Step 1: Audit your knowledge
Go through the syllabus checklist and rate each topic as green (confident), amber (partly sure), or red (needs significant work). This takes 20 minutes and prevents you from spending equal time on everything.
Step 2: Allocate time proportionally
Red topics get the most time. Green topics get maintenance time (one quick review and a set of past paper questions). Amber topics get moderate time. A typical 8-week plan might allocate: 50% of sessions to red topics, 30% to amber, 20% to green/past papers.
Step 3: Make sessions specific
Do not write "revise Biology." Write "Topic 9: draw and label heart diagram from memory, answer 3 past paper questions on blood vessels, mark and correct." Each session should have a specific, completable task.
Step 4: Include past papers from week 3
From week 3 onwards, dedicate at least two sessions per week to timed past paper questions. By the final two weeks, most sessions should be past paper practice and correction. The correction step (analysing mistakes) is more important than the paper itself.
Step 5: Build in flexibility
Leave one or two sessions per week unallocated. Use these for topics that took longer than expected, or for additional practice on weak areas. A rigid timetable that allows no flexibility usually gets abandoned.