How I Got an A* in Maths A-level (Cambridge Student)

Summary

In this video, Roy shares his strategy for achieving a top grade in A-Level Maths at Cambridge. He emphasizes the importance of understanding the course specification, regular practice with past papers, and using resources like YouTube for clarification. Roy advises being intentional with study efforts, focusing on areas of difficulty, and developing effective exam techniques to tackle challenging questions.

Takeaways

• 📚 **Download and Refer to the Specification**: Keep the A-Level Maths specification on Google Drive for regular reference and to check against what's being taught in class.
• 📈 **Understand Before Practice**: Ensure understanding of the material during class before proceeding to practice questions.
• 🔍 **Use YouTube for Clarification**: Search on YouTube for specific topics that are difficult to understand, regardless of the source.
• 📝 **Maintain a Mistakes Document**: Keep a record of common mistakes and review it regularly to avoid repeating them during exams.
• 📑 **Practice with Past Papers**: Attempt past papers and specimen papers from different exam boards to get a variety of practice.
• 🎓 **Utilize Online Resources**: Use channels like TL Maths for A-Level Maths specific content and Exam Solutions for video tutorials.
• 📘 **Be Selective with Textbook Use**: Focus on end-of-chapter questions for practice rather than relying solely on textbooks for learning content.
• 🤔 **Seek Clarity Until Satisfied**: Continually seek explanations until fully understanding a concept, don't just memorize.
• 🎯 **Be Intentional in Practice**: Focus on areas of difficulty rather than mindlessly doing every question; be intentional about improvement.
• ⏰ **Develop an Exam Technique**: Learn when to move on from a question during exams to manage time effectively and not miss easier questions.
• 🚫 **Avoid Procrastination**: Don't delay understanding difficult topics; address them as they arise to prevent last-minute cramming.

Q & A

What was the main focus of Roy's video?

The main focus of Roy's video was to share his workflow and strategies for achieving a star grade in A-Level Mathematics, specifically for the AQA specification.

What was Roy's first step in his A-Level Mathematics study workflow?

Roy's first step was downloading the specification and keeping it on his Google Drive for regular reference and annotation.

How did Roy use the specification during his class learning?

Roy used the specification to check the content being taught in class, to understand the order of topics, and to annotate points he didn't understand for later discussion with his teachers.

What did Roy do after class to reinforce his learning?

After class, Roy would start doing practice questions, especially if he was struggling with certain parts of the topic, and he would also search for YouTube videos for further clarification.

How did Roy approach past papers and specimen papers?

Roy started doing past papers and specimen papers about two to three months before his exams. He included papers from other boards and made notes of any mistakes to review regularly.

Which YouTube channels did Roy recommend for learning A-Level Mathematics?

Roy recommended YouTube channels like TL Maths for A-Level Mathematics specific content and general channels like NancyPi, Organic Chemistry Tutor, or Khan Academy for specific topics.

What was Roy's opinion on the textbooks used in his class?

Roy found the textbooks used in his class to be poorly written and not very helpful for understanding the material, although he found the practice questions in them to be useful.

What was Roy's advice for dealing with confusion when learning a new topic?

Roy advised to keep looking for explanations until satisfied and to learn until comfortable with the material to avoid memorization without understanding.

How did Roy select which resources to use for his studies?

Roy used a combination of YouTube videos for learning content, textbook end-of-chapter questions for practice, and past papers from websites like Physics and Math for additional challenge.

What was Roy's strategy for approaching difficult questions during exams?

Roy's strategy was to move on from a question if he found himself repeating the same approach without progress, marking it to return later, and focusing on questions he could answer correctly.

What was the final recommendation Roy gave for studying A-Level Mathematics?

Roy's final recommendation was not to procrastinate on hard topics, to understand them as they come up, and to make an effort to grasp the concepts early on rather than leaving them for last-minute revision.

Outlines

00:00

📚 A-Level Maths Study Workflow

The speaker, Roy, introduces his study workflow for A-Level Maths, focusing on how he achieved top marks in his exams. He emphasizes the importance of downloading and regularly consulting the course specification, which he kept on Google Drive. Roy used the specification to stay updated with class content, to clarify any doubts with teachers, and to anticipate upcoming lessons. During classes, he focused on understanding the material and taking notes. Post-class, he engaged in practice questions, seeking additional resources online when needed. He stressed the value of using past papers from different exam boards and creating a 'mistakes document' to track and avoid recurring errors during actual exams.

05:00

📈 Resources for A-Level Maths Mastery

Roy shares several resources that he found beneficial for mastering A-Level Maths. He recommends using YouTube for learning content, particularly channels like TL Maths, which offers comprehensive playlists covering the entire A-Level Maths syllabus. He also suggests Exam Solutions for tutorial videos and practice questions. Roy advises using the end-of-chapter questions from textbooks for practice, focusing on the more difficult questions to ensure understanding. For past papers, he directs students to the Physics and Maths Tutor website, recommending the Solomon papers for their challenging and style-relevant questions. He also shares tips on how to approach learning, such as seeking clear explanations until satisfied, learning until comfortable with the material, and being intentional about targeted improvement areas.

10:01

📝 Effective Study Strategies for A-Level Maths

In the final paragraph, Roy offers practical advice for studying A-Level Maths effectively. He encourages students to be intentional about their learning, focusing on areas of difficulty rather than aimlessly completing every available question. He suggests setting a timer to reflect on challenging topics and to be deliberate about improvement. Roy also advises developing an exam technique that includes knowing when to move on from difficult questions to return to them later with a fresh perspective. Lastly, he warns against procrastinating on difficult topics, advocating for immediate understanding and regular revisiting of challenging concepts to ensure true comprehension rather than rote memorization.

Keywords

💡A-level

A-level refers to the Advanced Level qualifications offered in secondary education in countries such as the United Kingdom. These qualifications are typically taken by students between the ages of 16 and 18. In the video, the speaker discusses his experience with A-level Mathematics, specifically the subject of Mechanics and Applications of Mathematics (MAPS), and shares his strategies for achieving a top grade.

💡Workflow

Workflow in the context of the video refers to the systematic sequence of steps or tasks involved in achieving a particular goal, such as studying for an A-level exam. The speaker outlines his personal workflow for studying A-level MAPS, which includes downloading the specification, attending lessons, practicing questions, and doing past papers.

💡Specification

In the context of A-level examinations, the specification is a document that outlines the content and learning objectives for a particular subject. The speaker mentions downloading the specification for MAPS and using it as a reference to check the content being taught in class.

💡Practice Questions

Practice questions are exercises designed to help students apply their knowledge and skills in a subject area, such as mathematics. The speaker emphasizes the importance of doing practice questions to reinforce learning and to identify areas of difficulty, which can then be targeted for further study.

💡Past Papers

Past papers are previous exam papers that students use for practice. They are valuable resources for familiarizing oneself with the format and style of actual exams. The speaker discusses doing past papers from different exam boards as part of his preparation for the MAPS exam.

💡Resources

Resources in this context refer to the materials and tools that the speaker used to study and understand the subject matter. He mentions various resources, including YouTube videos, textbooks, and websites like physics and maths tutor.

💡YouTube

YouTube is mentioned as a resource where the speaker found helpful videos to clarify concepts he was struggling with. Channels like TL Maths and Exam Solutions are highlighted for their comprehensive content on A-level Mathematics.

💡Mistakes Document

The mistakes document is a personal record that the speaker created to note down errors or areas where he frequently went wrong. It served as a reference to avoid repeating the same mistakes during actual exams, demonstrating a strategic approach to learning from errors.

💡Intentional Learning

Intentional learning refers to the deliberate and purposeful approach to studying, focusing on areas of weakness rather than mindlessly doing exercises. The speaker advises being intentional about what one is trying to improve, which involves self-assessment and targeted practice.

💡Exam Technique

Exam technique pertains to the strategies used during an exam to manage time and attempt questions effectively. The speaker shares his technique of knowing when to move on from a difficult question and coming back to it later, which is crucial for maximizing scores.

💡Procrastination

Procrastination is the act of delaying or postponing tasks, which the speaker advises against when facing difficult topics. He emphasizes the importance of tackling challenging concepts as they arise to ensure a deeper understanding rather than rushing to learn them just before an exam.

Highlights

Introduction to the video and Roy's background in physics at Cambridge.

Achieving a star on A-level Maths and setting exams in the summer of 2019.

The importance of the AQA specification for A-level Maths.

The consistency across different exam boards for A-level Maths.

Advice on using past papers from other exam boards.

Roy's workflow for studying A-level Maths, starting with downloading the specification.

Using the specification to stay aligned with class content and annotate points of confusion.

The value of attending lessons and understanding the material.

Incorporating practice questions into the learning process.

Seeking additional help through online resources like YouTube if struggling with certain topics.

The universality of Maths concepts across different educational content.

The practice of revisiting difficult topics and ensuring ongoing proficiency.

Starting past paper practice two to three months before exams.

Utilizing specimen papers and papers from other boards for practice.

Advice on finding specimen papers safely and consulting teachers.

Creating a mistakes document to track and avoid habitual errors.

The usefulness of YouTube for learning Maths content.

Recommendation of specific YouTube channels like TL Maths for A-level Maths.

The effectiveness of Exam Solutions' videos for understanding Maths concepts.

The importance of doing end-of-chapter textbook questions for practice.

Selecting the most challenging end-of-chapter questions to ensure understanding.

Using past papers from websites like Physics and Math Tutor for additional practice.

The significance of tackling Solomon papers for challenging practice.

Advice on seeking explanations until understanding is achieved.

The importance of learning and understanding material as it is taught.

Being intentional about which topics to practice and improve upon.

Developing an exam technique for knowing when to move on from a question.

Avoiding procrastination on difficult topics to ensure understanding over time.

Conclusion and where to find more study advice from Roy.

Transcripts

hey everyone and welcome back to the

channel if you're new here my name is

roy and i just finished doing my second

year physics here at cambridge now in

this video i'm going to be going over

how i got a star on a-level maps when i

set my exams in the sum of 2019 now i

did aqa for a-level maps and that was a

new specification as well but that

largely doesn't matter because for most

of the new specification a-level maps

the exam boards are almost all the same

which also means that you can attempt

past papers from other examples as well

which is pretty neat anyway i'll be

talking about my workflow for a-level

maps then i'll go into some more like

math specific resources which i use and

then finally any advice which i have as

always timestamps and links to anything

i mentioned will be in the description

down below so do check those out during

the video so i'll quickly outline my

workflow for a-level maps but i do have

a longer video explaining my workflow

which should be linked above somewhere

right now so anyway my first step was

downloading the specification and then

keeping on my google drive which i then

used and checked through like regularly

to make sure um as the content was being

taught in class i could check for it and

then maybe annotate any points which i

didn't exactly understand and then ask

my teachers about it and after like

using the spec and i would have an idea

where we were in the course then i would

go to lesson and actually learn the

content class so to kind of know what

the next few lessons are going to be

about because their specification

tells you like the order in which your

teachers are teaching the course to you

and during the class i would like to

learn the content make sure i'm

understanding material and make notes

during the lesson afterwards i would

then start doing some practice questions

so that was usually for any homework we

were given but if i found myself

struggling on like certain parts of the

topic

and i didn't understand it too well then

like i would try to do more practice

questions on it or try to find some

videos online by searching on youtube

now it doesn't matter too much about

like finding youtube videos by specific

a-level maps like youtubers or something

and that's because maps are just maps so

like if you're struggling to like i

don't know use a chain reel or something

it doesn't matter if you're watching an

a-level video and using the chain reel

or like a video by khan academy or

something on using chain rule so like

just type the topic name into youtube

and you can usually find a good video

explaining it to you and after doing

like practice questions throughout the

year funny content we were learning and

also coming back to topics which i found

difficult and making sure i could still

do those we practice questions about two

to three months before my exams i'd

start doing a bunch of past papers and

there aren't too many past papers for

the new specification but there are

specimen papers and there are papers

from other boards as well so try doing

some of these specimen papers and papers

from motherboards and if you want to

find the specimen papers and you can

either do that by searching online and

finding on some like dodgy websites but

don't download any viruses or something

or asking your teacher about it instead

so when i was doing the past papers and

the specimen papers then i would make

notes of anything that i like usually

got wrong or made mistakes on and then

added it onto mistakes documents and i

would come back to this mistakes

document regularly throughout the year

and also just before doing any practice

tests or something so know exactly what

mistakes i had that i had a habit of

making so i could then develop a habit

of also looking out for those mistakes

so when it came to the real exam like i

didn't have to worry too much about

because like my brain was sort of active

and i had i like made a habit of looking

out for these mistakes so i made them

less frequently so that was basically a

summary of my a level maps workflow um

as for a few resources which i found to

be really useful the first of which was

youtube now like the best way to

actually get better maps is by doing

more questions but you actually have to

learn the material first and textbooks

for me and the textbooks we used in

lessons i thought were pretty useless

when it came to maths and they were just

like badly written and sometimes i just

didn't understand what the hell they

were going on about and that's one point

i want to mention like if you don't

understand what's going on in textbook

then don't think you're like stupid or

something because in many cases i just

didn't understand the textbook because

it was just poorly written and

unfortunately most a-level textbooks i

think are quite poorly written

so like don't force yourself to use a

textbook if you're just not

understanding it although the practice

questions in textbook were pretty useful

which i'll go in about later anyway for

learning the content i used youtube

mainly and that was just by searching

any topics on youtube which i was

struggling with and just finding any old

video online so if i go to youtube then

i can just search something like chain

rule

and then i can just find like videos by

like nancy pi or something or like

organic chemistry tutor or like khan

academy on the chain rule and if i

wanted more a level math specific videos

then a good channel was tl maths now he

has videos about uh all of a level maps

so if you go to his playlists then you

can find a super long playlist which

covers the entire a-level map somewhere

or i think it might be if you go to his

website tl maps then it can be easier to

find it there so if you go to a level

maps then you can

find the

uh full a level

then you can do either as then you can

go to either as only or follow a level

videos and then like just go to the

topic so like if i wanted to go to

algebra and functions then i'd go over

here and then like functions itself and

this is mapped according to the

specification and then i can just find

all the videos here now i didn't watch

all his videos i watched like a few

videos here and there because most of

the time like i sort of understood what

was going on in a lesson or an instant

topic well enough but if i didn't

particularly like my teacher's

explanation of what was going on then i

would come here but if you like self

teaching yourself a level maths then

this is probably a good place to like

learn all the material from but i don't

imagine anyone who actually has to like

watch all his video videos um because

like your teacher should be able to

teach a good chunk of a little maps to

you well so basically don't feel a

temptation to watch all his videos

despite how good they are like do

practice questions and if you find

yourself struggling with the topic or

you don't send it too well and your

teacher hasn't explained it well to you

then come back to videos learn the

content and then try the practice

questions again now the next useful

resource was exam solutions so they also

have some good videos so if i go to like

a level then i can find uh like for say

aqa even though the exam boards don't

matter too much then for like mechanics

i can go to tutorials and then just find

a bunch of videos so like moments if i

go to moments then i can like click on

one of these and then just find some a

video where he explains it also he goes

through a lot of questions as well and

he has some exam questions uh which you

can attempt yourself and then view the

solution for so it's a pretty good way

to like work through the course and then

watch him go through the solutions too

now he just speak pretty slowly so i do

watch his videos at like two or three

time speed and if you want to watch a

video at faster than two time speed on

the computer and then i'd recommend

downloading the extension video speed

controller and then like learning the

shortcuts uh and then like you can watch

a video like free time speed now after

learning the material from using like

online resources and learning in class

then i would do some textbook questions

and i generally found the end of chapter

questions to be like particularly good

because i usually taken from like past

papers or like previous textbooks

whereas the actual content learning the

content from the textbook for me like i

just didn't learn it from the textbook

so i would do the end of chapter

questions and to make sure i actually

understood the material because the

textbook i used or the teachers it gave

us uh went from like the hard the

easiest questions at the start of the

end of chapter questions to the hardest

so like do the final five questions and

if i could do those textbook questions

then i would i was just happy with the

topic and if i couldn't then i'd like to

jump to some middle questions or some

easy questions to begin with rather than

trying to do like every single end of

chapter textbook question because one

piece of advice i'm going to give later

on is be intentional about what you're

trying to improve and finally i would do

some past papers and i would find them

on a website called physics and mouse

tutor so if i go to past papers then go

to a levels and go to like maths

and then i can find a bunch of the new

specification past papers and the old

spec past papers as well so generally i

would not touch the old spike past

papers because the style of questions is

pretty different and like some of the

old spec past papers were really easy

and they're just not that easy anymore

although there are some good papers like

the solomon papers

which are again particularly challenging

so if you go to like mechanics one which

was an old spec module

and then press like solomon papers and

scroll down and you can find they are

different levels of difficulty so i

think the easiest solomon papers are

like a and then like one of the hardest

is like j so if you go to like the

question paper then you can scroll down

and see a bunch of these questions and

then you can also mark them yourself so

these are custom written papers with

like i think the difficulty becoming

harder the later you go in the alphabet

so i would usually do like the last

three um last three most difficult

papers and i would like be pretty

confident if i was able to get those

questions right and if i couldn't get

those questions right then i'd like try

to understand the mock scheme or think

about the question

or follow some of the device i have in

my tackling difficult questions video

which is linked above right now or even

go to my teachers and ask them for some

help so that was the bulk of the

resources i used there were youtube

videos uh textbook end of chapter

questions and also questions from like

physics and math shooter for past papers

of the old spec and the new spec but for

the old spec i tried to do the solvent

papers because they're particularly

challenging and they're in the style of

like new specification questions anyways

as for a few tips the first i'd

recommend keep looking for explanations

until you're satisfied so i remember

like when i first encountered the second

derivative in the first few weeks of a

level or something then i just didn't

get it or i just didn't understand why

if the second derivative was like less

than zero then it would be concave and

if the second derivative was greater

than zero then it would be convex i just

didn't understand that and i made a

flashcard on it and i wasn't too happy

with the facts i just couldn't come to

that conclusion myself

so i remember asking my teacher about a

few times and the explanation didn't

make too much sense to me and i just

like found some video online and

explained it perfectly to me so like you

want to be memorizing as little as

possible enable maps especially when it

comes to pure content so just keep

looking for explanations until you're

satisfied and this is especially

important early on because it leads on

to my second bit of advice learn until

you're happy with the material so keep

asking questions to your teachers and if

you come across any feelings of

confusion like notice feelings of

confusion within yourself when you're

saying encountering a topic and then

like deal with it as soon as possible

because if you keep like saying oh i'll

just come back to it when i'm doing

revision or something like you will have

gotten so used to that that you will

have just basically memorized it by

accident and not actually understood it

because when you expose something enough

times then it can just lead you to like

memorizing it instead of understanding

it so when you are confused with some

topic then try to understand it as soon

as possible within like the first few

days of or something and then next i'd

say be intentional about what you're

trying to improve and what you're trying

to get better at and this is a problem i

noticed with many students like you also

did a level maps in my school they just

said to themselves oh i'm gonna do every

single textbook question or like every

single past paper or something or like

every single topic test from like this

website no like you should be

intentional about what you're trying to

improve because otherwise it leads to a

lot of wasted motion which is a term i'm

using here for anything that doesn't

directly contribute to your goals like

if you're really good at differentiation

or you're really good at using the chain

wheel or something then it's just a

waste of time for you to like practice

that even more or like do a whole end of

bed textual questions about it because

you're just sort of wasting your time

like think about which topics you're

feeling the most confused on or like the

most you struggle to send the most and

then do questions specifically related

to that and if you find the questions

are too difficult then try to find some

easier questions or try to learn the

content or try to pinpoint what where

your difficulty is actually lying rather

than just saying to yourself i'll do

every single textbook question and then

i'll get better a level maps like you

have to think and focus about what

you're actually trying to improve and

what you're struggling on the most and

if you're somewhat confused about what

you're struggling on the most then i

would recommend setting a five-minute

timer so for many of like the issues i

have i just deal with them in five

minute timers which involves like

setting a time on your phone for five

minutes and then thinking to yourself a

question like okay what are the things

i'm finding the most difficult in a

level mass right now and then forcing

yourself to actually think about the

issue for five minutes can be super

useful because it's not too long and

generally people don't think about the

issue for more than 10 seconds so this

can be one way of getting you to

actually think and be intentional about

what you're trying to improve on next i

would recommend developing an exam

technique of knowing when to move on so

there can be a mix of like difficult and

easy questions for an exam and i

remember for my actual a-level maths

exam when i sent it in like summer 2019

um like some of the easy questions came

up towards the end and they were like

there were some difficult questions in

the middle and there were many people

who like sort of could didn't know when

to give up or didn't know when to move

on from the middle difficult question so

they just missed an easy question in the

end because the papers may not

necessarily be in order from like easy

to difficult for your exam board so my

general rule was that if i could keep

thinking of new solutions or keep

finding new ways to tackle this problem

then i would stick with the question but

if i found myself like trying the same

thing over and over again but i wasn't

getting anywhere then the chances are i

made a mistake but i just can't tell

that that is a mistake in the moment

which means i have to come back to it so

many cases like i would put a little

star or asterisk next to a question so i

would move on to a different question

and then like say when i finish a paper

or i finished all the questions which i

haven't start then i would come back to

the start questions and then usually i

would see some mistake in my attempt and

then like fix that mistake and then be

able to finish a question so storing

questions and then coming back to them

later on can be really useful if you

find yourself trying the same technique

or thing over and over again

because chances are you made a mistake

but you're so stuck and focused on that

question in particular that you just

can't find a mistake until you come back

to it and my final recommendation is not

to procrastinate from hard topics so if

you're learning a particularly hard

topic in class don't just give up and

say oh i'll come back to like later on

in the year or something because you

will have been exposed to enough times

throughout the year and that you will

just end up forgetting why your

misunderstanding is a lie and you'll end

up memorizing it instead of actually

understanding it if you come back to it

frequently enough so i'd make an effort

to understand things as they came up and

like within the next few days if i just

wasn't particularly happy because i knew

the next time i come back to it i just

have to revise myself um because you're

going to have to understand something at

some point so you might as well

understand it when the teacher is

explaining it to you or when you're

learning it in that weekend lesson

rather than saying that you will

understand it two months before the exam

because things are just gonna pile up

and you're gonna have to understand like

20 different topics for the first time

and understanding things just takes time

now it's quite difficult and you're not

going to have time to answer like 20

different topics for the first time so

understand things as you're going along

because you'll be grateful for yourself

later on but yeah that's basically how i

approached a little maths and i hope

you're able to take away some useful

advice from that if you're interested in

how i studied for like all my subjects

and the precise details of my like

studying techniques and stuff then i

have a playlist called studying

effectively for gcse's a levels which

has a bunch of useful videos so do check

that if you have time and i guess for

now i'll see you next time bye