How to create a mock revision timetable

Mock exams have taken on more urgency this year in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. Even with news of a vaccine, schools are emphasising the importance heavily in case there's a repeat of this year's GCSE and A-Level predictions.

It's just one reason why schools have increasingly used mock exams to mimic the real exams, and why they have increased in frequency too. It's now not unusual for KS4 students to sit up to three mocks before their actual exam staggered across the end of the year and into spring.

Just one more reason to create a solid revision timetable that takes into account the scope of the work you have to go over and the time you have. The good news is revising from now enables you to not only give yourself enough time to cover everything but also fill in those knowledge gaps from the end of the last school year when the lockdown was in full effect.

Important factors to note:

* A good revision timetable takes time to create. The right plan should factor in your strengths and weaknesses, subject goals, and a breakdown of how you will achieve this.

* Your timetable should always be adapted and refined as you progress and get closer to your GCSEs and A-Levels.

* Measure your progress based on how much you cover, rather than for how long you have been revising.

* Give yourself enough time to make your revision goals achievable. That might mean starting earlier than expected or revising for longer in the day.

How to create your timetable

1. Write a list of all the subjects you are studying. Place the weakest at the top and your strongest at the bottom.

2. Have a look at the subject syllabus and exam specification to see what needs to be covered for each subject.

3. Break all subjects into topics so you can see the scope of what needs to be revised.

4. Mark all topics you need to put more time into in red, the ones you aren't sure about in orange and the ones you are good at in green. You can even use this technique within a subject marking topics that you are weak in and need more time with, in red.

5. Now at a glance, you should be able to see which subjects and topics need more time allocated to them on your timetable.

As a revision timetable is a calendar that breaks down your revision into manageable chunks use the Google Calendar (great for your phone and laptop).

Start by filling in your day-to-day life - school, meals, downtime, nights out, when you are on school holidays. This way, you can see the regular time gaps you have in your calendar for revision.

Within these gaps start a regular daily revision timetable taking into account the subject list above and topic breakdown.

Give each subject an hour, to begin with (you can increase this as you get closer to exams) and next to the subject add in the topic for that day's revision. You may want to break up the subjects or study different topics within one subject.

For example:

Monday> 5pm > 60 minutes> History > World War II timeline and key moments.

Monday> 8.00 pm> 60 minutes> English Literature> Inspector Calls> 3 Character summaries.

Tuesday> 5pm> 60 minutes> Chemistry> Atomic structure.

Tuesday> 7pm> 60 minutes> Chemistry> The periodic table.

As you progress through your revision subjects you can refine your timetable to encompass more weak areas and knowledge gaps highlighted from work on past papers.

For more on revising for your mocks look at our blog posts on How to revise the right way and Time-Saving Mock Exam Tips.