Good IB revision is not about hours spent. It is about testing yourself, spacing your practice, and learning exactly what examiners reward.
Step 1: Map the syllabus
List every topic and subtopic for each subject from its current IB guide (our revision notes are organised this way). Rate each one green, amber or red. This list drives your timetable.
Step 2: Active recall, not re-reading
For each topic: close your notes and write down everything you remember, then check and fill the gaps. Turn key terms into flashcards. Answer short questions without looking.
Step 3: Space it out
Review a topic one day, one week and one month after learning it. Mixing topics in one session (interleaving) feels harder but makes recall in the exam much better.
Step 4: Practise exam-style questions with mark schemes
From DP2, most revision should be questions. After each one, mark it strictly against the mark scheme and write down the marking point you missed. Patterns appear quickly: missing units, vague evaluation, not answering the command term.
Step 5: Timed papers
In the last two to three months, do full papers under timed conditions. Review timing per question and adjust.
A weekly routine that works
- Short daily sessions (30–60 minutes) beat long weekend marathons.
- Each session: 10 minutes recall of an old topic, 30 minutes on a red topic, 15 minutes of exam questions.
- One timed question or paper per subject each week in DP2.
- One rest day.
The FortyFive app builds this for you: lessons with check questions, interactive diagrams, exam-style practice papers with mark schemes, and a planner that spaces your revision until exam day.