Study tips you need to know about
These are a collection of HSC study tips from our Mentors and past Talent students, and we’re sharing them just for you.
Don’t forget to share your tips with us over on Instagram @talent100education – let’s get cracking!
Refer to the syllabus
The syllabus is a checklist of everything that you will cover in any given subject. It also includes everything you will be tested on in future assessments or in the HSC. It would be a shame not to use it to your advantage!
Print out a copy of the syllabus for each subject, and put it at the very front of your folder or binder. When you’re making summaries for your topics, you can then easily refer back to the syllabus, and ensure that you are covering everything.
To make revising even easier, you can also label each section with the topic name, and include the dot points that were explored in each topic or area of study.
Stay organised
Always transfer all of your notes for each subject into a separate folder and colour code this if you need to – anything which will make the folder stand out from the others.
After school each day, always update your notes and date them, so you can easily go back and review what you studied that day/week, then cross this off the syllabus checklist in point #1.
Get into the habit of summarising your notes
We recommend writing summaries on your notes on a weekly basis, but if you feel you need to do this each afternoon, then you definitely should!
Not only will this ensure that you’re actively refreshing your mind about what you’ve just learnt, but you are making it easier for yourself when the time comes to revise for exams.
Summaries don’t have to be pages and pages long either – just a quick recap of the themes or topics explored in that lesson, and a few examples if applicable.
Don’t give up your hobbies
Exercise and physical activity is an important part of not only staying fit, but giving a balance to your life as a HSC student.
Sports are also a natural stress reliever, and will help to clear your mind and take a break from constantly thinking about studying and the HSC. If you aren’t into any sports, going for a short walk outside or to the park is a great way to relax and unplug from school work and social media.
Follow the inquiry questions from the syllabus
Going back to the syllabus again for a minute, another tip we highly recommend is to study with the inquiry questions on each topic.
Try and get these questions answer once you have covered each topic at school, since it will be good revision for what you just learned. Also, it will be easier for you to go back and study when it’s exam period.
Inquiry Question from the HSC Chemistry Syllabus
Feel free to ask your teacher to mark this section for you, and provide you with feedback on how to achieve full marks.
Find out your best learning technique
We have written a blog post on this in the past, but basically you need to determine how you can learn content in the most effective way. Rather than just memorising something word for word.
RELATED: Study Techniques for All Learning Styles
This could be anything from using highlighters, drawing diagrams, flowcharts, typing your notes, recording your notes via audio and listening to them, watching video content – the list goes on! Once you know what works best for you, this will make your study sessions more interesting. You’ll be able to understand the content better, and revising will actually feel more fun and interactive!
Practice papers
One of the best tips most Talent Mentors have across all subjects is always past papers! They are a great way to study, and will get you answering questions as you would in the HSC. There are so many papers available on NESA – just keep in mind some of the syllabus changes to certain subjects.
If you need some help in your Year 12 studies, check out our termly courses and HSC Trial Preparation classes by clicking here.
Our Talent 100 courses help to revise the entire syllabus, and encourage you to practice with 1-1 tutorials and our very own trial papers. Find us in centre at Epping, Chatswood, Burwood, Hurstville and Sydney CBD or try our online classes which are delivered live via Zoom.
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