After half term, some of you will be retaking your B1C1 test.  You will receive a letter home if this is the case.

In order to prepare properly for this (and not repeat it again!), you need to revise properly. 

Please see below my guide for revision ideas. You need to produce something over half term 

which shows that you have done at least 2 hours revision.

If you are not sure whether you are retaking please email my at my school email address.

Thanks

Mr Sanderson

Ideas for revising alone

1.  Dictate your notes into a recording device and listen back you yourself

2.  Write notes and diagrams on post-its and have them on something you see everyday

3.  Mind map your topic

4.  Memory challenge - look at the labelled version of a drawing or a piece of text for 30 seconds. Cover it up and try and draw or write what you saw. Compare the two pictures or notes. Whatever you didn’t include is what you need to revise more

5.  Cheat Cards- PRETEND you can cheat by putting the key points of a topic on a scrap of paper you can hide in your pencil case. Limited space means you can only write the most important things (Don’t use this in the real exam!)

6.  Concept Map – Write key words onto A3 paper, link them with arrows, write over the arrows how the two words are linked

7.  Invent a Mnemonic or Acrostic for remembering difficult concept

8.  Read the revision guide/your notes

9.  Make bullet points from revision guide/ notes

10.  Create an exam paper include questions and a mark scheme.  If working with others, swap and answer. Then swap back and mark.

11.  Draw diagrams/pictures from your notes

12.  Write descriptions of diagrams

13.  Answer questions from the revision guide

Ideas for revising with others

14.  Put key words and definitions on to separate cards, turn them all over and mix them up. Then try to find the pairs by turning them over, if you get a pair you get another go. The person with the most pairs wins. Play a few times and keep adding more key words and definitions

15.  Get pieces of A4 paper with key topics written on the top. Each person writes something about that topic on the paper and pass it to another. Keep passing the paper until it is full. Afterwards, check you understand everything on the paper, what you don’t know you need to revise further.

16.  Talk-Listen-repeat - Face a partner and talk on a subject for 30 seconds (they might want to write it down first). Now swap. Repeat trying to get more key words into the 30 seconds without looking at their notes.

17.  Using the criteria, give an answer to a question that will give you an E.  Next person moves this up to a D and so on... can you work as a team to push to the higher grades

18.  Each person writes a list of 10 questions on the topics you find the hardest (include the answers) then ask you questions to each other and score each other.

19.  Pictionary/ speed Pictionary – draw pictures which represent key words, team members or partners guess what they are

20.  Paper in a bucket – Write topic key words on scraps of paper, put them all in a bucket, each person picks one out and has to describe the key word without saying the word. Person with the most wins that round. Then put them all back. Round 2 – same thing but only say one or two words. Round 3 – same thing but act out the word

21.  Back 2 Back – One person describes what they can see on a diagram or picture on the topic, the other person can ask lots of questions but not look at the same thing. Student 2 draws what they think student one sees. When finished compare two pictures.

22.  Rizla/post-it note game (post it notes on forehead – students have to ask yes/no questions to work out what/who they are)

Revision websites

44.  BBC bitesize - http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/bitesize

45.  Yacapaca – revision quizzes on all topics - http://yacapaca.com

46.  General revision topics -  http://getrevising.co.uk

47.  Revision guidance http://www.rrc.co.uk/StudySupport.aspx

48.  Quizzes and games for most subjects at http://www.sheppardsoftware.com

49.  Make a cartoon strip at http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/Comix

50.  Make a mind map using “freemind” http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

51.  Make a mind map online for other users to contribute to - http://www.bubbl.us/index

52.  Make a speaking avatar talking about a topic http://www.voki.com

Golden Rules/Things to keep in mind

53.  Never revise for long periods of time without a break. 20-40 minutes per topic at a time with a break in-between is ideal

54.  Find somewhere to revise that you won’t be disturbed and where it is easy to work. If you can’t do this at home you could try…The public Library/The school Library/A café (you might have to buy something to stay there)/A friends/relatives house which is quiet/The bottom of the garden (if you have one and it is not raining)/A local park (see brackets above)

Planning your revision

55.  Work out how much time you have to revise and divide the topics you have to revise up between the number of days you have left.

56.  Draw the plan - one week per A4 sheet of paper.

57.  On the plan enter the fixed events which you have to attend: e.g. birthday party, Youth Club, Saturday job etc.

58.  Divide the remaining time into morning, afternoon, and evening sessions of about 3 hours each, e.g. 9-12 a.m.; 2-4 p.m.; 7-9 p.m.

59.  On separate pieces of paper take each of your subjects and make a list of all the topics for each one.

60.  On another piece of paper re-list the topics in order of difficulty - most difficult at the top.

61.  On the plan enter 3 topics for each session, one from each subject, most difficult first.

62.  Make a revision diary rather than a planner  - Planners can be ignored, but if you write down what you have done you know how much you have actually covered

63.  Memory is about repetition – covering things once is not enough

Practice papers

Do practice papers – these are available form most websites

64.  OCR past papers (click on the link and then go to the GCSE subject http://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/type/index.aspx

65.  AQA http://www.aqa.org.uk/qualifications/gcse.php 

66.  Edexcel http://www.edexcel.com/i-am-a/student/Pages/pastpapers.aspx

You must describe how to do it as well as completing the calculation