Exam season is in full swing and you know what that means – revision, revision, revision!
If you’re one of the students sitting GCSE exams for the first time since 2019, you may be feeling all the feels – but we’re here to help.
As well as having tons of study guides and brand new revision support content ready for you, BBC Bitesize recently teamed up with Radio 1’s Life Hacks for a one-hour deep-dive on how to prepare for your exams and help you manage your worries. Katie Thistleton and Vicky Hawkesworth were joined by Iain, who is currently studying for his exams; Jacintha, who took her GCSEs in 2019; and super star headteacher Mr Burton from Educating Yorkshire.
Here are their tips to help you breeze through this exam season.
1. Take a break
It may be tempting to shrug this one off and think ‘Oh, I’m a crammer, it’s how I learn!’ – but breaks are essential.
Iain said: “Avoid burnout. Don’t just try and work 12 hours without rests between studying. You need breaks in between. I would say that’s what’s working for me and keeping me motivated and keeping studying consistently.”
2. Reward yourself
That break we just mentioned may just be the gateway to your most powerful (OK – one of the most powerful) revision tool: a reward.
It doesn’t need to be anything big or fancy. Katie remembers two small treats that used to keep her going during her GCSEs: “I used to let myself have a break every hour and watch an episode of Fresh Prince and have a little ice cream. And I’m sort of triggered by both of those things now because I’m like oh no, I need to do my maths!”
3. Get proper sleep
Sleep is essential to remain healthy. It’s good for your mood, concentration and even your metabolism. Plus, making sure you get a good night's sleep on a regular basis can help to improve your memory.
Vicky also shared some, errr, wisdom: “If you read something before bed and then you go straight to sleep, you'll retain it better. I mean, I'm not actually a scientist. I just read it somewhere. And then I must have gone to sleep and retained it, so it obviously works!”
We’ll take Vicky’s word for it – just remember not to go to bed too late so you can learn stuff before you sleep!
4. Flip the script
Sometimes all you need is a shift of perspective. Jacintha shares something that really helped her when she was prepping for her exams – she calls it ‘flipping the script’: “If there was a topic I was really unsure of, I would kind of take on that teacher role and try and teach a friend that topic. It even helped to show like your strong points and your weak points, and often times when it came to that exam, you felt a lot more confident because it was like you’ve already taught this to someone.”
5. Remember this too shall pass
If you feel like there’s no end to exam stress, Jacintha has a gentle reminder that it won’t be forever: “The exam period is very temporary, and this stressful period won't last forever. And you have an awesome summer ahead of you, so definitely make some fun plans for that.
“And what I would say is just remember to keep a bit more of a balanced lifestyle. So don't give up on all the fun things you like doing. If you like going out for walks, playing a sport, journaling, hanging out with friends, still do a bit of that just to keep you like grounded and balanced and looking after yourself.”
6. Ask your teachers all the questions
Don't forget that your school and teachers are there to help. Mr Burton: “One of the main things is about getting every piece of knowledge and help and support that you can out of school or college, and making sure that everything you need to know, every question that you've got in your mind, you ask your teachers, because they are there and they're the ones who know you better than anybody else in terms of your learning, so make sure you ask those questions.“Anything you might think is a daft question is definitely not a daft question. Go and ask your teachers and any advice they can give you is going to be fantastic.”
7. Don't suffer in silence
If you’re struggling with anxiety or panic attacks, Mr Burton recommends speaking to your doctor and the experts at school who are trained to support your well-being, as well as some practical steps to keep you calm: “There are things that you can do about breathing exercises and counting to ten and breathing in for five, and then out for five just to try and calm your breath and sort of slow your heart rate down a little bit and be a bit calmer as you go in.
“That's important stuff, but like I said you need to speak to the absolute experts around that and if it's something that's really bothering you and it's something that really affects you and worries you then please make sure that you go and speak to your GP about that.”
If you need support
You should always tell someone about the things you’re worried about. You can tell a friend, parent, guardian, teacher, or another trusted adult. If you're struggling with your mental health, going to your GP can be a good place to start to find help. Your GP can let you know what support is available to you, suggest different types of treatment and offer regular check-ups to see how you’re doing.
If you’re in need of in-the-moment support you can contact Childline, where you can speak to a counsellor. Their lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
There are more links to helpful organisations on BBC Action Line.
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