Revision Guide: General Principles

Some important principles

If you were preparing to run a marathon you could start by watching some videos of Paula Radcliffe. After a while you might think you understood enough about marathon running to give it a go, but if you did, you'd end up in a heap after 2 miles and may be finish the course by walking in about a days time.

To properly prepare, you'd have to get out there and start running. You have to put your feet on the road and build up your muscles and your stamina. Diet is also important and getting decent kit too.

Mental Muscle

Your brain is just like your legs and lungs. It's a mental muscle that needs to be built up and its stamina developed. Use it or lose it!

When you prepare for exams you have to put your feet on the road - you have to get your brain thinking.

• do past paper questions
• test yourself by writing out key facts from memory
• get someone else to test you
• write out an argument or description of something you need to know
• give a presentation, even if it's to the cat or the goldfish, just saying something out loud or explaining something to someone else makes you clarify it in your own mind.

You can't prepare for an exam by just looking at the pictures in a revision guide. In an exam you have to write answers to questions. So your revision should be like that - practice writing what you know - check it - and then write it again.

Your mental muscle might start to feel the strain but, with no pain, there's no gain!

Diet and Equipment

Think also about your diet, and your equipment.

• Eat healthily; keep hydrated with juice or water.
• Take exercise to keep up a good circulation, even a walk will do.
• Sleep well - don't drive yourself working too late, but do look at something last thing at night, somehow it helps remember it

Buy yourself some quality pens that you like writing with, not just hoping that a biro from the corner store will last you the whole exam. And if you know you'll need a pencil for diagrams, buy a whole box, and a sharpener, or buy my favourite, a propelling pencil. You don't need to sharpen those and they always give a fine line.