Tips for exam stress

[katie,rinos]

Hey guys,
So I'm starting my trials tomorrow and I have nine exams. I pretty much only have one free day in the entire two weeks.
I'm not too stressed now but I wanted to know your tips for exam stress and how you managed over trials/HSC.
Also, what are your tips for studying after exams. Should I be studying straight away or waiting a couple of hours?
Hopefully this can help other people as well
Thanks heaps

[Natasha.97]

Hey guys,
So I'm starting my trials tomorrow and I have nine exams. I pretty much only have one free day in the entire two weeks.
I'm not too stressed now but I wanted to know your tips for exam stress and how you managed over trials/HSC.
Also, what are your tips for studying after exams. Should I be studying straight away or waiting a couple of hours?
Hopefully this can help other people as well
Thanks heaps

Hi!
Definitely relax Try not to jump straight in to revising for the next (or else you'll crash and burn by the end of it), and don't dwell on any mistakes that you have made in the exam you just had either!

Hope this helps

[fantasticbeasts3]

Hi!
Definitely relax Try not to jump straight in to revising for the next (or else you'll crash and burn by the end of it), and don't dwell on any mistakes that you have made in the exam you just had either!

Hope this helps

yes!! building on this, this is going to sound quite odd but have a nap after every exam. you may feel like you're wasting time, but by resting, you're allowing yourself to become more productive when you wake up. leave whatever shitty situation from an exam in the past, because it's in the past, and you did the best could anyways.

good luck, i know you'll do amazing!

[katie,rinos]

Hi!
Definitely relax Try not to jump straight in to revising for the next (or else you'll crash and burn by the end of it), and don't dwell on any mistakes that you have made in the exam you just had either!

Hope this helps

yes!! building on this, this is going to sound quite odd but have a nap after every exam. you may feel like you're wasting time, but by resting, you're allowing yourself to become more productive when you wake up. leave whatever shitty situation from an exam in the past, because it's in the past, and you did the best could anyways.

good luck, i know you'll do amazing!

Hey guys,
Thank you so much!! I'll definitely try to relax-especially after my 3 hour exams . I wish I could nap after all of the exams but I'm staying back at the school library for some days, and I don't think the librarians would be happy to see me sleeping!

[beatroot]

Definitely try to take a nap after your exam. You will be so tired after taking an exam and there's no point pushing yourself to study when your brain is trying to recover. I went straight to maths tutoring after my Paper 2 exam and I was so out of it because I was so tired. Ended up wasting 2 hours for nothing!

Ideally you should start studying 2-3 hours after finishing your exam (if its in the morning). Imo it's better to have a mixture of subjects to study per day instead of focusing on one subject, you'll get so bored easily. Don't study until like 11pm, stop around 7 or 8 and go to sleep at 9. You will thank yourself in the morning.

Also remember to treat your self after an exam! Catch up on your favourite show. Grab lunch with your friends. Go shopping. You deserve it!
Good luck with your trials!

[Opengangs]

Hi, katie,rinos!

First of all, good luck with your trial exams tomorrow! I finished mine last week, so I'm just preparing for HSC at the moment.

Having had two exams in a day twice, here were my strategies in managing stress during this tough period.

MANAGING STRESS

• Be well rested. I cannot stress how important getting enough sleep is, especially on the night before the exam. Being well rested and having a balanced diet on the day of the exam enables brain stimulation and encourages brain capacity. Not being tired during the exam stems from being well rested on the night before the exam, so definitely recommend getting enough sleep.
• Be well prepared. What I mean by that does not just apply to having an organised set of notes. It also means getting to the centre early. During my five hour exam (SDD + MX1 on the same day), I went to school 30 - 40 minutes earlier because it relieves stress and it means that you can actually prepare your final studies before entering the examination hall.
• Relax. Especially for the English exams, my peers would bring in three to four sheets of paper with their essay on it 20 minutes before the exam. At that time (20 minutes before the exam), don't do anymore study because that would most likely freak you out in case you did forget one topic. I recommend finding your own place, preferably quiet, and just relax. Relaxation strategies may include: breathing exercises, or just walking around the school. It's pivotal that you have time to relax before the commencement of each exam, because you're able to retain more information when less things are in your mind.

ON THE DAY:
It's always daunting when the day of the exam arises, because there are many things that come into your mind, and they will slowly consume you if not treated correctly. Here were my tips and strategies at performing the best you can on the day.

• Have a balanced diet. It's really important that the food you eat on the day is a healthy mix, because they fuel the energy needed to withstand 2 - 4 hours in the examination room. Here is a very useful list of healthy breakfast ideas that you can use.
• Read over your notes. On the day of the exam, you may tend to forget quite a lot of things because of the stress, maybe. So, I always read over my notes a few times so that I'm able to retain it for the exam. I don't recommend bringing in a full essay of notes, but rather use dot points from the syllabus headings to help steer you back on track. I definitely recommend flashcards and flowcharts if you're a visual learner.
  
  For instance, when I was sitting my Biology exam, I would always have a flowchart of the processes of DNA replication, protein synthesis, and DNA fingerprinting at the back of my head, because in this way, I'm able to recall each cycle. So, definitely use flowcharts if you're able to retain information better.
• Relax. Like managing stress, relaxing on the day of the exam means that you're able to be more productive. Learning to relax also helps with managing mental pressures, because when you're stressed or nervous, you tend to forget a lot of things. Refer back to "MANAGING STRESS" for some tips in relaxation.

[katie,rinos]

Hi, katie,rinos!

First of all, good luck with your trial exams tomorrow! I finished mine last week, so I'm just preparing for HSC at the moment.

Having had two exams in a day twice, here were my strategies in managing stress during this tough period.

MANAGING STRESS

• Be well rested. I cannot stress how important getting enough sleep is, especially on the night before the exam. Being well rested and having a balanced diet on the day of the exam enables brain stimulation and encourages brain capacity. Not being tired during the exam stems from being well rested on the night before the exam, so definitely recommend getting enough sleep.
• Be well prepared. What I mean by that does not just apply to having an organised set of notes. It also means getting to the centre early. During my five hour exam (SDD + MX1 on the same day), I went to school 30 - 40 minutes earlier because it relieves stress and it means that you can actually prepare your final studies before entering the examination hall.
• Relax. Especially for the English exams, my peers would bring in three to four sheets of paper with their essay on it 20 minutes before the exam. At that time (20 minutes before the exam), don't do anymore study because that would most likely freak you out in case you did forget one topic. I recommend finding your own place, preferably quiet, and just relax. Relaxation strategies may include: breathing exercises, or just walking around the school. It's pivotal that you have time to relax before the commencement of each exam, because you're able to retain more information when less things are in your mind.

ON THE DAY:
It's always daunting when the day of the exam arises, because there are many things that come into your mind, and they will slowly consume you if not treated correctly. Here were my tips and strategies at performing the best you can on the day.

• Have a balanced diet. It's really important that the food you eat on the day is a healthy mix, because they fuel the energy needed to withstand 2 - 4 hours in the examination room. Here is a very useful list of healthy breakfast ideas that you can use.
• Read over your notes. On the day of the exam, you may tend to forget quite a lot of things because of the stress, maybe. So, I always read over my notes a few times so that I'm able to retain it for the exam. I don't recommend bringing in a full essay of notes, but rather use dot points from the syllabus headings to help steer you back on track. I definitely recommend flashcards and flowcharts if you're a visual learner.
  
  For instance, when I was sitting my Biology exam, I would always have a flowchart of the processes of DNA replication, protein synthesis, and DNA fingerprinting at the back of my head, because in this way, I'm able to recall each cycle. So, definitely use flowcharts if you're able to retain information better.
• Relax. Like managing stress, relaxing on the day of the exam means that you're able to be more productive. Learning to relax also helps with managing mental pressures, because when you're stressed or nervous, you tend to forget a lot of things. Refer back to "MANAGING STRESS" for some tips in relaxation.

Thanks so,so much! This helps a lot! Really appreciated   What time did you try to get to bed the night before an exam? I think we're meant to get to school about 30 minutes beforehand-I think I might go to the library before the exam. I don't normally eat breakfast so thanks for the list-they all look really nice!

[Opengangs]

Thanks so,so much! This helps a lot! Really appreciated   What time did you try to get to bed the night before an exam? I think we're meant to get to school about 30 minutes beforehand-I think I might go to the library before the exam. I don't normally eat breakfast so thanks for the list-they all look really nice!

Hi, katie,rinos!

Morning exams: 10pm
Afternoon exams: 10:30pm (I woke up early for those because I wanted to get some preparation done before heading to school )

Of course, these times were relative depending on whether or not I had one or two exams on the day.

[jamonwindeyer]

Here is a guide on staying calm IN the exam itself!

Loving the advice given above - Remember Trials aren't the be all end all! Do your best and I'm sure you'll smash it!

[brenden]

Let me have the serenity to accept the things I cannot change
The courage to change the things I can
and the wisdom to know the difference.

- never stress again