Handling GCSE Stress

One of the most daunting elements of growing up especially during secondary education has got to be exams. 

From the moment you enter Year 7 all you hear is,

'This will prepare you for your end of year exams' 

From the moment you enter Year 8 all you hear is,

'If you thought last year was difficult, this will prepare you for your end of year exams'

Year 9 is where the pressure is piled on as you begin studying your 'option' courses. Thrilling. 

And from Year 9 onwards all you are faced with is the realisation that everything that you will do for the next 3 years will ultimately determine the REST OF YOUR LIFE, right?

Well, that's what we're led to believe. I can assure you that the pressure doesn't stop there. 

I have just finished my GCSE exams and I am awaiting Results Day. Help. 

In January I was given a 'Revision Timetable' a booklet allowing me to track every hour of every day for the next 4 months in order to plan my 6 hours a day of revision efficiently. And did I use it? Not once. Ok, I have to admit, now that I am filled with such dread and anticipation to find out my exam results I do wish I'd tried harder-BUT, despite that, I know that if I had worked any harder, I would have been even more miserable than I already was. 

Some days I managed to force myself through 3-4 painful hours of what I guessed was activity academic enough to be considered 'revision'. I came to the conclusion that the only way to handle exams and be happy with my life at the same time was to strike a BALANCE. If I've learnt anything over the last 5 years, its that life needs to be lived with balance. Compromise is a goddess.   

Without further ado I present to you..

My Top 10 Tips For: How to handle GCSEs

1. Don't over work yourself- Find out how long you can concentrate for, and never force yourself to work more than that, despite whatever hours your school may set you.

2. Organise yourself, but not with a strict timetable- Don't commit to a timetable or I guarantee you will restrict yourself and your motivation levels will be z-e-r-o. Write a list of the work you need to do, and the time you need to do it in, and make time on the days that you're motivated. 

3. Eat and drink frequently- You will not be able to concentrate on your revision if you're daydreaming about the chocolate biscuits that you KNOW are in the cupboard...go fetch them and munch away whilst working. 

4. Don't listen to music- As much as everyone loves music, me especially, if I listen to music whilst working I end up singing or getting distracted browsing Spotify, trust me..its a trap.

5. Free time- Give up one day a weekend or an evening to spend time with your friends or any other leisure activity you're interested in, yes work is important but so is relaxing.

6. Try and get a part time job- For me, having my job was a God send. This gave me a solid few hours where I was out doing something productive, therefore not feeling guilty for just relaxing, but it still gives you time away from school work. 

7. Revise with friends- Testing other people on facts etc enables you to reinforce your knowledge.

8. Give yourself things to look forward to- For example..revise for an hour, and then make cake! Everyone's happy!

9. Start revising early- When your school tells you to start revising, yes it may be 4 months until your exams, but get into the routine sooner rather than later and the rest becomes easier.

10. DON'T PANIC- Yes exams are important and you need to work hard, but ultimately failing isn't the end of the world, you can always retake.  

So, I hope these tips are somewhat helpful, I guess theses won't fit everyone's taste. But on reflection, they kept me happy and hard working simultaneously. 

Until next time.

Hannah.