What Is the Blurting Method? How It Helps You Revise Smarter

Struggling to remember what you’ve revised? The Blurting Method could help. It’s a simple revision technique that boosts memory by prompting you to recall information without looking at your notes. 

This guide explains how blurting works, when to use it, and how to make it part of your revision routine.

Key Takeaways

• Blurting is a powerful active recall technique that boosts memory: You write down everything you remember about a topic, then check it against your materials to spot and fix gaps. 

• Use blurting after learning a topic to reinforce knowledge and build confidence: It works best after you have revised a topic and as part of weekly reviews or practising just before trying a past paper.

• Adapt blurting for different subjects and combine it with other tools: Use it for definitions and formulas in science and maths, or for essay plans and quotes in humanities. Pair it with flashcards, mark schemes, or recordings to make your revision even more effective.

What Is the Blurting Method?

Blurting is an active revision technique where you write down everything you can remember about a topic without looking at your notes. It’s a form of active recall, designed to strengthen memory and highlight gaps in your knowledge. 

It works by having your brain retrieve information, which builds stronger neural pathways over time, making it easier to accurately recall the information in future.

How the Blurting Method Works: Step-by-Step

Ready to start blurting? Here are the 6 simple steps you can follow to use this technique: 

1. Choose a topic you’ve recently gone over.

2. Read over your revision notes, textbook or revision guide once to refresh your memory. Do this slowly, ensuring you have reviewed all key ideas and concepts.

3. Put your notes, textbook or revision guide out of sight.

4. Write (or “blurt”) everything you can remember on a blank sheet. You could write this information as bullet points, a mind map, short sentences or any other way that helps you to quickly note down everything you remember.

5. Check what you’ve written against your notes, textbook or revision guide. In a different colour, write down any information you’ve missed and correct any errors.

6. Go back over any areas you missed or made errors in. Doing this will ensure you have complete and accurate knowledge of your topic.

Why the Blurting Method Works

Blurting helps your mind to build up retrieval strength, which improves long-term memory. It encourages you to engage actively with your learning, rather than passively rereading notes or copying information from your textbook. 

It also makes it easy to identify what you do and don’t know so you can target your revision more effectively.

Blurting vs Other Study Methods

• Blurting: Great for memory-building and identifying knowledge gaps.

• Flashcards: Best for spaced repetition and memorising quick facts or vocab.

• Mind Maps: Good for linking big ideas visually and thinking broadly about a topic or idea.

• Past Papers: Useful for applying knowledge under exam pressure and improving your exam technique.

When to Use Blurting in Your Revision Plan

It’s best to use blurting once you’ve already revised a topic and need to reinforce what you’ve learnt. It is a good technique to use before attempting full past papers and works well for weekly review sessions.

Blurting isn’t recommended during the early stages of revision before you’ve learned the material properly, as you may find you cannot recall much information. For the earlier stages of revision, you may find reading revision notes and using flashcards and mind maps more useful.

Adapting the Blurting Method for Different Subjects

One of the best things about the blurting method is how flexible it is. With a few tweaks, you can adapt it to suit whichever subject or topic you’re studying. 

Science and Maths

In subjects like Biology, Chemistry, Physics, or Maths, blurting is a great way to practise recalling facts, formulas, and processes. 

Start by blurting key definitions, scientific terms, labelled diagrams, or the steps in a method or equation. For example, in Biology you might try listing the stages of mitosis from memory, or in Maths, recall the formula for the area of a trapezium.

Once you’ve done this, take it further by following up with worked examples. Try solving a question without your notes, using only what you remembered during the blurting session. This helps connect memory recall with real exam-style problem-solving.

English, History and Essay Subjects

For humanities and essay-based subjects, blurting helps you remember important content and practise structuring your thoughts. Begin by recalling key facts, quotes, authors, dates, or argument outlines. 

In English Literature, you might blurt character traits or themes from a set text. In History, try listing the causes of an event or important dates from a specific period.

To deepen your practice, use blurting as a way to plan essays. Give yourself a question and try to sketch out an essay structure entirely from memory. This not only builds recall but also helps with exam preparation, where planning under pressure is key.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Like any revision technique, blurting is most effective when used properly.

One of the most common mistakes students make is blurting without checking for accuracy and completeness afterwards. If you don’t go back to your notes and highlight what you missed or misunderstood, you won’t be able to fix the gaps in your knowledge. 

Students can sometimes also give up too quickly because they don’t think they are recalling enough. Don’t panic if you don’t recall much when blurting a topic for the first time. It’s normal to struggle early on, especially if you haven’t revised the topic much yet. 

If you do see gaps in your knowledge when blurting, use this to guide your revision and focus on areas where you are recalling the least. With additional revision and blurting practice, you’ll be able to recall more and more information each time.

Some students make the mistake of only using blurting once or twice, rather than building it into their weekly routine. Repetition is key. Blurting works best when it’s done regularly and combined with other active recall techniques.

Finally, don’t use blurting too early. You need to have learned the content first. If you try to blurt a topic you’ve barely revised, you won’t get much from it. Make sure you’ve done some learning before you start testing your memory.

Tools That Can Help with Blurting

You don’t need much to use the blurting method, but a few tools can make it more effective and easier. 

A whiteboard or a large piece of paper gives you the space to write freely, which can make the process feel less restrictive than using a small notebook.

If you prefer to learn by speaking, you can try recording yourself blurting aloud. Just hit record and talk through everything you remember, then listen back while comparing it to your notes.

To take your revision to the next level, combine blurting with practice questions. Save My Exams’ exam questions and mark schemes, for example, are a great way to test how accurate your recall was and how well you can apply what you remembered.

By using blurting alongside other resources, you’ll strengthen your understanding and feel more confident in your revision.

Frequently Asked Questions

How often should I use the blurting method?

Repetition is key for storing information in your long-term memory. It is best to work blurting into your regular revision schedule. For example, you could use blurting once a week for topics you find less difficult and for more challenging topics, use it more frequently.

Is blurting better than using flashcards?

Blurting and flashcards work best together. Flashcards are great for quick facts, while blurting builds deep recall and helps test how much you truly understand. Using them both in your revision timetable will help you make the most of your revision time and add information into your long-term memory quicker. Use Save My Exams flashcards for subject revision.

What if I can’t remember anything when I blurt?

That’s perfectly okay and to be expected when you try blurting a topic for the first time. One of the good things about blurting is it highlights gaps in your current knowledge and lets you know which areas you should be focusing on when revising. Keep reviewing the topic and blurting your knowledge. Over time more information will be added into your long-term memory and you will be able to blurt more accurately and efficiently.

Should I blurt by hand or on a computer?

There is evidence handwriting is more effective than typing for transferring information into your long-term memory. For this reason, students are often advised to handwrite when blurting. However, this isn’t true for everyone, so try out which method works best for you and stick with that. 

Can blurting help with exam stress?

Yes, it certainly can. Blurting builds confidence with topics because it shows you what you know and what you need to work on. The more you practise, the less uncertainty you’ll feel going into your exams which will help reduce your exam stress.

Final Thoughts

The blurting method is a simple, powerful way to revise smarter. It trains your memory, highlights areas where more revision is needed, and builds confidence over time. Add it to your weekly routine alongside flashcards, past papers, and other revision strategies to make the most of your study sessions.