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Get a head start on Year 11 with smarter HSC notes. Matrix start student Lawrence shares 4 note-taking hacks you can start now.
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If you’re in Year 10 and thinking about how to get ahead for Year 11, here’s something I wish I’d known earlier: Your HSC notes can make or break your study routine.
I took on 14 units in Year 11, not to prove anything, but to test what actually works when it comes to study strategies and balance.
Treating Year 11 like a ‘trial run’ helped me refine how I study and make my notes.
In this post, I’ll walk you through the 4 note-making strategies you can start using now to get a head start on Year 11 and 12.
Table of contents:
Name: Lawrence
Grade: Year 12
School: Killara High School
Goal: Medicine at UNSW – aiming for a 99+ ATAR and a 95+ UCAT percentile.
I knew the HSC would be intense, so I treated Year 11 like a test run for study strategies, routines, and mental endurance.
14 units is pretty much a death sentence for most people. But, with balance and a great study environment, I was able to build the study habits to make it work.
In Year 11, I took a total of 16 preliminary units with AIS:
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I also attended Matrix Education for English Advanced, Maths Ext 1 and Maths Advanced, Biology, and Chemistry
Matrix has given me a great space to build my knowledge foundation. With the support and structure they offered, I created effective HSC notes.
Here are 4 strategies I used to make my HSC notes smarter, and how you can use them too.
Right before the school holidays, you should write down all the tasks you need to do to prepare for the next term. Then, break up your holidays into small study sessions and fun activities to prevent yourself from burning out.
The game-changer for me was the traffic light system.
I’d go through each syllabus outcome and make notes around them from memory (active recall).
This stimulates your brain to think and critically draw connections between areas of other concepts that might be relevant to that particular syllabus dot point.
Then, I would highlight each dot point as:
Then, I’d know to focus most of my time on Red and Yellow content.
This method helped me study smarter, not harder. Just re-reading notes tricks your brain into thinking you know something (when you actually don’t). But applying knowledge is what helps it stick.
That’s why I always pair note-making (to break down hard concepts into something you can understand) with self-testing and syllabus review.
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In the most recent holiday, here was my timetable.
During the holidays, I did Matrix Accelerated Courses for Year 12 Chemistry and Biology. As you can see, my schedule was jam-packed with classes and homework. It was 6 hours of class and 4 hours of homework every day for five days.
How did I manage it? I used breaks just as carefully as your study.
Make time to get outside, move your body, and clear your mind. For me, a short walk to the train station or grabbing a drink with a friend worked wonders.
I also made sure to:
It is also important to know how to break down content-heavy tasks into simplified versions. Below is a mind map I created for my Year 11 English Ext 1 essay. It helped me draw similarities and correlations between a triple comparative essay.
Here’s how to create a more thoughtful and effective mind map:
Step 1 – Think, what is the purpose and focus?
Step 2 – Write what is relevant and essential within the texts you have studied.
Step 3 – Break down the harder concepts and see if there are any correlations.
Step 4 – Remove anything that is overly detailed and complicated to understand. Keep it clear and simple.
Step 5 – (optional) Add colours to represent key ideas. Helps you to retain information better.
“Just do 1% better than yesterday.” – Mr Kammer, my Economics teacher
This is an example Venn Diagram of the texts I studied in Year 11:
Read Matrix’s guide for more tips on analysing texts for Year 11 English.
It helped me ensure that my overarching thesis is being linked with sub-concepts and ideas that I can draw upon during the exam.
I learnt faster through Matrix’s great learning environment and hands-on science lessons.
The 1-to-1 workshops at Matrix Education have made a big difference for me. They gave me the space to really focus and sharpen my understanding.
Whether I was stuck on a tricky essay or a science concept I couldn’t visualise, the small-group and individual help was next level.
One highlight: Sometimes in Matrix classes, you get to do hands-on practical tasks with the whole class. It not only allowed me to socialise with others, but also engage with the concepts visually.
In my first Year 12 holiday Chemistry class, we got to perform how light interacts with a diluted sample that is used to determine the concentration, known as spectroscopy. Here’s my friend, Jake, doing it.
Valerie Ngo (English): Valerie revolutionised my thoughts and view of English. I never liked and still hate English very much. But when I attend workshops with Valerie, she breaks down complex ideas into something I can actually understand. She always checks if I’m learning – not just listening. This is what I call ‘explicit learning,’ when students are engaging with what is being taught rather than just making notes.
James Lu (Yr 11 Maths Ext 1): James Lu was one of my Year 11 Maths Extension 1 teachers, but he left Matrix at the end of 2024. One thing I greatly appreciate is how he goes above and beyond what the Theory Book teaches. He gave tips and tricks for thinking outside the box when we are faced with challenging questions. He also adopted a technique of writing with a red and blue pen, where anything that is written in red is important and blue is notes. Sometimes he shares his past experience of studying maths, and creates a simple road map of our HSC journey and shows us when we should be prepared for preliminaries, HSC Trials and the HSC.
Tabitha (Biology): Tabitha, my current Year 12 Holiday Course Biology teacher, has a great technique. She circles and underlines key ideas and breaks them down into simpler terms. If you’ve done Bio, you’ll know how valuable that is!
I’ve had setbacks – I’ve been sick during exams, dealt with social media bullying, and flopped more than one test. But I’ve learnt this:
One bad exam won’t ruin your ranking/ATAR. It’s important to LEARN from it and NOT make the same mistake again.
If you’re in Year 10 or 11, here’s what I’d tell you:
Matrix isn’t just a tutoring centre. The teachers, the one-to-one workshops, and the people you meet all push you to reach your goals. They certainly helped me move closer to mine.
For those who are completing the HSC this year. Good Luck!!! Remember – your ATAR isn’t the only way into uni. Work hard and you will get far in life. It will always pay off!
Signing out,
Lawrence 😉 Class of 2025
Written by Guest Author
We have regular contributions to our blog from our Tutor Team and high performing Matrix Students. Come back regularly for these guest posts to learn their study hacks and insights!
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