These six free revision apps and tools can help you revise for exams like a pro. Sometimes your mobile phone isn’t just a distraction – it can really help you learn. Um, you still can’t take your phone into the exam hall though…
1. Penultimate app – make handwritten notes
Evernote lets you take notes, and it’s a handy way to store all kinds of info, from actual handwritten text notes to webpages or webpage excerpts. It’s also got a neat search and tagging function, so you can find your notes quickly when you need to. It can be a GREAT revision tool for learning on the go.
But what we really want to talk about is Penultimate. It’s an award-winning digital handwriting app for the iPad and it’s made by the folks behind Evernote. It’ll give you the feel of writing on paper, and lets you take notes, keep sketches and doodles, and share content with fellow revising students.
Device: iPhone/iPad
App publisher: Evernote
Price: FREE. Paid upgrades available.
2. Revision App – make revision flash cards
This one’s bigger than big and it does what it says on the tin! You can use it to create your own flash revision cards with video, text, or audio. However, it comes with over 1 million revision notes and study tools covering GCSE, A-level, and Uni subjects.
Device: iPhone/iPad
App publisher: App Giant Ltd
Price: FREE. Paid upgrades available.
3. Remember the Milk – amazing to-do list app
Everyone needs a great app that handles to-do lists. This one has the best name, and it’s also really popular because it’s so flexible. You can make, organise, and order lists, revision periods and task reminders however you want. You can also view, change, and bookmark tasks between your mobile, web, Twitter, Gmail and Google Calendar setup.
Device: iPhone/iPad, Android
App publisher: Remember the milk
Price: FREE. Paid upgrades available.
4. iMindMap – get visual to condense your learning
Many students find visual learning a helpful revision tactic. Visual study techniques like mind-mapping can really help dyslexic students, for example.
The iMindMap lets you connect ideas in an easy, visual way with mind maps. It helps condense huge essays into little bite-sized chunks.
Device: iPhone/iPad, Android
App publisher: ThinkBuzan
Price: FREE. Paid upgrades available.
5. Oxford A-Z of Grammar and Punctuation – it’s a grammar game!
This one isn’t just for English students! It gives everyone more confidence in their grammar skills, and works a bit like a game. The app has 250 grammar-based questions, as well as lots of extra info about grammar and punctuation. If you’re writing longer essay-based answers to exam questions, solid grammar and punctuation will give the people marking your papers more confidence in your skills and ability.
Device: iOS, Android
App publisher: Mobile Systems
Price: FREE. Paid upgrades available.
6. Flora app: stay focused
Is it hard to tear yourself away from your phone to revise for exams? MaybeFlora can help. Plant a seed in your forest and it will grow into a tree – but if you leave the app to check your social media or play a game, the seed will wither away and die. You can share your forests with your friends, too – so all your mates will know if you’ve got green fingers from studying or if you were a bit naughty and played games instead.
Device: iOS, Android
App publisher: Forest
Price: FREE. In-app purchases available (but don’t buy them and save your money).
For more revision apps you can check out these exam-busting revision tips from our Youth Ambassador Harvey Morton. He’s in uni now but he talks about the revision apps he wishes had existed when he was doing his GCSEs and A-levels.
