, one for Indians, one for ranchers, one for conflict etc). If you spend some time making them over the Christmas holidays, you won’t be panicking about how you’re going to fit all your revision in after January, you’ll already have the aids ready to go!!

Make use of the internet – the internet is an amazing resource for learning! There are so many revision videos on YouTube that you could use to refresh your memory on different topics, or you could even take a look at BBC Bitesize (which I remember using when I sat my own GCSEs). If you need some advice on where too look then feel free to ask, but here are some links to what you’ve already been studying:

Bitesize MTT – http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/guides/zb6bkqt/revision

Bitesize AW – http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/history/shp/americanwest/

Bitesize PH – http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/standard/history/1830_1930/public_health/revision/1/

 

Find a revision buddy – Find a friend who is willing to revise with you. Your buddy doesn’t even have to study History, it just needs to be someone willing to test you (ie using your flash cards) and perhaps you could return the favour and help them in another subject too. If you can’t find anyone willing to help, then feel free to drop into Mrs G’s Wednesday drop-in sessions.

Look after yourself – Eat healthily! You need a healthy diet for your brain to function properly – lots of veg and lots of healthy fats (fish, avocados, nuts and seeds). Take rest breaks (there’s only so long you can focus for, so do not cram). Get some sleep! Your mind processes information and makes sense of everything whilst you sleep, so this is very important! Make sure you are getting a MINIMUM of 8 hours sleep a night (teenages need more than adults).

Treat yourself – Studying doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom! Have you thought about buying a book or watching a film that relates to what you’re studying? There are plenty of books, TV programmes and films based on historical events that are sure to get you interested in what you’re studying. Here are some ideas of books and films that are based on American West and Public Health: