I taught both Community and Family Studies and Personal Development and Health for over ten years and know what this time of year feels like. 

Everyone can see the light at the end of the tunnel but at the same time it seems so far away.  Now is the time you start to think about the trials and what areas you may need to revisit to ensure they have the appropriate knowledge and understanding to be successful. 

So… then the questions become:

• How do I utilise the time effectively that I have left with my students to keep everyone engaged and motivated to consolidate and improve their knowledge?
  
  
• What are some strategies I can use to reduce the anxiety of my students fearing the “unknown” of what might be in their HSC Exam?
  
  
• How do I create a learning environment where students can collaborate with each to either consolidate their knowledge, think critically about what they already know, feel confident that they have the required knowledge to apply it in their HSC Exam?

Beyond past papers

What I was always mindful of was making sure students were excited to come to my class.  I often found that in their other classes they were going through past HSC papers and/or just doing sample questions. 

Who wants to do 6 hours straight of sitting down doing exam practice? So I made the decision that when they came to my class, they were given the opportunity to move, collaborate, debate, think critically about how they might need to apply their knowledge and not purely spend the last 3-4 weeks of their school experience answering past HSC papers.   

Handy padlet

I have created a Padlet with some ideas for you to use with your class – https://padlet.com/clare_roden1/c8euf6lqh2r05mqq.

These are revision strategies I have successfully used with my classes over the years. I have either developed them myself or have adapted them based on the ideas of my amazing PDHPE/CAFS colleagues around NSW, who have generously shared their ideas with me.

Do you have ideas?

If you have some fantastic revision ideas that you are happy to share with your colleagues around NSW please email proflearning@achpernsw.com.au and I will add them to the Padlet.