Keeping motivated during the school holidays

It’s the awkward divide between when the last term of Year 12 finishes, and when the HSC Exams take place

For many, it’s an odd combination of relief and stress, and freedom and restriction. Suddenly, you no longer have the structure of the school day and very few commitments; at the same time, there seems to be a huge expectation to put in a great deal of work for your HSC exams.

If STUVAC hasn’t started for you already, it will soon. So, it’s important to make sure that you spend the time in the best way possible to prepare you for your upcoming HSC exams. This doesn’t necessarily mean planning out your study well; in fact, there’s a lot more to preparing for your HSC than being on top of your work. Your physical and mental well-being are just as important in your preparation.

So, what’s the best way to manage your preparation in this period? Here are a few of our tips:

Wake up at the same time each morning and set a routine

It’s very tempting to exercise your newfound freedom by waking up in the afternoon every day. After all, you might think that with all this extra time on your hands, you can afford to relax your school routine a bit.

While this is true to some extent, the reality is, adhering to a regular structure in your day makes you far more productive. This is a tip that we hear time and time from our top students, and it goes beyond just waking up at the same time each day: allocate study time, eating time, and recreation to build a routine that works for your – and then stick to it! You’ll be amazed at how much more you get done.

There is also a secondary purpose to maintaining the same daily routine each day. On exam day, you’ll have to wake up at a specific time and be mentally ready to go, right off the mark. This will be a challenge if you aren’t already used to functioning at your maximum at the right point in the day. By building a daily routine around the times you wake up and work, you’ll also teach your body and brain to be operating at full potential during the specific time windows when you’ll be sitting your exams.

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