3 Tips to Master Your Mocks

With mock exam season coming up, a lot of my students  have asked me what the most efficient revision techniques are. Here are 3 of my most important tips in order that you can master those mocks, get the right results and make sure you are prepped :

Start early 

No matter what you are studying and or how good you are at the subject, starting early is key to success. Your mocks may well “way off in the future” in your mind, but revision is a time-consuming process, and to ensure that you have all the areas covered,  you need to be organised and give yourself enough time to prepare. Remember, as soon as you have created your revision timetable; you can start on daily revision. - So no time like the present!! 

Practice exam questions under timed conditions

ASI always say, past papers are an essential part of the revision process; however, there is no point in doing past papers if you haven't spent time memorising and revising the subject first. The two elements go hand in hand. Once you have revised and looked at  where you have gone wrong in previous assessments or papers, try a paper under timed conditions. Not only does this help you to keep within the time limits during the exams, but it also gets you used to how exam questions are phrased, what examiners want from your work and how you can work more efficiently during an exam.

Look at your mistakes in previous assessment tests

Looking at  your past mistakes in exam papers is key to understanding where you went wrong. Check out how you missed marks, what you can do to improve your answers and how to improve your exam performance overall against marking schemes and specifications. The best way to do this is to read the questions and write down how you would have answered. Check your answers with the mark schemes and then read GCES examiner’s report looking at how sample answers are written. Also, go through the common mistakes other students make, and be sure you don't make them in your mocks and exams.

I’ve got many more tips like these for ensuring that you get the most of your mock exams, and then your actual GCSE’s later - but if you start with these you can’t go far wrong!

Charlotte 

3 Essential Free Study Resources

Students are so lucky nowadays - we have a bounty of resources going back years and years that enables us to get to grips with exactly what to expect in our exams.

When I was at school I remember feeling out of my depth - what am I supposed to do to revise? What will the exam be like? 

Would you believe it - past papers were not available online! You had to contact the exam boards and ask them to send you them (I’m feeling about 100 years old now haha!). Regular students like myself simply didn’t do this. I remember watching the top students, the amazing ones who were applying to medical school, opening their envelopes from the exam boards and thinking ‘wow, they know what they are doing!’.

Now we are privileged to have the information that we do, available to all online.

Here are the top free resources that you need to be using - these aren’t optional anymore - use them to get the top grades you deserve.

1. Specification

This is often forgotten about but I love this resource. The specification is a comprehensive list of all the key topics you are going to get assessed on. This resource is perfect to act as a tick list to see if you have covered all the topics you need to know and it is also brilliant to guide your flash card creation. Using this alongside your revision guide you will quickly see what you actually need to know and what you don’t.

2. Past Papers

You need to use these! 

You can never do too many past papers. 

If you are worried you haven’t learnt enough to do a full paper yet, you are not off the hook! Complete exam questions by topic on these topics - you absolutely need to do this - you will never convince me otherwise!

If you are getting disappointing test results - I recommend you do more exam questions. The number one technique to boost your grade.

3. Mark Schemes

You would be amazed how many students complete past papers but then forget to mark them!

We are lucky that all the mark schemes are available online so we need to make sure we use them.

After every past paper you complete I recommend that you mark them using the mark scheme and then analyse any questions that you didn’t get full marks.

Are there any other free resources that you enjoy and would recommend?

I would love to hear all about them!

3 THINGS I’D TELL YOU IF I WAS YOUR TUTOR

I have been tutoring Maths and the Sciences at GCSE and A-level full time since 2008!

I have helped 100s maybe even 1000s of students to overcome exam stress, improve their grades and to see how easy it can be when taught in a manner tailored to them!

I love my job and wanted to share these important things I tell my students every year.

1. You can get your dream grade

Most of the students who come to me have a challenging relationship with their teachers. So often the student is lacking in confidence and self-belief - something which has often stemmed from a breakdown of communication with their teacher.

Time and time again I see students struggling, getting a poor grade in a a test despite working hard for it, and then their teacher telling them that they clearly didn’t work hard enough. Ultimately this leaves the students feeling hopeless and unable to ask for help.

As a tutor this is the very first problem I aim to put right. I listen to my students, see them work and very quickly diagnose any problems they are having. Now this can be very challenging for classroom teachers to see and there is simply not enough time to dedicate to the individuals - however, this is what makes one on one tuition so valuable.

I ensure students are listened too, I understand their problems and quickly diagnose them and then I give my students the tools they need to fix them and get that dream grade.

2. Do Past Papers and Questions by Topic

This is vital. If you need to boost your grade - do past paper questions. This will improve your grade in the most effective way. If you never do past paper questions, you will never get top grades - it is that simple!

I ensure my students do past paper questions throughout the year as they learn each topic - this boasts confidence and ensures they know what to expect when class tests and final exams arrive.

3. Don’t Leave Revision To The Last Minute

I encourage my students to start early with their revision. 

Make flashcards as you learn the topics rather than leaving it until you have learnt everything - keep them safe and use them throughout the year.

Do past paper questions throughout the year and don’t leave them until you have finished the course.

By working consistently throughout the year you will ease the pressure and you will be able to carry out more effective revision when exam season arrives - this will 100% improve your grade.

If you are looking for a tutor - send me a DM and I will let you know how I can help.

3 Reasons Stress is Affecting Your Studies

Stress. In my opinion this is the number one this that is holding you back right. So often stress is seen as a vital part of student life and something that needs to be accepted.

It is true that to a point a small amount of stress can push you a little harder and keep you going during busy times. 

However, that is not the level on stress I am talking about. If you have ever felt overwhelmed, suffocating at the workload, crying at the thought of studying or even fainting due to the pressure - this is too much.

Here are three ways stress may be affecting your studies and suggestions on what to do to reverse this

1. You study late as you feel you have to

Have you ever felt overwhelmed and like you are drowning in work? Maybe you have a test coming up? You decide you have no option but to pull an all-nighter to catch up…

If this happens again, please don’t. Sleep is the number one thing your brain needs to be able to learn and process new information. Lack of sleep is the last thing you need if you are feeling overwhelmed. So next time, skip the all-nighter - and get a good night’s sleep and you will perform better.

2. You procrastinate

Have you ever but off a homework or revision until the last minute and then had to rush to finish it in time and possibly even not do it at all?

This is so often a fear of failure rearing its ugly head. The worst thing about this is that it is a form of self sabotage. 

If you find yourself doing this I want you to sit down and be really honest with yourself. Ask yourself - why am I procrastinating?

Get really honest and if you are feeling stressed about the potential of finding the work challenging or failing have a chat with your parents and teachers - if they understand why you are procrastinating they will be able to help you.

3. You’re working constantly but learning nothing

When we are overwhelmed we can underwork and procrastinate or overwork and burnout. 

Every year I see students working all hours but still not learning anything - they are tired and frazzled and increasingly stressed.

So often these students are spending too much time doing ‘busy work’ - copying out the text work - writing notes and more notes. This gives them the feeling of working hard but the problem is - this work will not be improving their grade. 

Time is every students most valuable commodity. Study time needs to be spend actively learning and by doing this students can actually study lesson - giving more free time and reducing stress.

I recommend investing in a good revision guide or exam board specific notes and set of flashcards. Use these instead of making your own notes and spend your time doing active revision instead - this is a great way to keep stress at bay.

If you are feeling stressed and need some extra help and support, don’t hesitate to contact these organisations who are there to help:

• Ring HOPELINEUK on 0800 068 4141 or the Samaritans on 116 123.

• Text YM to YoungMind's Textline on 85258.

How To Use Past Papers To Get Top Grades!

Past papers are the most underused - or wrongly used - revision resource out there. 

I want to make this very clear - past papers are your golden ticket to a top grade.

If you do not use them, or you leave them to the last few weeks before your exams, you will be very unlikely to get a topic grade.

I know you probably think you don’t know enough yet to attempt a paper - this is no excuse - if this is true you can and SHOULD still be doing exam questions by topic through the year. 

If you follow these steps I guarantee you will improve your grade. I know that may sound bold - but that is how confident I am!

Here are my steps to boost your grade using past papers today.

Step 1 - Do a past paper (or pack of past paper questions by topic)

This is a simple first step - I want you find a past paper, or questions by topic pack, print them if you can, but if you can’t get to work from your laptop - we don’t want obstacles in our way.

Now attempt this paper like you are sitting an exam - I don’t want you to be half-hearted. Even the questions that you feel you have no idea about I want you to really try and write something down - just like you will in the real thing.

Step 2 - Mark your work 

This step is absolutely vital. You have to mark your work so that you can see what you know and what you don’t. The sooner we can face this the better because we can get to work on improving it!

Step 3 - Record your score

So many students don’t do this. I strongly encourage you do so that you can monitor your progress. I promise you when you start seeing your score go up you will become addicted and it will encourage you to study more as you will see yourself getting the results you want.

Step 4 - Use the mark scheme to make notes

This is the step people miss - and if you miss it all the work you have done has been in vain. Why? Because you will walk away from this paper and anything you couldn’t do when you started this paper - you still won’t be able to do when you open the next paper. 

The whole point of this process is to find what you don’t know and fix it.

So if this was a Maths paper and you forgot some key maths rules - now is the time to stick them on a flash card.

Science subject? All those key definitions or common questions you got stuck on? These need to go on a flash card.

The most powerful thing about this, particularly for science, is that the mark schemes tell us exactly what the examiners want. The mark scheme is brief and to the point and you will see exactly what key words you need to know.

Step 5 - Learn the facts you didn’t know!

Make sure you prioritise learning any facts that led to you making mistakes in the past paper/ questions by topic. You need to make these top priority as this process diagnosed your problem - you now know what you don’t know - take the medicine for the problem and focus on learning all the facts you used the mark scheme to make notes from.

Step 6 - Do exam questions on the topics you got wrong

Let’s now do so active work to put what we have just learn into practice. This will clear up any gaps and stop you repeating those mistakes.

Step 7 - Repeat

Once you have really worked on the questions you got wrong, learnt the key facts you didn’t know before and successfully answered questions on these topics it is now time to go back to the start!

Get your next past paper or question pack out and repeat this process.

I absolutely guarantee this will improve your grade - just don’t skip any of these steps.
Let me know how you get on! If you have any questions - or top tips of your own - I would love to hear them!

Top 3 Websites for GCSE and IGCSE Students

I am asked all the time what website I recommend for GCSE and IGCSE revision, particularly for Maths and Science students - so I decided to put my favourites together for you to check out.

Let’s buckle up and check out what I consider 3 of the very best revision websites out there.

1. Save My Exams (www.savemyexams.co.uk) 

This website is packed great notes, exam tips and full of past papers and exam questions by topic. 

I find the information to be laid out really clearly with helpful pictures along the way - really getting to the key facts students need to know.

There is a paid subscription option with even more support - though you will get lots of help even if you just use the free pages!

2. Physics and Maths Tutor (pmt.physicsandmathstutor.com)

Don’t be deceived by the name! Physics and Maths Tutor or PMT Education as it is often now known has extensive notes available for Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Geography, English, Psychology, Economics and Computer Science.

PMT’s website is crammed full of really useful information - past papers, notes, flash cards, questions by topic and much more.

You will find most of what you need for your revision here and my students (and myself!) have been using it for years!

3. Maths Made Easy (www.mmerevise.co.uk)

For Maths, Science and English this website is great. Each topic is broken down and there are lots of practice workbooks for each topic - as well as those very important solutions.

There are also revision notes for every topic and I love how they are presented - coloured and clear.

Do you have any favourite websites? I would love to hear them - leave a comment below!

3 Things To Do This Half Term

Organise Your Notes

If you are anything like me, the term starts and you are super keen and eager. You buy lovely new folders and notebook and make sure all your work is perfectly organised in the right place…

Then reality kicks in, school gets busy and before you know it you’re just throwing everything into your bag where it all accumulates, a rather crumpled mess!

This half term is the perfect opportunity to catch up with you organising - something you will be very thankful for as exam time approaches

Catch Up on Challenging Topics

Often we get taught things at such a pace it can feel like we are on a neverending treadmill - moving forward is the only option! However, if you find a topic or concept confusing you need to go back to it - something that can be very difficult when you are continually being taught new information in term time

Half term provides the perfect stop button on that treadmill - allowing you to go back over those tricky topics and give them a little extra time.

You will not regret mastering these over half term!

Rest

Do not underestimate your mind and body’s need to rest. Learning is demanding of our energy and your brain needs some time out! Make sure you schedule time with friends and family so that when you get back to school you are feeling refreshed and excited to learn again.

Why Study A-level Maths?

A-level Maths is one of the most challenging, and yet most popular A-levels that students take each year.

In 2022, 89,605 students were entered for A-level Maths - more that any other subject with Psychology coming in at number two will over 76000 entries.

Here I want us to look at the reasons why A-level Maths is so hugely popular and whether you should be joining the majority and studying it too.

You get to learn great transferable skills

The skills learnt through studying Maths are quite unique - you get to learn great problem solving skills, data analysis and logic. But as well as these and some of the skills I actually find the most important as the persistence you can learn by studying A-level Maths. How often to you start a problem, not get to the answer but then rather than give up you dust yourself off and try again.

So not only to you understand to problem solve, analyse complex ideas and learn to apply your knowledge you also learn to not give up and try a fresh approach - all skills that will help your throughout your lives.

You will be paid more

Research undertaken by the UK’s Department of Education showed that students who studied A-level Further Maths in 2010/2011 were earning more by 24 years old than those who studied any other A-level! The median salary of a 24 year old who had studied A-level Further Maths in 2010/2011 was £25,500 - this was followed by Economics (£23,900), Physics (£23,700) and Maths (£22,500).

So if your future earnings are important to you - studying A-level Maths or Further Maths will give you the advantage! 

If you are interested in looking at this research n more detail and seeing the outcomes of other A-levels you can find it here.

(Link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/post-16-education-earnings-outcomes-for-level-3-achievements)

It is a requirement for many degrees

There are a lot of degrees which require A-level Maths and even more which would prefer you to have an A-level in Maths - so if you have a degree in mind make sure you check whether this will be an essential requirement.

Here is a list of some degrees that will (usually) require you to have an A-level in Maths:

Mathematics

Physics

Statistics

Mechanical Engineering

Chemical Engineering

Aeronautical Engineering

Civil Engineering

Economics

If you want to study these subjects but are not studying A-level Maths you may find this an obstacle - do your research around universities you may be interested in to check out their requirements.

Gives an advantage to university applications even when not compulsory

Research by University of London’s Institute of Education found that taking A-level Maths is more helpful in getting a place at a Russell Group university than studying at a grammar or private school.

The report showed that there is a maths premium even for degree subjects unrelated to maths such as humanities subjects and languages.

This suggests that one of he best ways to get offered a place at a top university may be by studying A-level Maths - even if your subject may be unrelated. 

Why do you study A-level Maths? I would love to hear - leave me a comment below!

3 Reasons You Need to Use Past Papers

1. You see real question styles

When using the text book exercises, the questions are often simplified and repetitive. Now this is certainly useful to drill down the method and get lots of experience in the basics… 

However, you will likely open an exam paper and realise that these topics are not assessed in this way in the exam. Questions can often be asked in a way which can seem indirect and almost cryptic!

Practicing exam questions will ensure you know what to look out for to answer those questions without the stress - you will be surprised how simple it can be sometimes!

2. You will see a mix of questions

It is important to try complete past papers because you will see the questions switch from one topic to another and you will get used to being able to process changing topics. 

It is all too easy when going through an exercise in your book to zone out and go on autopilot - there questions can be almost identical! By using an exam paper you are activating your brain in a way exercises in your book just won’t as you have to constantly keep on your toes recognising what the question to asking. This leads to much more effective revision.

3. You can track your progress using grade boundaries

It is so easy to lose track of what you know and what you don’t know and to even forget whole topics you have been taught!

Not to mention, class tests often use unrealistic grade boundaries that aren’t representative of the real exams so you can be left not really knowing where you stand.

I recommend doing past papers, marking them every time using the official mark scheme and then checking them against the grade boundaries (you can find these on your exam board websites). 

This is the process to follow:

- Do past paper

- Mark using official mark scheme

- Record your score 

- Record the topics you need to improve on

- Work on these topics using exam questions by topic

- Repeat 

I promise you if you use this method your grade will increase!

3 Tips for Students with ADHD

I have always felt a little different to others. I’m a bit of a scatterbrain, I lose things constantly, I am easily overwhelmed - but at the same time when I get in a flow I am unstoppable. 

I got through all my education finding my own way to get through my studies (I loved the excitement of exam seasons weirdly enough!) and I really thrived - graduating with a First Class MSci degree in Physics from KCL. 

However, I certainly found having children left all my coping mechanisms in the dust - extra plates to spin lead to me dropping many. I wondered what went wrong - I was always fine! Then it struck me - I had ADHD. I got diagnosed in 2021 and although I haven’t pursued medication I now understand what I need to do to function better and embrace the way my brain works!

Over the years I developed many ways to study better with ADHD (even though I didn’t realise it at the time!). Here are a selection of my favourites - let me know some of your below.

1. Find Some Study Buddies 

At university this was the turning point for me getting top grades. The accountability that comes with a study group can be life changing. My ‘study buddies’ and I (thank you so much Alex, John, Clare, Nathan and James) would hijack an old, empty lecture theatre, get out the latest problem check and get to work - we wouldn’t leave until we have mastered it. Together we keep each other going, had fun along the way, and ultimately learnt so much more than we ever would have before.

2. Keep it Interesting

Us ADHDers can get bored quickly. If a task isn’t exciting or stimulating our brains take us off to another land and that is simply a fact - we can change this.

However what we can do is try to make revision more interesting. Some of my favourite ways to do this are below:

- Turn flashcards into quizzes

- Draw Pictures to explain concepts

- Make games about of revision

-  Watch a YouTube video

- Do short bursts and race yourself to finish a task

3. Embrace the hyperfocus 

Hyperfocus is defined as ‘a phenomenon that reflects one’s complete absorption in a task, to a point where a person appears to completely ignore or ‘tune out’ everything else’ - and it is a very common ability of people with ADHD.

While for many neurotypicals a timetable of 1 hour of one subject, one hour of another may be helpful - for those with ADHD this can really break the hyperfocus and then result in a struggle to concentrate on a different task. 

For this reason I would recommend that instead of forcing any topic change - if you are in a moment of hyperfocus and truly still absorbing the information - use it to your advantage and continue with the task you are on. Feeling bored though? Now is time for a break or to switch topics.

3 Things People Think About A-level That Are Wrong!

A-level students often start their studies with some very common misconceptions. 

Here I am going to exam why these are actually wrong and explain why!

1. ‘I’m Only Doing 3 Subjects - it’s going to be so much easier than GCSE’

You’re right - you will be studying much fewer subjects - but there is a very important reason why very few places have a firm rule where you can’t study more than 4 A-levels.

The content is significantly greater - you will be surprised at how much you need to learn!

I also think that one of the biggest differences between GCSE and A-level is that all the way through from Year 7 the same topics are taught year on year, with a little extra taught each year. The information plods along and it is rare you get any big shocks of new concepts. A-level is completely different…

From day 1 of A-level you are going to be told that actually all that you learnt before… forget it - learn this instead.

It is vital that you don’t start A-level thinking you will coast by because you did at GCSE - start seriously!

2. ‘I’m going to want to study because its just the subjects I enjoy’

It is very easy to think that because you have picked your absolute favourite subjects you are going to eagerly rush home from college everyday, open those books and get studying hard. 

Let’s be honest… work is work regardless of the subject.

It is true that you may be a bit more motivated but you need to be prepared for all the same procrastination and revision fatigue to set in.

The best thing you can do to counteract this is to study ‘little and often’ - don’t promise yourself a 2 hour study session every day - it is likely you will feel daunted and not study at all. It is much better that you keep the momentum going and be consistent - remember you are training for a marathon not a sprint!

3. ‘I’m good at these subjects, I can cram before exams and get an A’

Cramming no longer works!

I wish students would believe it when they hear it. 

The problem is teachers tell students this at GCSE, but… quite often students still cram and do fine… so surely teachers are also wrong about this…

I’m here to tell you that this is no longer true.

You need to study consistently through the year for A-level!

3 Things I Wish I Knew When I Started A-level

Starting sixth form or college is a time of many changes - new friends, new teachers and of course, a set of brand new courses. I know when I started A-level I was more worried about what I was going to wear each day than the massive jump up that was ahead of me. 

I was not prepared at all!

Here I tell you all about the 3 things I wish I knew when I started A-level - so that you don’t make the same mistakes!

1. A-level is sooo much harder than GCSE

There is a definite false sense of security in A-levels. You are studying fewer subjects and they are likely the subjects you enjoy the most and have always done well at - therefore this is going the be a breeze, right?

Wrong!

A-level has significantly more content than GCSE, and that content is all brand new. It is going to come at you thick and fast and, unless you are on the ball from day one it is quite likely you by the time you first few class tests come you will get a shock. It is common for students to get Ds, Es and Us in the first year of A-level. 

SOLUTION - To avoid this I want you to start your courses with your eyes open and try to keep up to date through the year to avoid playing catch up.

2. Cramming No Longer Works

At GCSE I think if you are naturally able you can coast from to exam time. A little cramming and bang - top grades in your GCSEs. I was always in the top sets at school and so I didn’t find GCSEs too challenging (though I certainly could have done better if I worked harder).

The problem with this is I never developed any proper study skills and relied on cramming. The content at A-level is significantly greater and significantly more challenging - your brain will no longer be able to process the quantity of information in the same way.

Cramming will lead to you underperforming and again opening you up to those Ds, Es and Us - something we really want to avoid!

SOLUTION - Study throughout the year Make flashcards as you go that you can regularly revisit. Practice exam questions throughout the year.

3. You Have To Do Past Papers All Year Long

This is going to make me sound ancient, but when I studied for my A-levels you weren’t able to access past papers online. Besides the work that your teachers gave you, the only way to get them was to contact the exam board directly and get them to post them to you! 

Now this was something only the most ambitious students did (at least it was at my school) - those aiming to study Medicine and go to Oxbridge. The rest of us simply didn’t have this resource, or understand its value.

Now we have such an enormous range of past papers you can do them through each year and not run out. 

It is absolutely vital to study exam papers. 

You will not get the grade you are worthy of without doing these!
SOLUTION - I recommend that you start by doing exam questions by topic through the year as you study the topics and then move onto whole papers later in the year. Make sure you mark these and focus on topics you struggled with the most.

Are you starting to study A-level Maths? My A-level Maths Membership will provide you with the community (and so much more you need).

Click the button above to find out more !!

Charlotte xx

3 Things To Do When You Go Back to School

Starting back at school or college can be stressful and daunting However, if you start the year right it will make the rest of the year much easier and give you the best chance of excelling. Here are my top 3 tips for going back to school.

1. Get Organised

Make sure you have all the resources that will make your life easier. This includes the basics such as a notebooks and pens, but also highlighters, calculators, flashcards and revision guides. By having these resources ready when you start you are ensuring that you have them there whenever you need them and you minimise the chance of you procrastinating.

When your first test comes up the last thing that you want is an excuse to not get revising today!

2. Print the Specification

This is important if you are in Year 10 through to Year 13 and are preparing for your GCSEs and A-levels. If you are unsure, ask your teacher what your exam board is and then you can find the specification on the exam board website. The importance of this document is it clarifies exactly what you need to know and what will be assessed in your exams.

3. Be Intentional

It is so important that you get intentional with your time. It is so easy to do ‘busy’ work that isn’t actually making an impact on your grade. Now it is the start of the year lets get a fresh start. Any work you do now make it count. Don’t write out the text book out 5 times over the course of the year!

Instead write flash cards as you progress through the course keep these in a safe place and quiz yourself on them on a regular basis. 

Are you starting to study A-level Maths? My A-level Maths Membership will provide you with the community (and so much more you need).

Click on the button below to find out more !!

Charlotte xx

3 REASONS STUDENTS NEED COMMUNITY

When I started at university, I nearly failed the first term…Two exams in the January: 51% in one and 27% in the other (ouch!) - I was in a new environment, studying Physics at university (which is damn hard!) and I hadn’t really made any friends yet. 

I turned up to my lectures but I had no idea what I was doing really. I didn’t work enough, when I was stuck I gave up, I didn’t ask questions in class. Somehow, I thought this was enough.

In January term something changed. I made friends in my class, we studied together, we cheered each other on, we got stuff done! If one of us was stuck, I can guarantee together we worked it out. Together we lifted each other up.

At the end of that first year - just a few months later my average score was in the high 80%’s and I have a high first class degree.

Just a few months later - and what was the difference? Community.

So what is it about Community that can really help you when studying for exams? Heres my 3 reasons students need community :

1. Support when you are stuck - How often are you busy revising or doing homework and then a problem arises which can derail your progress and confidence? Having a supportive community means you have someone to ask for help!

2. Accountability - You may start motivated when you write a study plan but soon you might start to find it hard to keep going - a community will cheer you on and check in on your progress.

3. Someone to vent to - Studying is hard and sometimes you may feel frustrated at your teachers, your exams etc. A supportive community are there for you on those bad days, to listen and help you through.

Are you starting to study A-level Maths in September? My A-level Maths Membership will provide you with the community (and so much more you need).

Click the button below above to find out more !!

Charlotte xx

A-level Maths Grade Boundaries - The Info You Need To Know!

The grade boundaries for A-level Maths may surprise you…

So often in class, when you have mock tests and you get handed your grade your teachers will use the classic 80% = A, 70% = B etc. This can be useful to drive students hard, to aim for high scores and yes that can be useful. But the issue is that students who don’t get one of these high scores can end up feeling like failures - feeling that they will never reach the grade requirements that they need and can damage their positive mindset…

For this reason I like my students to know the grade boundaries - they are often a lot lower than you may think!

I find this can inspire my students to work harder because it is worth trying! You don’t need to be perfect - you can get things wrong and still achieve top grades! The most important thing is that you are fearless and try!

So here we go:

Edexcel A-level Maths

November 2021 A* = 69%, A = 52%, B = 43%, C = 33%, D = 23%, E = 14%

November 2020 A* = 71%, A = 54%, B = 43%, C = 33%, D = 23%, E = 12%

June 2019 A* = 72%, A = 55%, B = 45%, C = 34%, D = 24%, E = 14%

AQA A-level Maths

November 2021 A* = 69%, A = 54%, B = 44%, C = 35%, D = 26%, E = 16%

November 2020 A* = 73%, A = 57%, B = 47%, C = 36%, D = 26%, E = 16%

July 2019 A* = 77%, A = 62%, B = 50%, C = 39%, D = 28%, E = 17%

Tell me in the comments, what grade are you aiming for?

Some of My Favourite Websites for A-level Maths Students

When revising we don't want to be wasting all of our time looking for the actual resources to do the revision - or finding the websites that are useful - it is a waste of our precious time and there is nothing I hate more!

You could be spending time will friends, relaxing, catching up on the latest Netflix box set… Don't be wasting your time scrolling for resources.

Here are my top 3 resources for A-level Maths which I hope will save you some of that precious time!

1. PHYSICSANDMATHSTUTOR.COM

   This website is packed full of resources and I have been using it for years with my own students now.

   All the past papers in one place, exam questions by topic and solutions, loads of loads of resources for the old specifications which lets be honest - are invaluable extra questions (don’t forget you can never do too many exam questions!).

   This website is also great if you study the sciences as well as maths - so if that is you you will probably spend a lot of time on this website through your A-levels!

2. THE GCSE MATHS TUTOR YOUTUBE

   Don’t let the name of this confuse you! This YouTube channel has lots and lots of A-level Maths resources all taught wonderfully - so if you need a boost on a certain topic - this is where you need to go.

3. CAPTURE THAT UNI

   Are you applying to university soon? Confused about the application and personal statement process? Capture That Uni is there for you - not only are there lots of free resources there available for you - there is also additional support from Leanne the personal statement expert if you need it.

Why I Started My Business Supporting Students

I was still at university when I first started tutoring - I loved the buzz of those lightbulb moments.

Seeing people who have struggled and struggled and not received support from their teachers suddenly be able to understand and prove everyone wrong is quite simply magical!

!4 years later I have realised that the limitations of hours in the day is no longer good enough. I wanted to help more students and help my existing students so much more.

Without a cloning machine I quickly realised I had to do things differently! This is where The Tutor Experience was born!

The Tutor Experience is launching this month and will include modular self study courses - so you are stuck on Exponentials and Logarithms? No problem enrol on the self study!

These aren’t just any old course though, they are designed to mimic the experience of a tutor at a fraction of the cost - you won’t find a single questions without a video worked solution so I can help you when you get stuck just like you would if I was your tutor!

I can’t wait to launch as I know this will help people so much and that is my goal.

Keep your eyes out and let me know what topics you want to be the next ones covered on the courses.

Charlotte x

Stressed That Your Exam Went Badly? 3 Reasons It’s Not as Bad as You Think.

We have all had those exams - where you open the paper and HORROR you don’t understand a thing!

However, there are a few things we need to remember before we go into full-on panic mode - which is the last thing we want!

So I want you to take a deep breath and remind yourself of these 3 things…

1. We Only Remember The Worst

Let’s be honest, we all remember that stupid thing we said to someone we fancied years ago and it haunts us to this day. Do we remember all the good things? Probably not!

Exams are just the same - we won’t remember all those easy questions we flew past as much as the thing that we struggled with. Moral of the story? It is probably not as much of a disaster as you think.

2. Grade Boundaries Are Often Lower Than You Think

If we actually delve into the data - grade boundaries are often a lot lower than we may think and therefore you can get a good chunk wrong and still get the grades you need.

Edexcel A-level Maths for example has required approximately 55% the last few years for an A grade - so you can get almost half wrong!

3. You Can Improve in The Next Exam

Most qualifications require several exams, whether its GCSE Maths, A-level Chemistry or a degree - not everything rides on one paper. If one paper was challenging, the next one will probably be better. Get your head down, forget about the exam you just did and one to the next one. You can do this!

I hope this helped!

If you need anymore help with Maths or Science up to A-level get in touch.

Charlotte

The 3 Main Problems That Are Stopping You Getting Top Grade in Maths

Do you keep getting disappointing grades in A-level Maths? Do you feel like everything is going well until you do a test and then your score tells you differently?

Here are my top tips that people often miss that may explain why you are not get the grades you think you should.

1. Your Algebra is Weak

Time and time again I see my students work, they say they don’t understand a topic like differentiation but thought they did. When I read through their workings the fact is that they actually do understand it!

But their algebra is letting them down!

They are not spotting quadratics.

They are not spotting simulataneous equations

They are struggling to rearrange equations…

This is all expected knowledge at this point so it is no longer taught - this can be a disaster if you are struggling.

Don’t hesitate to go back to basics and revise these common mistakes and always keep a look out for quadratics and simulate our equations - they come up all the time!

2. You Aren’t Memorising The Key Facts

I say this time and time again - you HAVE to learn certain keys facts. These include, but are not limited to:

• The trigonometric identities

• The log rules

Without knowing these you will be going into any exam blind - prioritise these today!

3. You Aren’t Doing Enough Exam Questions

There are enough past paper questions (ranging back for many many years) that you will not run out of them - do not save these for some later date!

This is the ONLY way you will be truly able to become fluent in A-level Maths and you will soon realise the patterns that emerge and how similar the questions are one year after the other. This has the bonus of making you so much more confident too!

I hope these tips helped!

If you need any help in how to revise check out my self study modular course - The Tutor Experience coming very soon!

How to Boost Your Predicted Grade

At this time of year many students will have completed their year 12 mocks and been given their predicted grades. Now this is a moment of great significance as this is the grade you will be applying to university with - it will impact the courses and university you apply for.

It is not uncommon to sit those mocks and then get the shock of your life when the results come in!

You underestimated that jump up to A-level from GCSE and got a grade in your mocks which will not give you that dream predicted grade…

What now???

These are my steps to boosting your predicted grade so you can apply to the university of your dreams:

1. Ask for a retest

Most schools, however much they deny it, offer the chance to do another test in September. If your school initially says no - do not take no for an answer - what’s the worst that can happen?

It never hurts to keep asking and showing your determination

2. Find out what will be covered in the retest

Ask your teacher what will be covered in any retest - will it be the whole of year 12 or just specific modules?

Find out so you don’t study the wrong thing and to make sure you focus your energy into the right work.

3. Get clear on the specification

Make sure that you fully understand what content is covered in the specification, especially on the topics your teacher will be assessing you on. Don’t be caught out by not realising the little facts and details that we need to know.

4. Memorise any key facts

Whether you are studying maths and need to know the trig identities or log rules, or science and have definitions or reactions to learn - don’t forget we need to know these off by heart. Yes, we want to understand what we can but some things are simply facts that to be truly capable of excelling in these exams, we just need to know!

5. Exam questions

Once you know what is assessed, you know those keys facts, you HAVE to do exam questions. The more the better - it is impossible to do too many and there is a direct correlation between exam questions and exam grade!

Need more help?

Get in touch for more information about tuition, self study courses and the amazing intensive 6-week Grade Accelerator course - especially designed to boost your grade and allow you to apply to that dream uni!

Contact me now on charlotte.chapell@sciencetutors.co.uk or 07867767183.