🧪 Strategies

Retrieval Practice

The single most powerful revision technique: testing yourself. Here's how to do it properly.

If you only take one thing from this entire Revision HQ, make it this:

Testing yourself is not just a way to check what you know — it's the most powerful way to learn in the first place.

This is called retrieval practice, and decades of research show it dramatically outperforms other study methods.

Why Testing Beats Studying

This sounds backwards. Surely you should study first, then test yourself to see if it worked?

But here's what the research shows: the act of trying to remember something strengthens your memory far more than the act of studying something.

In one famous experiment:

Group A: Studied material four times
Group B: Studied once, then took three practice tests

A week later, Group B remembered significantly more — even though Group A spent more time "studying."

Why does this happen?

When you try to retrieve information from memory:

You strengthen the neural pathways to that information
You discover what you actually know vs. what you just recognise
You practice the exact skill you need in the exam — pulling information from memory under pressure

Reading your notes feels productive. But you're just recognising information, not retrieving it. And recognition is easy; retrieval is what you need in an exam.

The Blank Page Challenge

This is the simplest and most powerful retrieval technique. It works for any topic.

How to do it:

Get a blank piece of paper
Write the topic name at the top (e.g., "Pythagoras' Theorem")
Set a timer for 5-10 minutes
Write down everything you can remember about that topic

The key concepts
Formulas
Methods/steps
Example problems and solutions
Common mistakes to avoid
When to use it

Don't look at your notes until the timer ends
After the timer, check your notes. Add anything you missed in a different colour.

The gaps you find are gold — they show you exactly what needs more work.

Example: Blank Page on Straight Line Graphs

After 8 minutes, a student might write:

"Straight line graphs have equation $y = mx + c$ where $m$ is the gradient and $c$ is the y-intercept.

Gradient = change in y ÷ change in x = rise/run

To find gradient from two points: ... um... something with $y_2 - y_1$...

Parallel lines have the same gradient. Perpendicular lines... negative reciprocal? Like if one is 2, the other is $-\frac{1}{2}$

To sketch: find where it crosses y-axis (that's c), then use gradient to find another point

Can't remember: how to find equation when given two points, what happens with horizontal/vertical lines"

Now they know exactly what to focus on: the gradient formula and finding equations from two points.

Cover-Write-Check

A quick retrieval technique for formulas and facts:

Look at the formula/fact
Cover it up
Write it from memory
Check if you got it right
Repeat until you can do it without errors

This is much more effective than just reading formulas repeatedly.

Make It Harder

Once you can do cover-write-check easily:

Wait 5 minutes before writing (add a delay)
Do several formulas, then write them all at once
Mix up the order
Include "when to use" as well as the formula itself

The harder the retrieval, the stronger the learning.

Flashcards Done Right

Flashcards can be brilliant for retrieval practice — but most students use them wrong.

❌ Wrong Way

Read the question, flip over, read the answer
Put it aside
Feel good about "knowing" it

✅ Right Way

Read the question
Actually try to recall the answer — say it out loud or write it down
Then check the back
If wrong, put it in your "review again soon" pile
If right, put it in your "review later" pile. See Leitner system in Spaced Repetition

The key difference: you're generating the answer, not just recognising it.

What Makes Good Maths Flashcards

Keep them simple. One formula or concept per card.

Include "trigger" questions. Not just "What is the quadratic formula?" but "How do I solve $x^2 + 5x + 6 = 0$ by formula?"

Add worked examples. Having a mini problem on the front helps you practice recognising when to use something.

Front	Back
Find the area: (Trapezium with parallel sides 8cm and 5cm, height 4cm)	$A = \frac{1}{2}(a+b)h = \frac{1}{2}(8+5) \times 4 = 26\text{ cm}^2$
The probability of A is 0.3 and B is 0.5. If independent, find P(A and B).	$P(A \text{ and } B) = P(A) \times P(B) = 0.3 \times 0.5 = 0.15$
A price increases from £80 to £92. Find the percentage increase.	Increase = £12 Percentage = $\frac{12}{80} \times 100 = 15\%$

Practice Problems as Retrieval

The best retrieval practice for maths is doing problems. But there's a right way and a wrong way:

❌ Wrong Way

Look at worked example
Do a nearly identical problem straight after
Keep notes open "just in case"
Check the answer after every step

✅ Right Way

Close your notes completely
Attempt the problem from memory
Struggle — this is good!
If genuinely stuck, give yourself a tiny hint, then close notes again
Check the answer only when finished
If wrong, work out why, then try a similar problem

The struggle is the point. If you can do problems easily with notes open, you have no idea if you can do them in exam conditions.

Low-Stakes Quizzing

Regular, low-pressure testing dramatically improves learning. Here are ways to build it in:

Daily Review (5 mins)

At the start of each revision session, quiz yourself:

Write down 3 formulas from memory
Do 1 problem from a previous topic
List the steps for one method (e.g., "How do I complete the square?")

Weekly Test (20-30 mins)

Once a week, do a proper mini-test:

10-15 questions across different topics
Timed
No notes
Mark it honestly

Monthly Mock

Once a month (or more often as exams approach):

Full past paper
Exam conditions
Timed
Mark against the mark scheme

The Maths Retrieval Ladder

Build your retrieval practice from simple to complex:

Level 1: Recall Facts

Write down formulas from memory
State definitions (e.g., "What is a surd?")
List steps of methods

Level 2: Apply to Simple Problems

Use the formula to solve a straightforward problem
Notes closed
Recognise which formula to use

Level 3: Apply to Complex Problems

Multi-step problems
Problems that combine topics
Problems where the method isn't obvious

Level 4: Explain and Teach

Explain why a method works
Teach it to someone else
Spot and correct errors in someone else's work

The higher up the ladder, the deeper the learning.

"But I Can't Remember Anything!"

When you first try the blank page challenge, you might stare at an empty page feeling frustrated. That's normal.

The struggle is the point. That uncomfortable feeling of trying to remember is exactly what builds stronger memories. Even if you only manage to write down two things, that's two things you've now reinforced.

Over time, you'll retrieve more and more. The blank page fills up faster. That's the progress.

If you genuinely can't remember anything about a topic, that's valuable information too — it means you need to relearn it, not just review it.

Retrieval Practice Schedule

Here's how to build retrieval practice into your revision:

Every revision session:

Start with 5 minutes of retrieval from previous topics
When learning new material, close your notes and summarise from memory every 15-20 minutes

When reviewing a topic:

Blank page challenge first
Then check notes for gaps
Then practice problems without notes
Then check answers

Weekly:

One longer mixed quiz (20-30 mins)
Include topics from weeks ago, not just this week

Before mocks/exams:

Full practice papers
Exam conditions
No peeking

Key takeaway: Every time you test yourself — even if you get things wrong — you're strengthening your memory. Stop re-reading. Start retrieving.

Next: You know how to practice. But should you practice one topic at a time, or mix them up?

🔀 Interleaving — Why mixing topics dramatically improves exam performance