The final weeks before the exams are not only a
time for intense study and revision for the
children but also a time of anxiety, stress and
many sleepless nights. If you are one of those
students who is getting panicky and having
sleepless nights before your exams, then you may
find the following last-minute study hacks quite
useful for you.
Get sound sleep
First and foremost exam hack is to sleep well.
Getting 7 to 8 hours of sleep will help in
retaining whatever you study. It also helps in
recalling information faster. When you study for
long stretches without getting proper sleep, the
information doesn't get encoded in your brain.
Avoid waking up earlier than usual to study.
This may interfere with the rapid-eye-movement
that aids memory.
Revising before bedtime
Our brain is most active when we sleep. When we
are sleeping, our brain reorganises and
consolidates all the information that it has
gathered throughout the day. Whatever you study
just before going to sleep gets the top
priority. Even many researches have proved that
children tended to remember their lessons better
if they learned them shortly before a good
night's sleep, instead of in the morning, before
12 hours of being awake.
Learn by chunking
According to an instructor of one of the world's
largest online course, chunking is the mother of
all learning techniques. Children tend to
remember things better when they learn related
topics in small chunks. So break up the content
into small, meaningful chunks, instead of
cramming all the details of a topic into your
heads at one go.
Keywords for flashcards
Flashcards are one of the most common and
effective study tools since ages. Create
flashcards with small bits of information; box,
colour and underline to remember your lessons
and get them stored in your memory.
Take regular study breaks
Taking regular study breaks will help to keep
you stay focused and motivated in your studies.
It will also assist your brain to absorb more
information. Any new information after 1 hour 30
minutes does not get assimilated into the brain.
So it is advisable to take a 10-minute study
break after every 1 hour of study. This may
include drinking a glass of water from kitchen,
stand in the balcony to take in some fresh air,
just close your eyes and stretch your body etc.
However, avoid taking premature breaks as it
will make you lose track of what you studied.
Speak out your lessons loudly
This is one of the most effective last-minute
study hacks for the children. Rather than simply
reading your lessons, speak out your lessons
loudly. When you hear the words they are better
retained. This will enable you to remember
better.
Create Mental Associations
The ability to connect your lessons with other
things is not the fuel of intelligence and
creativity but it helps you to easily remember
information. Drawing diagrams of your lessons
will create a visual memory in your mind which
you can easily recall during your exam.
Group study
Group study not only enhances your confidence
level but it also helps in retaining information
in your memory for a longer period of time.
Group study also helps you to collect new
insights to improve your learning experience.
Practice meditation and deep breathing
Practicing meditation and deep breathing while
preparing for your exams will not only improve
your concentration level but will also help in
decreasing your pre-exam stress.
Walk before examination
It has been scientifically proven that walking
for 20-minutes before an exam can enhance your
cognitive performance by up to 10 percent. Also,
doing moderate exercise (20 minutes for children
and 30 minutes for adults), before the exam, can
boost your cognitive performance by 5 to 10
percent).
There is no doubt that studying hard is the only
way to secure good marks in the exams. After
all, there are no shortcuts to success. However,
the above mentioned tips will go a long way in
helping you to prepare and remember your
lessons. Some of these last-minute study hacks
may work for you and some may not work for you.
Just follow what works best for you. Good luck!
© Arked Infotech 2018