Episodi

  • 3 Sneaky Time-Wasters Disguised as Productive Study
    Oct 11 2026

    Ep. 157

    → Get the Free Parent Guide: 3 Huge Mistakes (Even Smart!) Students Make in Exams and Assignments - and how to fix them immediately so your teen confidently achieves their best ever grades.
    ___

    Here's how I've been stopping students spending time and effort on things that won't produce the outcomes they want.

    In this episode I explain:

    - The actions and strategies are producing a net negative for students - and why they are still using them.

    - One quick and simple way to quickly up-level the effectiveness of revision and exam prep.

    AND

    - How to intentionally select specific actions and to-do items that will produce the biggest bang for buck.


    FEATURED ON THE SHOW:

    • Resources page: https://www.rocksolidstudy.com/157
    • If you find this helpful, you'll also like Ep 30: If It's Not Difficult, It's Not Doing Anything
    • Updated and upgraded: The NEW! 10 Week Grade Transformation Program
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Facebook
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Instagram
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    19 min
  • Does Response Length Matter?
    Jul 9 2026

    Ep. 156

    → Get the Free Parent Guide: 3 Huge Mistakes (Even Smart!) Students Make in Exams and Assignments - and how to fix them immediately so your teen confidently achieves their best ever grades.
    ___

    A student was told they need to be filling 5 - 6 pages in order to hit top marks in their Commerce exam essay Q.
    Is that good advice?

    In this episode I explain:

    - Why it’s not about the word count or page count, and why it also IS about the word count or page count.

    - Why it’s quality over quantity and why quality is - in some ways, sometimes determined by quantity or creates a particular quantity.

    AND

    - How your teen can nail this golden combo of top quality content, in the exact right quantity.


    FEATURED ON THE SHOW:

    • Resources page: https://www.rocksolidstudy.com/156
    • Updated and upgraded: The NEW! 10 Week Grade Transformation Program
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Facebook
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Instagram
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    14 min
  • How to Stop Going Over the Word Limit
    Jul 2 2026

    Ep. 155

    → Get the Free Parent Guide: 3 Huge Mistakes (Even Smart!) Students Make in Exams and Assignments - and how to fix them immediately so your teen confidently achieves their best ever grades.
    ___

    Going over the word limit in essays, assignments and reports is a common issue I see in knowledgeable, hardworking students.

    The biggest problem is the amount of extra work it means they are doing when this happens: Extra writing in the first place, and extra time trying to cut it down before submission.

    In this episode I explain the reasons for why this keeps happening for some students (no matter how much they try not to) so we can solve for the root causes.

    AND I provide four actionable ways to prevent it in future, so your teen only spends the time and effort that's necessary for any extended task.



    FEATURED ON THE SHOW:

    • Related episode: Ep. 131 - Plan EVERY Extended Response
    • Related episode: Ep. 151 - Why Students Resist Planning
    • Resources page: https://www.rocksolidstudy.com/155
    • Updated and upgraded: The NEW! 10 Week Grade Transformation Program
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Facebook
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Instagram
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    24 min
  • 10 Ways to Catapult Results and Confidence
    Jun 22 2026

    Ep. 154

    → Get the Free Parent Guide: 3 Huge Mistakes (Even Smart!) Students Make in Exams and Assignments - and how to fix them immediately so your teen confidently achieves their best ever grades.
    ___

    Listen in for the top 10 ways that I've found to be the most effective in catapulting students' results AND confidence in a fast yet sustainable way.


    FEATURED ON THE SHOW:

    • Updated and upgraded! Check out the 10 Week Grade Transformation Program
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Facebook
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Instagram
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    29 min
  • The Research Project Trap (and how to avoid it)
    Jun 15 2026

    Ep. 153

    → Get the Free Parent Guide: 3 Huge Mistakes (Even Smart!) Students Make in Exams and Assignments - and how to fix them immediately so your teen confidently achieves their best ever grades.
    ___

    There's a significant difference between an 'inquiry' research task and a research 'project'.
    Treating an inquiry, report or any kind of research task in the upper years of high school like a 'project' will keep your teen stuck at a mark or grade that doesn’t reflect their effort or ability in the topic they're researching.
    In this episode I’ll explain:

    • what the research project trap is,
    • the two reasons why so many students fall into it,
      and
    • how to have your teen avoid it.


    FEATURED ON THE SHOW:

    • Purchase the Workshop: How to Hit the Top Criteria in Essays, Assignments and Extended Responses
    • Resources page: https://www.rocksolidstudy.com/153
    • Related episode: Ep.61 - What Makes a High Quality Research Q
    • Updated and upgraded! Check out the NEW! 10 Week Grade Transformation Program
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Facebook
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Instagram
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    20 min
  • How to Make Essays More Sophisticated
    Jun 8 2026

    Ep. 152

    → Get the Free Parent Guide: 3 Huge Mistakes (Even Smart!) Students Make in Exams and Assignments - and how to fix them immediately so your teen confidently achieves their best ever grades.
    ___

    I'm a big fan of making the biggest difference to results and confidence,
    in the simplest, most efficient and effective ways.

    This example of how to make essays 'more sophisticated' is a great example of this:
    > One strategy that demonstrates multiple capabilities means your teen can significantly elevate their response to help meet top level descriptors, such as

    - an EXTENSIVE knowledge to support an argument

    - a DEEP understanding of subject knowledge

    and
    - a SOPHISTICATED, sustained argument that answers the Q

    ... all with their existing subject knowledge,
    and without any fancy writing or re-writing of the essay content.


    FEATURED ON THE SHOW:

    • Purchase the Workshop: How to Hit the Top Criteria in Essays, Assignments and Extended Responses
    • Resources page: https://www.rocksolidstudy.com/152
    • Updated and upgraded! Check out the NEW! 10 Week Grade Transformation Program
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Facebook
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Instagram
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    20 min
  • The Joy of Figuring Out Where Things Went Wrong
    May 4 2026

    Ep. 151 -

    → Get the Free Parent Guide: 3 Huge Mistakes (Even Smart!) Students Make in Exams and Assignments - and how to fix them immediately so your teen confidently achieves their best ever grades.
    ___

    I was initially surprised by this student's reaction to finding out exactly why he 'only' (in his words) got a C grade on a section of his Business assignment.

    I expected him to be frustrated at the situation or annoyed at me for showing all the things he hadn't done (and how obvious it looked after).

    But that's not what happened at all.

    It's good to be reminded of just what a difference discovering the real reasons they're not getting results that match their ability and effort can make to students. It's the very first step in changing that and it's an exciting one!


    FEATURED ON THE SHOW:

    • Web page: https://www.rocksolidstudy.com/151
    • Episode 4: Essays That Actually Answer The Question
    • Episode 9: Just Do Your Best' - And Other Things They Don't Wanna Hear
    • Updated and upgraded! Check out the NEW! 10 Week Grade Transformation Program
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Facebook
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Instagram
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    19 min
  • Why Students Resist Planning Before Writing - and 4 Reasons That'll Change Their Mind!
    Mar 18 2026

    Ep. 150

    → Get the Free Parent Guide: 3 Huge Mistakes (Even Smart!) Students Make in Exams and Assignments - and how to fix them immediately so your teen confidently achieves their best ever grades.
    ___

    I spend a LOT of time hammering students about making a plan before they start writing any kind of extended response, report analysis, essay, or discussion piece.

    There are a lot of instincts we have to override in order to spend time and energy on a plan.

    Especially for a timed task, a task we already feel confident in, or at the other end, a task we really don't want to do.

    Those instincts tell us it'll take too much time, too much effort to write out a detailed plan. Time and effort that could be spent actually writing the thing. Or they tell us 'we know what we're doing, so we don't need to'.

    But those instincts are misguided.

    Listen in for the reality of the situation - and the benefits that far outweigh the time and effort cost.


    FEATURED ON THE SHOW:

    • Resources page: https://www.rocksolidstudy.com/150
    • Updated and upgraded! Check out the NEW! 10 Week Grade Transformation Program
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Facebook
    • Follow Rock Solid Study on Instagram
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    17 min