Revision Techniques and Memory

[SomeFormOfSusan]

I've just realised that there is a week literally chocker with exams in every single subject ahead of me and I have done NO revision! All my classmates seem to have these dead fancy revision systems- one girl has a recording of herself reading her notes out loud on her mp3 player, for goodness' sake. Now, I'm smart enough and I understand pretty much everything in school and get excellent results in most subjects without too much revision. But my memory is absolutely terrible. So what tips can you give me for remembering things- especially dates, formulas and foreign language vocabulary? Also, just how exactly can I get into a mindset where I can sit down with a book and just revise without getting distracted?!

[Something against us]

For starters, stop wasting time here on posts that nobody replies to.

[Cassius]

Also, just how exactly can I get into a mindset where I can sit down with a book and just revise without getting distracted?!

Remember that if you don't do it, you'll fail the class.

[half a person]

Write things on paper and stick them to your walls, my cousin did it for history and got an A...

[PregnantForTheLastTime]

I learn well by rewriting. Recopying notes, making new outlines, making bullet lists, whatever. Everyone has their own way of learning. Some people are aural learners, some can memorize just by reading. I have to rewrite and resynthesize the information. If you think back, can you identify what's worked well for you before? That's what you should do.

Don't ask me, I am the laziest student ever.

[IDon'tOweYouAnything23]

People who say they've revised loads, probably haven't but it's the ones that say they haven't revised who are the sneaky book-bashers. What I do is just write things down over and over again until I can remember them or say them over again, be careful where you do that though, otherwise it looks like you're talking to yourself
Speaking of revision I better had crack on with mine, probably be last minute again though.... Don't do it last minute like me, that's a good tip.......

[Kilt Uncle]

Mind maps are always a good idea. Writing things down - repetition helps the information get in to the mind.

[CrystalGeezer]

Repetition and color. Write certain formulas in one color and other formulas in another. Colored pens are easy to get nowadays. (In high school I used crayons and colored pencils as the only colors you could purchase were black, blue and red.) Kilt's idea works well also.

[5am]

I agree with PregnantForTheLastTime; people have different ways of memorizing things. It doesn't mean you're exclusively one or the other, but it will make life easier for you if you'll find what kind of a learner are you.

personally, I have a good auditory memory. If I read things out load (or even imagine the words being said!) I'll remember them pretty easily. If I need to remember who to get from one place to another, that's a completely different story...