Exams and Revision

At the Gatwick School we have two sets of Statutory Exams; Year 6 SATs (end of Key Stage 2) and GCSEs (end of Year 11), as well as the Phonics Screening in Year 1, and Key Stage 1 SATs in Year 2.

Revision is a vital part of success when children take exams. This is true for all assessments and we have shared below a variety of resources and guidance to support them in making sure they are fully prepared for their examinations.

Well-being and managing stress during exam periods is also key to their success. You will find resources to support exam stress and good ways to prepare for exam days in this section too.

Tips for Revising:

  • Spaced Practice: Spaced practice is the exact opposite of cramming. When you cram, you study for a long, intense period of time close to an exam. When you space your learning, you take that same amount of study time, and spread it out across a much longer period of time. Doing it this way, that same amount of study time will produce more long-lasting learning. For example, five hours spread out over two weeks is better than the same five hours right before the exam.

To learn more: https://www.learningscientists.org/spaced-practice

  • Retrieval Practice: Retrieval practice involves recreating something students have learned in the past from their memory and thinking about it right now. In other words, a while after they’ve learned something by reading it in a book or hearing it in a class or from a teacher, they need to bring it to mind (or “retrieve” it).

To learn more: https://www.learningscientists.org/retrieval-practice

  • Interleaving: Students shouldn’t study one idea, topic, or type of problem for too long. Instead, they should change it up often. This also applies when studying different subjects and therefore, students should not study one subject for 3-hours but dedicate 30 min to one subject and then switch to another one.

To learn more: https://www.learningscientists.org/interleaving

  • Concrete Examples: Abstract ideas can be vague and hard to grasp. Moreover, human memory is designed to remember concrete information better than abstract information. To really nail down an abstract idea, you need to solidify it in your mind. You can do this by being specific and concrete.

Where can you find concrete examples?

·        Collect examples your teacher mentions in class

·        Search your books, notes, and other classroom materials for additional examples

·        Look out for examples around you as you go about your day

·        Share examples with friends

To learn more: https://www.learningscientists.org/concrete-examples

The Most Effective Revision Techniques:

Flashcards and the Leitner Model (Spacing and Retrieval Practice)

Creating flashcards can be very satisfying– whether that be because you enjoy creating a thick stack of cards or make them aesthetically pleasing with lots of colours and diagrams. However, if you don’t review them and test yourself leading up to tackling exam questions the job is not done! As a result, the information won’t be retained in the long-term memory!

Quizzing (Spacing and Retrieval Practice)

Quizzing consists on creating quizzes on a subject or topic. Students will use their books, revision guides, or any other materials with the content of what they need to study and will use the information to ask themselves questions on a specific topic. They can use a variety of question types to do so, from simple questions to multiple choice ones.

Students create the quiz and then put it aside. After a few hours, they will try to answer the questions on that test. They will then self-mark the test returning to the materials they have used to create it in the first place.

Using Past Papers effectively (Retrieval Practice and Exam Technique)

Doing as many past papers as possible and going over each subject’s specification before the exam will be beneficial.

Test your knowledge

Revision is often a process of memorising facts, dates, formulas and quotes, but the best way to make sure you’ve retained that information is to test yourself on it. Answering past papers helps you to work out which topics you know really well and figure out what gaps you need to focus on. By testing your knowledge you can check your revision progress and feel more confident about what you already know.

Apply your knowledge

Memorising your notes will only get you so far. Exams don’t just test what you know, but how you apply that knowledge and demonstrate your understanding of what you’ve been taught. You can expect to be tested in a similar way in your classroom assessments as the assessment materials have been provided by the exam boards. Exams ask you to solve problems, analyse information and make arguments so it’s a great idea to use exam papers to get used to putting what you’ve learned into practise and develop your answering skills.

Understand the questions

Practising papers can help you to get used to the style of questions that might come up in your exam so that you’ll be better prepared for the real thing. Exam questions use command words to tell you how they should be answered so getting used to recognising and responding to these is really helpful exam prep.

This year’s short assessments also use exam style questions so it’s worth getting to know the sort of questions you might be asked.

 What are command words? This video gives a useful overview of what they are and how they work. It’s been made by two secondary school teachers who pay a lot of attention to past papers and mark schemes, so they really know their stuff. https://youtu.be/j-V8N4FMYKY

Manage your time

If you’re using past papers, it’s a good idea to set yourself the same time limits that you’d have in an ordinary exam. This will help to give you a sense of how it feels to answer questions against the clock and get used to managing your time well. You’ll be able to see if you can complete the whole paper in time and if not, figure out where you’re going wrong. Set yourself up a revision timetable at https://getrevising.co.uk/planner

Past paper revision is exam training

Using past papers will help you to train for your exams, tests and assessments. You can test your knowledge, develop your question-answering skills and practise timing your answers.

 All of this practice will not only improve your understanding of the subject, but it will also help you to feel more confident about your exams so it’s a great idea to build it into your revision plan.

Looking After Yourself During Exams

It is vital to take care of yourself all the time, but even more so when you are studying as this can be stressful. When you are planning your revision timetable, make sure that you have planned breaks, and really use these to switch off.

Revision Breaks:

  1. GET AWAY FROM YOUR REVISION

    It’s really easy to spend both your revision time and break in the same place. Find a reason to go into a different room or even go for a short walk. This will help you to distinguish between your revision and your break effectively, so your mind relaxes.

  2. HAVE SOMETHING TO EAT AND DRINK

    It’s really important you stay hydrated and fueled during your revision and exams. Your brain (and body!) needs enough energy to maintain focus.

  3. AVOID NAPS

    It can be really tempting to have a nap during a break – your eyes may well feel heavy from focusing on text. However, a nap can leave you feeling groggy, making you lack energy in your next lot of revision.

  4. EXERCISE

    You usually do your revision sat down. Use your break to stand up, stretch or even go for a short walk.