ICSE Study Tips

1.

Stop all futile activities like video games, TV, mobile phones. Keep only one companion- your books.

2. Study in shifts. Never for long hours in one go. It will only decrease your productivity. 3. Switch of your mobile phone while studying. Remove all other distractions. 4. Eat foods that contain anti-oxidants like vitamin E and vitamin C. 5. Never compromise your sleep. Your body needs at least 7 hours of sleep every day, the lack of which will make you feel lethargic all day. 6. Maintain an exercise routine. Exercising your body will produce Serotonin which is a hormone that keeps you happy. It will save you from stress and increase your productivity. Work out for 20-30 minutes a day in whichever way your routine allows. 7. Instead of studying the same thing over and over again, go for test series, previous year question papers, sample papers by ICSE and question banks. They highlight the area of your weakness and also increase your speed. 8. Make notes or small summaries for every chapter of every subject. The notes should be so precise that a glimpse of them reminds you of the whole chapter. 9. Make illustrations in your notes. Something that you write, you may forget but something that you see and draw will always remain somewhere in your brain. Try to make your notes interesting and attractive. Add more of diagrams and illustrations. 10. Shut down your facebook accounts and start browsing educational websites, the ones which clear your concepts through animations and videos. 11. In boards, written practice is must. What you write and how you write counts more than what you know. We will write another page on how to attempt the paper. Stay tuned and keep yourself updated for that. 12. Don’t stay out of touch from a particular subject for more than 2 days. Consider subjects like English as recreation and practice writing essays and letters. 13. Clear your doubts beforehand. Don’t delay or postpone any topics. Every topic is important. ICSE is unpredictable, so you never know what comes as a question. 14. Your concepts should be clear by now. If something has been left behind, pick it up and finish it till the end of January or till the first week of February maximum. 15. Pray to God and think positive. If you think positive, you will attract positive things around you. Thank God for what you have and count your blessings. Being a little spiritual helps being out positive energy and makes you reach your potential. 16. 1 month is a long time if you go in a planned way and very short if you study haphazardly. Make a schedule and follow a routine. No one in the world can stop you from securing good marks. Study well and work smart. All you need to know about studying for your English Language and Literature Exam is here on this forum. ISCE is very particular for its English which is clearly evident from the fact that the marks of English have to be counted, whatever the marks may be. On the other hand, for other subjects, the four subjects with maximum marks are considered while counting the percentage. So, all in all, if you want a good percentage, you have to secure good marks in English first. It is also known that most Indian students are bad with both verbal and written English. Though times are changing quickly, there are still some of you who need some guidance in this regard. If

you have not secured very good marks in pre-boards, don’t panic but make sure that you divert some attention and spend some time banking on the most important subject for you. Here are some tips and techniques to polish your skills.

English Language 1.

Read an English newspaper every day, preferably Times of India or if available, The Hindu.

2. Practice writing essays. The English language paper allots 25 marks to the essay, so it becomes very important for a student to score there. 3. Try to converse in English with your peers and elders who are good at it. If someone corrects your mistake once, you won’t forget it easily. 4. For grammar, practice sample papers and worksheets. The more you practice, the more you will improve. Give yourself assignments and take them up as challenges. You will surely improve. We will come up with another article to point out the most common grammar mistakes. 5. There is one golden rule for grammar. Follow your instinct. You have studied English all your life, you have watched English movies and listened to English songs, you probably know a lot more than is required. If rules don’t ring the bells, make your instinct work. It will be correct most of the times, if not always. 6. For the letter that carries 10 marks, 3 marks are allotted to the format. So if you write the format correctly, you will get at least 3 marks. Practice writing letters on the common topics and issues. 7. Avoid picture readings when they are an option. Your view might not be same as that of the examiner. This creates an unnecessary disagreement which can be easily avoided by writing the essays or stories instead. 8. For the unseen passage, read the questions before reading the whole passage. This makes you redirect your energy towards the answers while reading the passage and also saves you time. 9. Follow the pattern of Sample Papers by ICSE while studying because the final exam would be more or less similar. 10. Above all, write very clearly and underline the answers.

English Literature 1.

Read all the poems very carefully and understand the basic layout of each poem. When understood, consider the differences between the poetic and literal meanings of the same words and phrases.

2. Practice worksheets. When you write the answers for each paragraph, you kind of get a better hold of the poem. Practically if you practice writing answers to each stanza once, you would instantly be able to answer in the exam. 3. Keep your grammar correct. You don’t have to use difficult words to get good marks. You just have to convey carefully and in correct grammar. There isn’t a bigger mistake than poor grammar.

4. For all the stories, read them carefully and note down the meanings of every difficult word used in the text. Try to write the character sketches and figure out the role of each character in each story. 5. Practice writing answers to the comprehensions given in workbooks. 6. The main part of English Literature is the play, As You Like It. If you still have some doubts about the concept, watch the movie of the same play. Though some parts have been changed, the essence remains the same and would easily be understandable. 7. Again, practice writing answers a lot. It really helps polishing your grammar and brings out the mistakes and weak links in your expression. English for ICSE students isn’t that easy a subject. But you need to bank on this subject if you want to secure a good overall percentage. Go ahead, follow these tips and you will definitely gain something. In case you need any help, always feel free to leave questions and queries.