chemistry and maths gcse tips??

does anyone have any specific tips to help with chemistry and maths revision? i keep getting 6/7s but im aiming for 8s

chem (edexcel igcse): i used to understand stuff in year 9 and start of year 10 but now in year 11 the teacher just expects us to know what hes talking about and its all so confusing (worst topics: calculations, organic, inorganic)

maths (edexcel igcse): with maths its not one specific topic, i spend ages trying to do practice questions but just never know how to start them yet when im in class learning topics i undertsnad them? ig its when you have to work out what the question is actually asking you first? idk if that made sense

send help lol

Reply 1

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by username6658717

chem (edexcel igcse): i used to understand stuff in year 9 and start of year 10 but now in year 11 the teacher just expects us to know what hes talking about
Sounds like an issue with the teacher. The only thing that I would recommend then is to look through the specification and then try to find as many online resources to learn the material yourself. Use the textbook for the course as much as you can.

maths (edexcel igcse): with maths its not one specific topic, i spend ages trying to do practice questions but just never know how to start them yet when im in class learning topics i undertsnad them? ig its when you have to work out what the question is actually asking you first? idk if that made sense
I feel your pain. Knowing what they are asking is half the battle. After that, it's usually relatively straightforward to get the answer you want/need (assuming that you don't make any silly mistakes along the way).

When you're in class, it's usually apparent when the teacher takes the structured approach to the question. When you're under timed conditions, you can't always think straight under pressure.
If you want to improve on your creative thinking (necessary to figure out what the question is asking), then I recommend learning to stay calm when you are short on time. If you want to improve on your ability to figure out what the question is asking, the only thing that I could recommend is further practice exam questions.

If you're looking for general tips to improve in both subjects, consider the following:
Chemistry
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cweIFZ405Fw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c16MygtyHHM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hftnCxz6PyQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxqKFsv85KI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZC2sIvQWWuA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdGyLGqwl4M

Maths:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJEkjuN9qJ4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4Pa9hYX7rg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RwbT5D6sh8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpvugNguE4c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTs7wCrroS0

Both:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8yC4bBYyos

The above are from the first page of Google, so there are other videos.
If the above seem very different to the approach you make for your iGCSEs, consider changing your approach.