Exam Advice

If you live in England, exam season is fast approaching (or has passed, if you're lucky..). I can't promise that the advice I'm going to give is going to be useful, but I'll try my best... 

• Don't leave your revision until the week before your exam. I learnt this the hard way. I started my revision a week or two ago, and my first exam is on Tuesday. If you haven't got exams this year, start your revision early. There is so much you need to know, and need to remember, so don't leave it too late. 
• Find the right way to revise. Everyone revises in a different way; for me, I find that reading the information repeatedly helps me, whereas some people find condensing information into flashcards works better, or writing questions to answer can help, too. Try as many different techniques as you can, because you need to be able to revise effectively. Also, don't revise in bed! 
• Don't be rushing on the morning of the exam. Try and arrive early, get anything ready the night before. You want to be as chilled as possible before you enter the exam hall. 
• Read everything carefully, and read all of the information you are given. Don't miss out easy marks because you read the question wrong. 
• Answer every question. Even if you don't really know the answer, take an educated guess. Use any information you can find in questions. If its a maths exam, always attempt the question; you get marks for methods, even if you get the answer wrong. 
• Take your time. Obviously you don't want to take too much time, but you get a fair amount of time. You don't need to race anyone, it's just you. 
• Focus on yourself. This one I need to concentrate on. Just focus on you. Do the best that you can. It isn't a competition. Don't be paranoid about beating the smart kid. Just do it for yourself. You are the most important person in your world, remember that.
• Remember that it is okay to take a break. Whether this is in the exam hall, or at home, if you feel your mind beginning to fuzz, just take five minutes to chill out and breathe. It really, genuinely helps. 

The final thing I want to say is, remember that exam results aren't the be all and end all. You aren't defined by s grade on a piece of paper, and you shouldn't put your life on hold for exams. One of my teachers told me and my friend that we're going to be fine with our exams, because we know all that we need to, and we've always worked hard at school. My advice to you would be to be consistent. Always do the best that you can. 

There are a few people who are so stressed about exams, they are intensively revising, and it doesn't work like that. When you revise, make sure that you're relaxed, you don't take anything in when you're in a state of panic. 

I hope this helps, whether you're doing exams this summer, or not. 

Good luck!
- Dottie.