Studying on School Break: Is It Necessary?

During the school holiday, most students head home absolutely delighted to have ‘time off!’ As a parent or guardian, you may feel conscious, though, that your child seems to have homework or revision expectations. Is it really necessary that they complete these tasks during a school break?
Everyone needs a break, of course, they do. For children and teenagers, it’s especially important that their young life is enjoyable and happy.

However, exams are important, too.
If your teen has January prelims, students must revise during the Christmas break to prepare for these exams.

Studying Increases Knowledge

Only naturally, some students will be more determined than others to achieve the top grades. But revising for exams is more than about ‘just grades.’ It’s also about confidence, hard work and resilience. Anyone that’s ever taken an exam will tell you that they felt better having been prepared. We provide revision courses, intensively, and we are highly recommended for helping teenagers to feel well prepared! Nobody wants to walk into an exam feeling wobbly or worried: making sure your child revises is one way to ensure they have some knowledge to apply. Knowing their exam technique and timing is part of the process, too- and the more your child can do of this- the better!
Also, knowledge is for life. Revision shouldn’t be perceived as a ‘temporary fix’ to pass exams. Instead, the perspective should be that your child is building knowledge to last a lifetime. If your family agrees with this, you’ll start to see that the input your teenager puts in now is contributing to a life of interest and opportunities ahead!

Studying Boosts Confidence

Our revision courses are an excellent way of boosting teenagers’ confidence. Unlike revising independently, our classes are targeted in small groups and led by subject specialists who guide your child through all the key components of core SQA subjects. Having completed revision courses, your child will have a much better sense of confidence as they walk into the exam hall because they know they have taken action to ensure their knowledge is as good as possible.
We offer courses for National 5s, Higher and Advanced Higher.

Studying Raises Resilience

Finally, resilience is something that not only helps with school tests, but it’s a great trait for life! This said exam years can be one of the first moments your child actually has to learn to be very resilient. There’ll be knocks, criticism and tough work during an exam year- but it’s all to achieve a (hopefully) positive end goal!
Exam years ask of your child to be resilient. Your teen is going to have to face up to this, and your support will aid this. Many parents turn to us, as a revision provider, to give your child that additional support and network when it comes to revision. Resilience is another thing you want to embed, ready for your child’s adult life. Revision builds resilience.

Sign up to our courses today: we run intensive classes across the Christmas holidays to help with January prelims.

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Crack Open the Christmas… Revision Cards

With the festive season upon us, your child is likely to be in the midst of academic throws: there are exams to revise for; prelims to prepare, and homework galore!
Whilst your teenager may not feel fully in the festive spirit, you can be sure that the Christmas holidays are a good time for a bit of balance. As a revision provider ourselves, our intensive courses are fast—approaching! We offer the perfect opportunity for your child to secure 3 days of the holidays to devote to our revision classes (giving them a bit more freedom for festivities during the rest of the holidays.)

Prelims are ahead!

When your teenager turns back to school in January, many Scottish educators will be putting your child into prelim exams. These mock papers are really important- they can’t be underestimated for how well they help your child grow in confidence, knowledge and revision skill. Once completed, prelims are also a good indicator of predicted grades, and how your teenager may fair come the final exams in the summer. For those applying to university, predicted grades may secure an early offer, so preliminary tests are a priority!

Revision Cards

Therefore, it’s imperative your teen does some revision over the Christmas holidays to stay on track. Flashcards, mind maps and quizzes are great for revision in general, but particularly for this time of year, they’re excellent for knowledge recall (and getting family members involved, too!) As a parent or guardian, offering to run through revision flashcards or suggesting you quiz them on topics can be a great way of supporting your teenager at this time. Whether it’s National 5s, Higher or Advanced Higher that your child is working towards, we provide a range of core subjects to fuel and feed your child’s revision process.

Over the holidays, your child is likely to want encouragement, motivation (and probably ‘a prod!’) to crack open their revision cards. Our courses are the ideal solution. Working with peers can sometimes be more effective than working alone, and our environment gives a highly-focused working environment.

All of our teachers are experienced school teachers many are also markers for the SQA, so offer a wealth of experience and knowledge of exam technique to our students.

Test a Peer

Also, there’s no reason why your teenager can’t use the holidays to study with a friend and test each other! Putting in the hard work- whilst they’ve got some time away from school- is what makes the difference in grades. Students who are willing to go that extra mile typically find themselves more confident in their road to success. Revision Cards Boost Confidence

Confidence is so important in tackling exams. As adults, we can empathise. We know that going into something you feel good about, makes for better outcomes. So why not sign your child up to our courses today; plan ahead, and make sure they have revision resources to hand over the two-week break? Getting effectively equipped and creating those revision cards over the Christmas break is an excellent use of study time. To achieve top grades, your child needs to act on some revision during the Christmas break. January will be a rough ride without it!

Find out more about our Prelim course here.

See More Here: Crack Open the Christmas… Revision Cards

Santa, Socials and Studying

The festive season presents your child with the perfect concoction of wanting to join in with all the fun; at the same time as studying for prelims and beyond! More than any other time, your teen needs to juggle the Christmas holidays, finding the perfect balance between festivities and hours to revise.

Joining our revision classes is the ideal remedy to strike a balance over the Christmas holidays.
There will be an expectation for your child (taking National 5s, Highers or Advanced Highers,) to revise over the break, but what better way to do this than in a motivated environment of like-minded peers? Christmas is a time where many of us feel social: it’s a lovely time to see family and friends. It’s healthy for your child to feel included and not ‘out on a limb,’ just because they need to study for exams.

Also, our courses span a 3-day period, so they don’t have to miss out on festivities the rest of the time. Balance is best.

Our courses are led by SQA teaching specialists, so the expertise and input we offer will be impactful towards your child’s success. The school holidays are an excellent time for securing knowledge, as well as taking a ‘breather.’

For many Scottish students, preliminary exams will be the first hurdle to face when they return back to school in January. Prelims are a vital part of the exam process. Not only are they there to ‘practise’ taking tests, but prelims give your child a great insight into where they’re working at, and what sort of grades they are to expect.

The results of prelims may also give your child guidance: which areas do they need to devote more study to next? Which subjects do they feel most confident in?
In terms of the academic year, Christmas is usually the ‘midway’ point. Remembering this is helpful. Not only can it be encouraging to think that half the hard work is already done, but it may be the ‘push’ that your child needs to re-focus and work hard after Christmas (knowing that there’s not much to go until the final exams!)

After Christmas, the next big ‘break’ your child will have is likely to be Easter. This is the next time when Scottish teenagers have a two-week window to really get on top of their organisation and revision at home. Easter is the next period that we offer our highly-recommended revision courses, too. It’s advised to book these in advance and secure your child’s place as soon as possible.

Lastly, being prepared and planning for the year ahead will help your child in the months ahead. Knowing timescales, and breaking revision down into clear chunks, will certainly make the process of ‘studying’ much more manageable!

Revision courses are ideal because, not only are they led by subject specialists, but all material covered is relevant and directly delivered to the SQA exams your teen will be taking. In addition to this, we find that students really excel at a revision when they do this in a purposeful, guided atmosphere.

In the mean-time, allow your teen to enjoy the festive season, but do set aside time for studying- and prepare for what’s ahead!

Source Here: Santa, Socials and Studying

Should Apps be used for Revision?

Screen time is so different for each family. Often, you’ll want to encourage your teen away from their screens as much as you can catch the chance, but sometimes you can use their devices to your advantage!

When Apps Work

There’s a wealth of excellent apps out there (do your research first, though) that are designed with teenagers in mind. Whatever the subject, there’s no doubt there’ll be apps your child can utilise to do some revision with. The main thing that apps can be helpful for is for boosting knowledge and revising factual information. Many apps work through online quizzing or ‘flashcards.’ Also, there are often lots of helpful videos and tutorials to be discovered, too.

When Apps Can’t Compete

However, it’s imperative that your child doesn’t rely on apps alone to revise. One of the most powerful, proven techniques for revision is to work on practice papers- and this type of activity can’t be competed against! As a revision provider ourselves, we know how important it is for your child to have opportunities to practise exam questions and techniques. By doing this, your child gets the incomparable experience of not only putting their knowledge to the test but honing their timing, skill and ability to work under pressure!

Also, our revision classes guarantee your child will be guided by a subject specialist for their SQA exams. Having access to an expert, and attending our specialised revision courses, is the best way to cater to for child’s revision needs. No app or online activity is likely to compare to real-life opportunities to talk through questions and absorb an expert’s knowledge!

App Aspects to Avoid

It is wise for your child to avoid apps that offer ‘chatroom’ style elements- even if they are linked to studying and revision! You never really know who your child might end up talking to, which can leave them vulnerable and exposed.
Instead, if your child wants to revise with others, it’s best this is done in the flesh! One of the best ways to work with like-minded peers is to join one of our excellent revision courses: we provide a focussed environment where our small groups allow your child to flourish! Our 3-day Christmas holiday courses are almost fully booked, so we advise you secure your child’s place as soon as possible.

Independently, students can quiz themselves by creating flashcards or utilising online tools or apps.

Apps Aren’t for the Future… Yet

As a final thought, there’s pros and cons to using apps for revision, but a big factor to consider is what is useful for your teen’s future. Whilst at National 5s Level, you’ll likely find an abundance of apps geared towards this age range, but apps just won’t cut it into Highers, Advanced Highers, and on to university (yet!)

The level at which your teenager needs to work at will be deep and detailed. Your child must be able to adapt later on and step up to advanced academics- which only reading, writing and research skills can effectively prepare them for.
Therefore, when it comes to apps verses conventional forms of revision, the majority of revision still needs to be traditional!

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