IB and the holidays!!

As Christmas rolls along a lot of us year 13s are probably panicking about how to balance a typical holiday schedule with revision for the upcoming mock exams. So here are some tips on how to enjoy your holiday and still be well-prepared for exams:

• Make a Schedule: Although it would be unrealistic to plan every single activity way ahead of time, it's nice to be able to make a note of what major social events you are planning on attending during the holiday (e.g. a Christmas party, sleepover at a friend's, lunch gathering with friends who came back from boarding school for the holidays) so you can ensure that you have enough time for work. Once you get a general idea of what social activities you'll be engaging in during these few weeks, you can then plan out your time for studying. Try and do more work on the days before you're going out and less on the days after, so you could ease yourself back into work mode after relaxing but would be productive. 
• Study on the go: There are lots of ways that you can study while you're out and about. A good way to do this is to make flashcards that you can carry around with you everywhere. This could work with quotes for English, bond angles in chemistry, equations in math, dates in history and basically anything. These can come in handy for when you're on the train or waiting for the bus or when if your friend happens to be running late. Instead of just waiting around, you could be using this time to refresh on some important facts so they'll be lodged firmly in your memory by the time exams come along.
• Set up "rewards" for yourself: I think it's a standing joke among students that we would revise for ten minutes and reward ourselves with three hours of internet, but in fact, setting up rewards for yourself is actually helpful when it comes to motivation. Obviously it wouldn't be wise to revise for an hour and then spend the rest of the day relaxing, so a good way to do this is to set up rewards that come with time "limits". For example, if you're tempted to have a "Friends" marathon instead of revising for your chemistry exam, how about try finishing a unit of chemistry revision and then reward yourself by watching an episode? That way, you can get back to work after an episode finishes. Better yet, move the episode from your harddrive to your computer so you won't be tempted to click the next episode. 
• Study dates: A good way to see your friends and study at the same time is to set up study dates. Go for lunch or a movie but bring some work with you so you guys can sit at a Starbucks and study together afterwards. That way, you can get work done yet still get to spend a full day out with friends.
• You have less time than you think: This may sound pressurising, but a common mistake among students is that they always put things off until the next day because they think the still have time. You may think it's okay to chill for the first few days of the holiday because it's still early, but before you know it, it's the day before the first day back and you have heaps of revision or assignments to do. So it never hurts to start early, and just remember, you have less time than you think.