GCSE Maths Revision Tips: Student Led Blog

Introduction 

Lilya, a Save My Exams GCSE student, has shared her top tips for preparing for exams. She highlights the importance of time management, gives tips on how to organise study sessions effectively, shares her favourite study hacks and highlights the importance of not over studying to help stay motivated.

Lilya is 14 years old and currently in year 10. She is eagerly preparing for her IGCSE exams and is getting ready to sit her IGCSE Exams this year and 6 other subjects in 2025. She’s passionate about Maths, Science and Computing and enjoys writing about topics that challenge and interest her. 

How to Manage Your Time

1. Prioritise and focus on the areas in which you feel less confident
   Do not concentrate on the topics you already excel at. It is weakness in the topics that you find challenging that will give you a lower grade so allocate more time to the topics you struggle with.

2. Limit distractions
   Study in a quiet place, maybe in a library where the surroundings are motivating, and turn off notifications on your phone or any other device. 

How to Organise Your Study Sessions

I follow my timetable. Without a structured routine, study sessions can become chaotic which leads to stress and inefficiency. Some days you might feel demotivated and decide not to study. Assignments, homework and revision can accumulate, and become overwhelming. With a timetable, however, everything is organised, you can specify when and what to study and you’ll feel you’re being as productive as you can be.

Find it hard to stick to the timetable? I certainly feel this way sometimes, whether it’s wanting longer breaks or just feeling tired. I suggest, when you first create your timetable, to try it for a week or two and see how it goes. If it doesn't work out, you could reduce the length of the sessions and concentrate on the things you like doing in the morning. This could be doing past papers or flashcards, for example. This way, when I wake up, I look forward to revising! You could also add more breaks, reward yourself when you accomplish something hard, or try to mix up your topics (for example, study maths for one hour and then, after a 15-minute break, study English). This means that your brain gets some variety and doesn't get tired of one topic.

Study Hacks 

1. When I practise past papers, I deduct 15 minutes from the actual time allowed for the paper. This prepares me for the real exam so that if there is a challenging question, I have an extra 15 minutes that I am not used to, that I can dedicate to that question

2. I store maths and science questions that I have answered incorrectly in a folder for further review. After three days, I revisit these questions and attempt them again or I search for similar questions on websites for additional practice. This helps me to understand my errors and where I went wrong

3. Print out the specifications for each subject that you are studying. After completing a part, highlight it to mark your progress. (Don’t hesitate to ask your teacher if you’re not sure what any of the content means.) 

4. Rewrite each part of the specification on flashcards in the form of questions. This helps you to ensure you know the required content for the exam. I find this particularly helpful in science. For example, in biology you could use the following specification point as a question, describe how specialised cells are adapted to their function?

5. Use mark schemes when making flashcards and revision notes so that you know the exact wording of what the examiner wants for full marks

6. Check the examiners’ reports from past papers. I read the comments carefully and try to avoid making the same mistakes that other students have made. This will improve your exam technique

7. Before starting a new topic, try to learn the key words and their definitions. This will help you to understand the topic

8. Teach the topic to others – to your parents, your siblings, or even to some imaginary students if everyone else is busy. Imagine there are other people in the room and you are teaching them
    

Memory Hacks 

• Active recall

  • Actively test yourself with quizzes or explain the topic to yourself

• Flashcards

  • My favourite memory hack is to use flashcards. I find that using online flashcards helps me memorise quickly

• Visual learning

  • Link what you are revising to something that you can see.  For example, in chemistry, you can create 3D models of molecules using play dough. As you sculpt, explain to yourself concepts like covalent bonds and why some molecules have double bonds or triple bonds

• Mind mapping

  • Create mind maps and visual diagrams to connect key concepts. This method means you have to write down all the information you know, which helps you to memorise and understand it better

• Repeat, cover, write, check, repeat

  • To memorise a sentence (or formula or quotation, etc.), try this method that really works for me. Repeat the sentence twice to yourself while looking at it, then once without looking (cover the sentence up). Then, write down everything you can remember. Check what you have written against the original. You could use a different coloured pen to add anything you missed. Finally, cover up everything you have written and write down what you can remember, and check again

How to Stay Motivated 

Avoid over-studying as it causes brain fog, fatigue and stress. When your brain is tired, it becomes harder to absorb information effectively and you’ll lose all motivation.

Most of the time, I think of the rewards I’ll gain when I ace my GCSE exams. I think of the difference better grades will make to my future opportunities. This motivates me to keep working hard.