'The Memory Of Water' ~ Book Review

I don't normally read plays independently however, as part of my theatre studies summer work I did. I was apprehensive at first and wasn't too keen on reading a script but in actual fact, it turned out to be so interesting!

'The Memory Of Water' is a modern day play about three sisters, Mary, Teresa and Catherine, whose mother just passed away. They join to prepare for the funeral, meanwhile reminiscing (although they all seem to have very different perspectives of the events that they're reminiscing over) and arguing.

Although the play presents some themes that one might say are sad, the play itself mostly isn't. I had many laughs throughout the book and I would certainly watch the play on a stage. If you've never read a play before, don't worry! Whilst reading it, I didn't find it bothering to be reading in a script format and for me, a person who doesn't enjoy reading books with a lot of description of detail, it was perfect. It was fun to read continuous dialogue and I suppose, you get straight to the point of the story, as well as being able to have your on interpretations of characters. I read this in three days and would absolutely suggest giving it a chance!

Prom

My prom was last week and although I was dreading it (if I'm completely honest) it turned out to be a lot of fun and seeing as it took place on a boat, we had an amazing view from the Thames.

Two Weeks of Work Experience

During exam season I felt strongly that I wanted to be productive during the summer because why waste it? Seeing as my school didn't do work experience in year 10 (while most do) I decided to contact my old primary school. They offered me two weeks of work experience in the infants and not only will this be very helpful to show for myself when writing my personal statement to send off to universities, but I also learnt so many great things having done it and it was enjoyable for so many different reasons.

1. Understanding young children

I was working with four and five year olds which was a great challenge for me as it's not something I've ever done and in general, I'm not used to being around such young children. These two weeks helped me learn how to speak to them and how to go about complimenting them. For example, if they showed me a drawing they did, rather than just saying "That's amazing!" I learned that I should say what specifically was done well, i.e. "Wow, I like your use of colours".

2. Their innocence

The fact that they're so young makes them view the world so differently to the way that even children who are a few years older do. They don't withhold society's ideologies that we learn as we grow up which in many ways, makes these young children much kinder. Therefore, I somehow felt like I could totally be myself when working with them and any complexes or insecurities I have, were let go when working with them.

3. Confidence booster

I felt my confidence grow significantly during my work experience, especially because some teachers gave me a lot of responsibility which made me feel as though they really trusted me. It also gave me confidence in asserting authority when needed to but also in knowing when to be more lighthearted and understanding that they're just kids.

4. A feeling of satisfaction

Even though I was only there for two weeks and these kids will probably have forgotten about me by next week (here comes the cliche but honest part), it was so humbling to feel that you're contributing to helping them to develop academically as well as personality wise - which leads me to my next point.

5. Future career plans

For a while now I've had teaching at the back of my head as a potential career path but teaching young children (particularly infants) didn't occur to me as being something I would want to do. After this experience, it's completely changed my mind and has made me feel that it's a job I'd very much enjoy doing and would be good at. This has made me have much more confidence in my future which is also a bonus!

Now that I've finished my work experience, I would really advise young people to get as much experience and take up as many opportunities as possible, it's always good to have too much to say on a CV, uni personal statement or college application than not enough and the skills that you'll acquire will be so so beneficial.

7 Revision Ideas

It's been a long while since I've posted - I've been so busy studying for exams and now that they've actually come, it's been a stressful time!

Now that it's half term, some of you will probably be studying like crazy, so I thought I'd write about a few little revision techniques that have worked for me.

1. Mind maps

Anyone who knows me will know that mind maps are my absolute love. These help me so much because you can write down the key information whilst making links and using lots of colours. I even found making a mind map of an entire history unit helpful. For this though, you'll probably need plenty of A3 sheets or two or three A2 sheets.

2. Make bold notes of anything you can't remember and hang it on your wall.

A good idea is to put it somewhere where you'll look at it often so that you're constantly going over it. Also in your exam, if it comes up, you might even be able to visualise that poster you made and what was on it.

3. Flashcards

Of course these are really useful for subjects where there's a lot of information to remember or for revising languages. It's particularly handy because you can fit them into your pocket and pull them out on your way to and from school.

4. Timelines

History is my biggest challenge this year because I find remembering key events and dates tough. Therefore, a really good idea is to make a timeline of the order of events (with the dates) and put it up on your wall. This will help you in the long run because:

1) It will enhance your understanding of the part of history you are studying and make everything so much clearer in your mind.

2) It's super helpful if you have source questions in your exams as you might have to understand what was going during the year of the source.

5. Paper Flaps

This could be useful for learning key information that you find difficult to remember. For instance, I used it to learn the Educational reforms for my sociology exam. I made it by folding plain note cards and sticking them onto an A3 sheet. Then I wrote the name of the reform on the top of each flap, and underneath, a reveal of what the reform was about. This could be helpful for languages, history (or anything else really!).

6. Notebook Notes

So many people write notes from a textbook into a notepad. Personally, I find this technique very useful for science but not for other subjects. For me, colours and pictures are really important (especially if you're a visual learner) because then you're more likely to understand and be focused on what you're writing, as well being more likely to actually go back and read your notes.

7. Past Papers

Past papers are so easily accessible and ideal for every subject! You could even do some practice essays and give them to your teacher to mark. Doing lots of past papers are probably one of the most important parts of your revision for many reasons:

1) You learn the exam technique and understand the way that examiners mark, as well as what kind of answers would or would not be acceptable to write

2) You can see how much information you've actually managed to withhold from your revision

3) You can practise timing

4) You can see where you are in terms of your knowledge and you can find any knowledge gaps

5) Similar questions tend to come up over the years so you might end up redoing a similar question when it comes to your exam!

Best of luck in all your exams!

Very British Problems ~ Book Review

Hello!

A friend of mine had this book, I had a flip through and thought it was absolutely genius, so I bought my own to give it a full read. This book is super simple and fun to read. Inside, there's a list of the petty problems that British people face in their daily lives. If you're British, you'll almost certainly relate to them. I really did enjoy this book. There's no story line, nothing deep to understand, just a quick read that made me laugh... a lot. For instance, some British problems it mentions: Being unable to walk in the opposite direction without first taking out your phone and frowning at it, being very dramatic about taking your phone in and out your jacket so it doesn't look like you're pocketing chocolate bars, walking into wind so severe your eyebrows are blown from your face. So obviously, I really approve of this book! If you're British, you'll love it.