Smashing your mid-year exams: Part 2

Your step-by-step study guide

Right now, it probably (definitely) feels like the world is against you.

You still have classes AND you’re still getting homework AND now you have to start studying for mid-yearly exams.

It might be tempting to panic but it’s really worth trying to do these exams right as they can actually go a long way in determining your rank in each subject going into trials. Also, now is the time to lock in some really solid study habits that work for you so when you start to approach trials and even the HSC, you’ll already have a killer strategy.

Now to stop wasting what little time you have, here is our no fuss, five step guide to studying for mid year exams.

Step 1: Get started.

Don’t hate us for being so obvious but the first step in studying for the half yearlies is definitely getting started and giving yourself enough time.

Hopefully you’ve already begun the prep but if not, now is the time to start.

Take a moment to look at the time you have left.

For example, if your exams start Monday March 20, then you have 5 weekdays and 2 weekends left to study. Now, start cutting out blocks of time.

Take the six or seven hours of school out of each weekday and maybe an extra hour for the day's homework. Take out your Saturday sport, your afternoon training, music lessons, work shifts, sleep (obviously), any social or family activities you have planned.

What you’re left with is your study opportunities - this might look like two hours every weekday except Wednesdays and 4 hours each on Saturday and Sunday.

Just knowing those opportunities exist goes a long way in knowing that you might actually be able to do this.

Step 2: Know exactly what you’re going to be doing.

Congratulations! You’ve decided to start studying for your mid-years…. Now what?

Well, put off actually studying for just one extra half hour and take the time to go through every exam you have coming up and write down exactly what you have to do in each one.

Is it just the topic you studied this term or do you have to think about Term 4 as well? If you’re studying Ancient History, then double check whether you’re just being assessed on your ancient society or whether they will throw in some multiple choice and maybe even a sneaky short response on Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Devastatingly, we’ll never know the exact questions of an exam beforehand.  But there are ways to kind of get around this.

Look to the syllabus to know exactly what content you could be asked about. Then, talk to a teacher and see if they will spill the format of the exams or at least give you a few clues. You might even be able to get your hands on past mid-year papers from your school.

You should be able to form a list of everything you need to know for the exam and what you’ll be asked to do with that info. This is the time to start shifting points from this list onto the schedule of your study opportunities and hey, you have a study timetable that actually fits your life.

Step 3: Focus on what you don’t know.

So, what happens if you’ve written a list of everything you need to know, compared it to the time you have to study and just freaked the &%* out. Because there’s NO way you can get it all done in time.

That’s probably happening to everyone.

It’s going to be tempting to start with the stuff that you’re pretty confident with but that’s time that you so don’t have right now.  Instead, look at the points you didn’t go so well with in the Term 4 assessments and the new things from this term that you’re still struggling with.

This is what you prioritise.

These might be things that you’re struggling to memorise - maths formulas, english quotes, history facts, PDHPE terms etc. Tackle these with flashcards, mnemonics, sticky notes around your room and other creative memory tricks.

But what happens if you just don’t get it?

If you just aren’t understanding an idea, topic or how to answer a certain kind of question then don’t waste time just rereading the same notes or textbook. Take a look at a video that specifically explains the idea in a really clear way so that it ‘clicks’ for you and then you don’t need to worry about memorising notes - it will just make sense!

Also, don’t forget to look back on your feedback from the Term 4 assessments so you’re not making the same mistakes twice!

Step 4: Practice what you know and what you’ve learned.

Studying is one thing but trust us, you never know how effective your study is until you put yourself to the test.

And FYI, the first time you test your knowledge, understanding and ability to apply is not during the exams. It’s beforehand.

There are so many ways to test out how well you’re nailing your study- just pick something that suits the subject.

• Writing practice essays is great for English subjects or even flashcards to test whether you’ve memorised all your quotes.
• Practice papers are the go-to for maths subjects and it’s pretty easy to find practice questions either online or from a teacher for whatever topics are in the exam.
• For subjects like chemistry and physics, try explaining (without any notes) some of the more complex ideas - like the difference between scalars and vectors - to any random family member or friend. Seriously, if you can explain it to someone else then you’ve 100% got it.

The feedback you get from all this practice tells you where you need to study more, where you might need to get some extra help and hopefully should give you little kick of confidence when you start to realise that you’re studying and it might even be working.

Just remember...

Time is always going to be pressed for the mid-yearlies so start early, find out exactly what you need to know and make sure you’re studying smart.

You may be able to nudge your rank up a little higher in your subjects and if not, then at least you are well on your way to perfecting your own personal study strategy that will help you knock the HSC out of the park!