(seeing as there are v few scottish studyblrs and highers are bloody difficult!)
(for non-scots, highers are exams we do in between gcse and a-level equivalents)
understand, don’t memorise. this applies to basically every class- if you understand why you do a certain method to solve a problem/ conjugate a verb/ analyse a poem then you can do it in every scenario
prepare to get stuff wrong. there is a significant difference between national 5s and highers, and most people i know took a confidence bump at the start of the year because of the sheer quantity of work. it’s okay!! it’s all learning and all learning is good
work with the right people. i sat with my friends in maths and desperately wish i hadn’t because i worked way better with people who actually challenged me to work hard! find people who are a similar level to you and work together
past papers. there are dozens of past papers online, far more than national 5s. watch out for content that isn’t in courses anymore! dunblane high school’s website has a great collection of past papers that i used loads
have time off. the workload in s5 is crazy so you need to balance your time. use any study periods to finish work and give yourself relax time in the evenings and at the weekends as much as you can
prelims are important but make sure you don’t burn out. as soon as you finish prelims you’ll likely start learning the next part of the course, and i know from experience that it is horrible to do when you’re completely exhausted after prelims. schedule days off into your prelim leave when you can!
i hope that helped somebody because s5 was a really difficult year for me and i wish i had known some of this at the start! if anybody happens to want tips on a particular subject, i got As in maths, physics, chem, french and english and would be more than happy to tell you what was helpful for me!! <3