I'm really struggling with C1 maths as my mental maths isn't that good. HELP

Philip-flop

18

What shall I do if my mental maths is kind of lacking?

Reply 1

username1292215

22

Original post by Philip-flop

What shall I do if my mental maths is kind of lacking?

Just write out calculstions?

I often just write multiplication instead of doing it in my head

Reply 2

aoifea100

3

Honestly mental maths isn't that big of a deal in c1, just write out your calculations and do rough work, and if worst comes to worse you will get method marks!

Reply 3

TeeEm

19

Original post by Philip-flop

What shall I do if my mental maths is kind of lacking?

I do not think non calculator means doing thing mentally
write things down

Reply 4

XxKingSniprxX

21

Original post by Philip-flop

What shall I do if my mental maths is kind of lacking?

Simplify things down as much as possible so you don't really have to think
about what to do/what method to take to get the answer.

It helped me.. I went from 66(c) to 100(a*) in C1.
If it means an extra line of working out to make things more easier to read
than so be it. Small steps leads to great work.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 5

Philip-flop

OP

18

Thank you so much everyone!! I'm starting to get my confidence back!! And it's good to know that there is still the possibility of being awarded 'method marks' too!

Reply 6

RosaA

4

Original post by Philip-flop

Thank you so much everyone!! I'm starting to get my confidence back!! And it's good to know that there is still the possibility of being awarded 'method marks' too!

You'll be fine! Instead of trying to work out everything in your head, just write it all out and work systematically to ensure you don't make any mistakes.

Besides, writing down all of your method means that may get points awarded for correct methodology out even if your answer is incorrect :smile:

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 7

Philip-flop

OP

18

Can I ask what you people do when you are given numbers to powers? Because I find it quite monotonous when having to times a number over and over again e.g. 8^3 (8x8x8). Or should I just learn my cubic powers?

Reply 8

Philip-flop

OP

18

Original post by RosaA

You'll be fine! Instead of trying to work out everything in your head, just write it all out and work systematically to ensure you don't make any mistakes.

Besides, writing down all of your method means that may get points awarded for correct methodology out even if your answer is incorrect :smile:

Thank you!! I think I'm just panicking a bit too much!! I've been doing past papers but and been making silly slip ups so haven't been getting the exact answers :frown:

Reply 9

Kevin De Bruyne

21

Original post by Philip-flop

Can I ask what you people do when you are given numbers to powers? Because I find it quite monotonous when having to times a number over and over again e.g. 8^3 (8x8x8). Or should I just learn my cubic powers?

There is no need to learn cubic powers. Knowing the squares (through practice rather than memorising a table) might be handy, so that you can immediately see that that is 64 * 8.

Then you've got:
...64
...x 8
= 032
+ 480
= 512.

Reply 10

alevelpain

2

Original post by Philip-flop

Can I ask what you people do when you are given numbers to powers? Because I find it quite monotonous when having to times a number over and over again e.g. 8^3 (8x8x8). Or should I just learn my cubic powers?

It is quite boring writing out multiplication, but it's honestly worth it in case you remember it incorrectly, plus easy to check over.

I think the hardest thing about C1 is making silly mistakes, it's amazing how much you can lose from doing simple addition wrong, which is why I'd advise writing every step of working out even though it gets tedious. Not sure what exam board, you are, but OCR give a lot of time which helps you do things like that.

Reply 11

Shiv is Light

5

Original post by Philip-flop

What shall I do if my mental maths is kind of lacking?

Your mental maths isn't a big deal, it would just speed up a few calculations but you're more likely to make mistakes doing it mentally

Reply 12

Philip-flop

OP

18

Original post by alevelpain

It is quite boring writing out multiplication, but it's honestly worth it in case you remember it incorrectly, plus easy to check over.

I think the hardest thing about C1 is making silly mistakes, it's amazing how much you can lose from doing simple addition wrong, which is why I'd advise writing every step of working out even though it gets tedious. Not sure what exam board, you are, but OCR give a lot of time which helps you do things like that.

I'm doing Edexcel which is an hour and a half for C1 but I'm struggling to do practice papers in under that time :frown:

Reply 13

RosaA

4

Original post by Philip-flop

Thank you!! I think I'm just panicking a bit too much!! I've been doing past papers but and been making silly slip ups so haven't been getting the exact answers :frown:

Try not to stress about it as that will not help you.
Remain positive. :wink:

Look at all your mistakes and see which topics they are in. Once you have identified the areas that you need to improve in, do tonnes of practice questions and watch online tutorials to help you! This way you'll gain confidence in what you are learning and hopefully not do as many silly mistakes.
Eventually, some hard work and practice will improve your accuracy and you will be able to confidently do the past papers :smile:

Try not to stress and create an action plan as to where you can improve! Good luck and tag me if you ever need any help! :biggrin:

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 14

Philip-flop

OP

18

Original post by RosaA

Try not to stress about it as that will not help you.
Remain positive. :wink:

Look at all your mistakes and see which topics they are in. Once you have identified the areas that you need to improve in, do tonnes of practice questions and watch online tutorials to help you! This way you'll gain confidence in what you are learning and hopefully not do as many silly mistakes.
Eventually, some hard work and practice will improve your accuracy and you will be able to confidently do the past papers :smile: