<strong>Just mentioning the word "exam" often incites all-round stress and tension.  Whether you're the one sitting the exam, or parenting the student undergoing exam, the road leading to exam day is often fraught with late nights, tension filled weekends, stress induced illness and, let's face it, not a lot of laughs.</strong>
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Putting your head in the sand may seem like a good way to deal with it!
<em><strong>But, it doesn't have to be that bad.</strong></em>
No.  Seriously.
We all know that preparing for exams should involve setting goals, developing a plan, being organised and revising work, right?  We've all been told at numerous times that cramming doesn't work and many of us have experienced that first hand (when it's all a bit too late).  Knowing that fact is great, but doing something about it, well, that's what makes the difference.
To avoid the cramming session during the night before, we really need to be organised from day one.  This may sound onerous, but it really doesn't have to be. so stay with me.
When you know when your exams are, simply count back from there to create a plan.  And don't forget to write it down!  Grab a planner that you can write on (and make updates to along the way).
<img class="alignright wp-image-290 size-full" src="https://redtickeducation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/04/Blog-Term-plan-image.jpg" alt="Blog---Term-plan-image" width="400" height="162" />A Planner that shows your term-at-a-glance allows you to look at the big picture before breaking it down into workable "bite-size" pieces.  By capturing the pressure points for the term you can better negotiate your way through the high stress times and plan your commitments to obtain some semblance of balance.
Displaying your plan where you can easily see it as a daily reminder is vital to remaining on track.  Once you have your big picture in place, the next step is to break it down further into more bite-sized pieces by creating daily and weekly plans.
The weekly plan allows you to allocate time to each subject throughout the week the process of revising regularly ensures that information moves from your short term memory to your long term memory.  Scheduling your homework, study and assignment work on a weekly basis allows you to incorporate additional commitments like soccer training, Taekwondo-do, music practice, part-time jobs and, well, you get the picture.  Plus, it ensures you won't forget something!
<img class="alignright wp-image-291 size-full" src="https://redtickeducation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/04/Blog-weekly-routine.jpg" alt="Blog---weekly-routine" width="400" height="135" />While it may be difficult to imagine, life outside the classroom doesn't cease when you're preparing for exams.  These other commitments need to be prioritised along with your study.  Juggling commitments doesn't end when you leave school, so learning to do that efficiently now will benefit you long after you graduate and you're working to deadlines in the workplace.
It's all about organising your time and establishing a routine. Working consistently with your plan will not only keep you on track, but will form the basis of good study habits.
If you want a good planner that includes your goals, your term-at-a-glance, your weekly and daily routine, as well as tracker to record your progress, Red Tick Education have planners ready for you to use.  They are easy to understand, simple to use and will assist you to develop a solid workable routine.
Good study habits and a solid routine will help reduce your stress and enable you to work towards your goals, develop good time management skills and create some balance in your life.  Check them out here!
If you're after some tips on how to study effectively once you've filled out your planner, see our <a href="https://redtickeducation.com/study-tips-2/">Study Tips</a> article.