How can I Help my Child with Revision?

As your child approaches tests and exams, their success in these endeavours can profoundly shape their future educational and career paths. The responsibility of aiding effective revision falls on you. How can you assist your child with revision? This comprehensive guide offers valuable insights and practical advice to set your child on the path to effective revision.

Developing a Strategic Revision Timetable

Revision timetables provide a structured approach to exam preparation. Collaborate with your child to create a well-balanced revision timetable, encompassing all subjects or areas of learning. The key is flexibility—let the timetable guide rather than dictate your lives. Tailor sessions to address your child's specific concerns, and adapt the timetable for weekends, weekdays, and holidays. Sessions should align with your child's age, typically ranging from 30 minutes to one hour, with breaks in between.

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Consider the following sample timetables:

When deciding what works best, consider factors such as a child's attention span, varying activities, short, regular sessions, optimal study periods, breaks between sessions, and moments for reflection.

Exploring Diverse Revision Techniques

Understanding various revision methods is crucial to catering to your child's preferred learning style—be it visual, auditory, or kinaesthetic. Quizzes, detailed further in our Why Are Quizzes Valuable In Education? article, are excellent revision tools.

Visual Revision Techniques

Visual aids tap into visual memory and benefit visual learners:

• Together, search out interesting diagrams, flow-charts, grids, colouring posters, infographics, spider diagrams, etc.
• Use the curriculum-based quizzes on Education Quizzes
• Download or create pictures and symbols to help them remember
• Create colourful, illustrated posters of key facts
• Use colours and highlighter pens to write key words; colour in relevant sections or underline important facts. Draw attention to parts of spellings in different colours
• Make a fridge list to display key topics in each subject
• Place post-its around the house with key information to be remembered
• Read and do practice papers
• Find relevant and interesting resources by searching the Internet. Use keywords that include the key stage, the curriculum area and the topic, e.g. ‘KS3 English antonyms’

Auditory Revision Techniques

Some children thrive on auditory learning; engage them through discussion, interviews, audio files, songs, and rhymes:

• Discuss the subject, or quiz them
• Interview your child on their learning or in character – as if they are a historical character
• Make audio files or recordings of the subject by reading key facts aloud
• Make up songs and rhymes about revision topics
• If your child likes music, they could try listening to the BBC Ten Pieces while they revise
• Use mnemonics or memorable phrases, e.g.: “Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain” (taking the first letter of each word to give you the first letter of the colours of the rainbow). Personalise them

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Kinaesthetic Revision Techniques

Kinaesthetic learners benefit from physical movement; incorporate activities such as walking, jigsaw puzzles, and interactive gestures:

• Walk and talk. Go out for a walk and talk through their revision or subjects. Test their spellings etc. as you walk
• Set up different activities around the room, so they need to move to find out or write down answers
• Make jigsaws by cutting up texts or questions and answers to match up
• Use toys or moveable items to demonstrate learning – e.g. the D-day landings, using crockery and cutlery!
• Make revision cards to hold
• Use gestures or dance movements to help them remember
• Have your child write down key facts, answers and things to remember

Emotional Preparation for Exams

Exams can induce stress, so emotional preparation is essential. Ensure your child gets enough rest and is in a positive state of mind. Teach breathing techniques, control anxiety, and maintain a calm and confident mindset:

• If you join in with revision, this can help your child enormously – especially young children – but closer to exams, make sure they do some work by themselves so that they are independent
• Praise them. Don’t gush, and be brief. Confidence is key
• Reassure them that when they get things wrong, it’s ok. It’s all right to make mistakes - they are useful and a great way to learn!
• Teach your child breathing techniques to calm them down and lower their heart rate
• If they are anxious, teach them to take control by telling them to imagine that any butterflies in their tummy can be asked to fly in an arrow-formation, heading for success!
• Know when to push, and when good enough is enough

Avoiding Bribes for Revision

Avoid resorting to bribes for revision. Encourage intrinsic motivation rather than relying on external rewards. Reassure your children that your love for them is not contingent on their academic achievements.

Supporting Your Child Through Revision

More than just aiding in the technical aspects of revision, emotional support is crucial. Acknowledge your child's efforts, praise them, and reassure them that mistakes are part of the learning process. Active involvement in revision can be beneficial, especially for younger children, but gradually encourage independence as exams approach.

Accessing Additional Resources

If you seek further educational insights and resources, EQ's Knowledge Bank is a valuable repository. With dozens of articles addressing specific questions asked by parents across all school stages, you can find tips and advice to raise happy and secure children—a great addition to your parenting toolkit!

SEE HOW WE MAKE REVISION EASIER FOR KIDS