Academic Counsellor News

The holiday break that counts for Year 12’s!

These holidays can make a big difference to the two months ahead (Year 12’s, that’s all there is!). Use this time to recharge and be ready for it.

Firstly, pat yourself on the back because you have now finished learning all subject content! Next, focus on the following things:

1. Complete overdue work requirements
   Any outstanding assessment tasks will need to be completed so that you can pass your units. The sooner this is done, the sooner you can prepare for examinations (scored students) or finishing school (unscored students).
    
2. Attempt practice examination questions
   If you are sitting VCE exams, now is the time to knuckle down and complete as many practice questions as you can, regardless of your marks so far. To get the most out of them, make sure you correct them and pay attention to the answers, especially the incorrect ones. When you do get some wrong, find more questions like them and focus on getting them right, so that way you can learn from your mistakes and not repeat them in the examination.
   Leave complete papers from the last few years to do in their entirety, under test conditions, closer to the actual exam date. 
   During this time, you will find that certain areas require more attention, so refer back to your study notes and talk with your teachers about them. Speak out loud (to others, and/or yourself!) to help with information retention. 
    
3. Plan it!
   Have a plan in place, so that you can factor in everything that needs to be done during the next fortnight. Don’t forget to include time to do the things you enjoy, such as socialising, exercising and hobbies, along with times to eat, rest and sleep. Here is a planner pack to use and fill out, with space to record the work you want to achieve, weekly breakdowns and monthly visualisations. 
   Look up the exam timetable if you haven’t already - click here to see it. You may like to  prepare your planner to reflect the time of day that your different examinations will be held; studying during the daytime (and not night!) is helpful at this point. 

If you find you are struggling to stay on task, stick with the daily organisation set by your school timetable.

Don’t forget to sign up for free online lectures from ATAR Notes and Skyline Hatch in the first week of the holidays! 

Parents and guardians, click here to access resources from ReachOut Schools regarding ways that you can support your child during the Year 12 examination period and supporting them when making decisions on their future.