HSC Russian Continuers study plan
HSC Russian Continuers · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Reading and Responding & Writing in Russian
Audit one full past-style reading paper under timed conditions and log every error by type (vocabulary, grammar, inference, text-type)
Build a personal glossary of 60 high-frequency Russian words drawn only from texts you have read this week
Write two 150-word texts in Russian, one informal message and one formal letter, and self-correct against a checklist of case endings
Practise identifying the purpose and register of five short authentic Russian texts (advertisement, notice, review, letter, article) without translating every word
Your checkpoint
An error log spreadsheet with at least 40 categorised mistakes plus a 60-entry glossary and two corrected written texts
Reading and Responding & Writing in Russian
Complete three timed reading sections of 40 minutes each, targeting the two heaviest text types (extended article and personal correspondence)
Drill case usage in context by rewriting 30 sentences from your reading into the correct case after a preposition
Draft one 200-word opinion piece in Russian stating and justifying a viewpoint with at least three supporting reasons
Analyse five model written responses to identify opening, linking and closing formulas you can reuse
Your checkpoint
Three completed timed reading sections with scores recorded, plus a 200-word opinion piece and a one-page list of reusable written formulas
Reading and Responding & Listening and Responding
Read two long Russian articles (400+ words) and answer inference and attitude questions without dictionary support on the first pass
Begin a listening routine: 20 minutes of Russian audio five days this week, noting unknown words by ear and checking them afterwards
Transcribe a 90-second authentic Russian audio clip and compare your transcription against the source
Write summaries in Russian of 60-80 words for three of the articles you read
Your checkpoint
A listening log covering five sessions, one full 90-second transcription with corrections, and three 60-80 word Russian summaries
Listening and Responding & Reading and Responding
Complete two full timed listening papers (approx. 35 minutes each) and record accuracy per question type
Identify the specific listening traps you fall for (numbers, negation, speaker attitude, distractors) and list them
Read one full past-style paper under exam timing and compare your score with week 1
Shadow a Russian audio passage aloud for 15 minutes to improve recognition speed of connected speech
Your checkpoint
A mid-point scorecard showing listening and reading accuracy percentages against week 1, with a written list of your top five recurring error patterns
Listening and Responding & Writing in Russian
Listen to five short authentic Russian segments (news, interview, announcement) and answer who, what, when, why questions in Russian
Drill note-taking: capture key facts from a two-minute Russian monologue using abbreviations and symbols only
Write one 250-word Russian text in a prescribed format (article or report) using formal register and at least four linking devices
Record yourself speaking a 90-second Russian response to a listening prompt and review it for fluency and accuracy
Your checkpoint
A set of notes and Russian answers for five audio segments, plus a 250-word formal text and a self-reviewed 90-second recording
Writing in Russian & Reading and Responding
Write three full-length Russian texts (250-300 words) across three different text types under 45-minute time limits
Self-edit each text against a grammar checklist covering verbs of motion, aspect, participles and prepositions
Read two Russian opinion articles and extract the argument structure to reuse in your own writing
Reduce your week 1 error log by rewriting ten of your original mistakes correctly
Your checkpoint
Three timed full-length Russian texts with marked-up self-edits and a rewritten set of ten corrected sentences from the original error log
Listening and Responding & Reading and Responding & Writing in Russian
Sit one complete mock exam across all three domains under strict timing with no pauses
Mark the mock exam against criteria and allocate every lost mark to a domain and skill
Target the weakest two skills with 90 minutes of focused drills each
Refine your personal formula bank for writing openings, transitions and conclusions
Your checkpoint
A fully marked mock exam with a mark breakdown by domain and a prioritised list of the two skills to fix before week 8
Listening and Responding & Reading and Responding & Writing in Russian
Sit a second complete mock exam under exam conditions and compare domain scores with week 7
Review only your personal error log and formula bank; add no new material
Rehearse exam timing strategy for each section and write a one-page checklist to use on the day
Complete a final 30-minute listening and 30-minute reading warm-up set at exam pace
Your checkpoint
A final score comparison table against week 7 showing improvement in at least two domains, plus a one-page exam-day strategy checklist
Milestones
Week 2: You can complete a timed reading section and identify the register and purpose of unseen short texts without full translation
Week 4: Your listening and reading accuracy on timed papers has improved over week 1 by at least 10 percentage points in each
Week 6: You can produce a 250-300 word Russian text in a prescribed format within 45 minutes with self-corrected grammar
Week 8: Your second full mock exam shows improvement over the week 7 mock in at least two of the three domains