Being able to emphasise to Year 11 the importance of spaced revision, together with testing, as the most effective ways of revising gave them a sense of urgency but also realisation that if they start to revise now, little and often, the strong evidence suggests that they will be successful in their mock exams and beyond.

All pupils should have brought home a revision timetable for the upcoming mock exams, the bulk of which will start on Monday 27 November (after the Languages and Art/Textiles mocks). In order for each of our Year 11s to be the best that they can be, they need to start their revision (little and often) at the right time - and that time is this week! The revision timetable, pre-filled with core subjects and with space to add their options will help each pupil organise their revision time and will take them up to the mock exams.

The conference also gave Mr Clutterbuck the opportunity to show which revision techniques are not effective and why, as well as demonstrating effective techniques through practical examples. Revision should not be easy - if pupils are finding it easy, then either they are ready for the exams as they have learnt everything or they are not revising effectively. Typically, it is the latter that most pupils experience, and this is normally associated with poor techniques such as highlighting or passively reading through notes.

More effective revision involves various forms of testing from completing past papers, to mind maps and flash cards, all of which were modelled in the right way in order to be effective.

The conference finished with a few slides highlighting the importance of sleep and getting the right amount of sleep. In short, if you are feeling tired during the day, then you need more sleep!

For those parents and carers unable to attend, and any families who wish to revisit sections of the conference, a narrated presentation by Mr Clutterbuck is below.