How to review over the holidays? (1 Viewer)

[j12onuzim]

During the first week of the holidays, I want to do a review of the Space module. How should I do this?
Thanks

 

[Leffife]

The best way is to go through the syllabus dot points. Understanding the concepts is best because it will ensure you won't find much difficulties when actually attempting the exam questions.

 

[strawberrye]

Ok, to review the space module-the same principle can be applied to all your science modules as well, basically you need to do the following:

1)Identify which areas of the syllabus you are the weakest at and what dot points you don't understand (i.e. first hand investigation for projectiles for example), make sure you are looking at the ENTIRE MODULE SYLLABUS-this includes both columns

2)Use textbooks like Physics in Focus, Jacaranda physics, past HSC papers to really consolidate the things you do understand and more importantly, clarify any concepts you are still uncertain about-i.e. ask on BOS, ask your teacher through email, and practice until you are confident in answering EVERY SINGLE DOTPOINT-this includes the first and second hand investigation

3)Go to this link http://www.mathscience.com.au/student_resources.php -click on space-it will have all dotpoints-you can selectively choose which dot points you want to focus on-there are trial questions and answers-make sure you establish a time limit for yourself so that you don't waste an hour over a question. Make sure you write the FULL ANSWER and check with the SAMPLE ANSWER. circle any question you got wrong and do it again until you get it right and understand why you have got it wrong.

4)If you haven't written your notes, make sure you write concise notes taking information from several sources, i.e. textbooks, hsc online, websites, books etc-under every single dot point(don't neglect the first and second hand investigations)-the dot point series can also assist you in this. If you have written your notes-make sure you do a mind map linking different dot points together so that the module is composed of interrelated concepts, rather than separate ideas-this synthesis can help you to DEVELOP A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING AS WELL AS ENJOYMENT of the module

5)If you are weak at your mathematical problem solving, make sure you borrow/buy the surfing physics book for space-there are like 3 pages for projectile problems, if you are able to do every single problem correctly with correct working out and application of appropriate formulas-you will be able to tackle the hardest problems. Again, during your practice, if you don't understand, ask for help immediately.

Make sure you understand validity, reliability, accuracy, sources of error, possible ways of improvement, risk assessment for all the first hand investigations and you are able to write a clear procedure and more importantly, draw relevant graphs and clearly labelled experimental set ups for all the experiments.

Basically, don't try to do everything in one day-try to spread it over several days, with persistence, optimistic attitude as well as consistent study habits, make sure you are revising at times optimal to your brain's alertness and concentration. You will know you have succeeded if you just have the syllabus in front of you and you can expand on each dot point and can synthesise the connections between dot points-ask a friend for a study session, and try to explain everything to him/her-if you can do that-that means you have gotten a pretty good grasp of understanding. And once you have completed the above-you can study ahead if you want. But remember to also relax a bit in the holidays-don't burn out- hoped this post helped and all my best wishes for you to have enjoyable holiday studies-happy revision

 

[tashe]

During the first week of the holidays, I want to do a review of the Space module. How should I do this?
Thanks

Good idea! It's more effective to revise rather than to read ahead. I personally think that it's best to perfect what you already have gone through in class already than to start something with limited help.

1)Identify which areas of the syllabus you are the weakest at and what dot points you don't understand (i.e. first hand investigation for projectiles for example), make sure you are looking at the ENTIRE MODULE SYLLABUS-this includes both columns

At this point in time, you should already understand all dot points. That's what the school term is for, when you don't understand something when your teacher is teaching you about it, you ask for a clarification that instant.

Like strawberrye said, yes. Make sure you REMEMBER the practicals (2nd column). Write notes, if you have done that then revise you notes and perfect them. DO NOT DO PAST PAPERS UNTIL YOU UNDERSTAND/KNOW ALL DOT POINTS.

This is because doing a X number of past papers DOES NOT necessarily mean that you will address all dot points. Sometimes, exam questions only target a portion of a dot point.
I know doing 2X number of past papers mean more chance of addressing all dot points. However, THERE IS STILL A CHANCE YOU WON'T COVER SOMETHING. When you revise your notes, you CERTAINLY will cover ALL aspects of dot points.

2)Use textbooks like Physics in Focus, Jacaranda physics, past HSC papers to really consolidate the things you do understand and more importantly, clarify any concepts you are still uncertain about-i.e. ask on BOS, ask your teacher through email, and practice until you are confident in answering EVERY SINGLE DOTPOINT-this includes the first and second hand investigation

Textbooks are your choice. However, I do suggest the "Student's Guide to HSC Physics" that is around on BOS. It's probably better than a textbook as you have already finished the topic. Right now, your goal is to revise, not to learn the topic, making the idea of textbooks a poor option. Use it to compare with your notes, see if you're missing any important points in your notes.

Once again, do not do past papers until you have finished your notes and have revised them. I cannot stress that enough.

Yes, do ask your teacher through email, or the BOS community. They are your resources.

3)Go to this link http://www.mathscience.com.au/student_resources.php -click on space-it will have all dotpoints-you can selectively choose which dot points you want to focus on-there are trial questions and answers-make sure you establish a time limit for yourself so that you don't waste an hour over a question. Make sure you write the FULL ANSWER and check with the SAMPLE ANSWER. circle any question you got wrong and do it again until you get it right and understand why you have got it wrong.

Good site, however once again, do not practice questions until you know the content of your dot points.

Everybody has their own way of answering science questions. See which way is best for you. Some people on BOS reads the question, and then mentally answers the question in their head. Then check the answers to see if they included all points. It's your choice to pick which way.

4)If you haven't write your notes, make sure you write concise notes taking information from several sources, i.e. textbooks, hsc online, websites, books etc-under every single dot point(don't neglect the first and second hand investigations)-the dot point series can also assist you in this. If you have written your notes-make sure you do a mind map linking different dot points together so that the module is composed of interrelated concepts, rather than separate ideas-this synthesise can help you to DEVELOP A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING AS WELL AS ENJOYMENT of the module

This may be your best point so far. However, be careful when using multiple sources. Too many sources may be redundant and make you lose interest when writing notes. Once again, I do suggest "Student's Guide to HSC Physics".

5)If you are weak at your mathematical problem solving, make sure you borrow/buy the surfing physics book for space-there are like 3 pages for projectile problems, if you are able to do every single problem correctly with correct working out and application of appropriate formulas-you will be able to tackle the hardest problems. Again, during your practice, if you don't understand, ask for help immediately.

Yes, surfing is good. I think your school teacher should already given you printout of it.

Make sure you understand validity, reliability, accuracy, sources of error, possible ways of improvement, risk assessment for all the first hand investigations and you are able to write a clear procedure and more importantly, draw relevant graphs and clearly labelled experimental set ups for all the experiments.

See my post on http://community.boredofstudies.org/showthread.php?t=315983

Basically, don't try to do everything in one day-try to spread it over several days, with persistence, optimistic attitude as well as consistent study habits, make sure you are revising at times optimal to your brain's alertness and concentration. You will know you have succeeded if you just have the syllabus in front of you and you can expand on each dot point and can synthesise the connections between dot points-ask a friend for a study session, and try to explain everything to him/her-if you can do that-that means you have gotten a pretty good grasp of understanding. And once you have completed the above-you can study ahead if you want. But remember to also relax a bit in the holidays-don't burn out- hoped this post helped and all my best wishes for you to have enjoyable holiday studies-happy revision

Yes, 6 weeks is a long time. Remember to study for your other subjects as well. Write your creative writing for English.

 

[strawberrye]

Thank you Tashe for supplementing my response with an alternate viewpoint. I guess my response was deliberately more broad because I have very little idea of what OP has or hasn't done and what kind of a learner he/she is based on the very limited information provided in the original post. But anyways, your response is very useful advice to consider as well

 

[tashe]

No worries. Just giving back to the community.

 

[anomalousdecay]

The two above covered a lot.

Just one thing, you will need a break though. Take off the first 2 weeks and start studying in the new year. You'll find the break refreshing.