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Who got an A* in A level edexcel maths?

I need to ask you some questions

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Yes bro. Anything. Message on snap because I’m more active there snap:flxmz
Original post by Kawalas108
Yes bro. Anything. Message on snap because I’m more active there snap:flxmz

Thank you but I just have a quick question
out of these, which ones should I do to get me an A*
These are all past papers but I want to do the bare minimum to get me the highest grade. Plus, I havent started past papers and I don't have the time to do them all.
1) New spec maths edexcel papers
2) soloman papers
3) madas maths papers
4) edexcel teachers resources - I'll get them from my teacher obviously
5) old spec past papers
6) exam solutions - a youtuber who can explain the exam questions well when I dont understand something
7) Negin sabbagh papers
Original post by curiousperson123
Thank you but I just have a quick question
out of these, which ones should I do to get me an A*
These are all past papers but I want to do the bare minimum to get me the highest grade. Plus, I havent started past papers and I don't have the time to do them all.
1) New spec maths edexcel papers
2) soloman papers
3) madas maths papers
4) edexcel teachers resources - I'll get them from my teacher obviously
5) old spec past papers
6) exam solutions - a youtuber who can explain the exam questions well when I dont understand something
7) Negin sabbagh papers


I done the the past papers on the old spec and once I mastered that I done Madas Maths because they have the hardest questions. If you attempt the hard questions and get good at them everything else feels easy hence why I was getting like 90% in papers. One paper I got 97/100 and I was in set 5. They threw me into set 1 and I felt like they were going too fast for me but then exams came along. And I get 90% again. Due to the given time frame I would recommend Madas, but really and truly you could do old spec and Madas if you dedicate like 10 hours a day. You can do 5 past papers a day and you will see your grades skyrocket
Reply 4
Original post by curiousperson123
Thank you but I just have a quick question
out of these, which ones should I do to get me an A*
These are all past papers but I want to do the bare minimum to get me the highest grade. Plus, I havent started past papers and I don't have the time to do them all.
1) New spec maths edexcel papers
2) soloman papers
3) madas maths papers
4) edexcel teachers resources - I'll get them from my teacher obviously
5) old spec past papers
6) exam solutions - a youtuber who can explain the exam questions well when I dont understand something
7) Negin sabbagh papers

Do you understand all the content fully and now looking at which papers to try? If not then you won't get an A* just by doing papers.

If you are ready to focus on papers, prioritise all of the new spec papers including those across all exam boards (the specs are practically the same). This includes past, specimen and practice papers as well as any locked papers given to you by your teacher. Old spec papers should only be used if you don't have enough new spec papers.

I wrote this a few years ago for the new spec so some of it could do with being updated but you still may find it useful:

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/a-level/exams/how-to-revise-a-level-maths-new-spec
Original post by curiousperson123
Thank you but I just have a quick question
out of these, which ones should I do to get me an A*
These are all past papers but I want to do the bare minimum to get me the highest grade. Plus, I havent started past papers and I don't have the time to do them all.
1) New spec maths edexcel papers
2) soloman papers
3) madas maths papers
4) edexcel teachers resources - I'll get them from my teacher obviously
5) old spec past papers
6) exam solutions - a youtuber who can explain the exam questions well when I dont understand something
7) Negin sabbagh papers

madas is legendary, I can't stress this enough
Original post by Notnek
Do you understand all the content fully and now looking at which papers to try? If not then you won't get an A* just by doing papers.

If you are ready to focus on papers, prioritise all of the new spec papers including those across all exam boards (the specs are practically the same). This includes past, specimen and practice papers as well as any locked papers given to you by your teacher. Old spec papers should only be used if you don't have enough new spec papers.

I wrote this a few years ago for the new spec so some of it could do with being updated but you still may find it useful:

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/a-level/exams/how-to-revise-a-level-maths-new-spec


Original post by yeye21
madas is legendary, I can't stress this enough

Are the soloman papers worth it?
Reply 7
Original post by curiousperson123
Are the soloman papers worth it?

Not really anymore since they’re designed for the old spec and the new spec is harder. If you’re going to look at old spec papers then I recommend the IAL papers because they’re closer to the difficulty of the new spec.
Original post by Notnek
Not really anymore since they’re designed for the old spec and the new spec is harder. If you’re going to look at old spec papers then I recommend the IAL papers because they’re closer to the difficulty of the new spec.

Thank you for replying
Have you done the new spec past papers and what's the IAL paper?
I did. Just do Madasmaths. I did nothing nothing else. Do all the papers, all of them.
Reply 10
Original post by curiousperson123
Thank you for replying
Have you done the new spec past papers and what's the IAL paper?

I have looked at most of them. I haven't really "done" all the papers since I'm a teacher not a student.

The IAL papers were for the international A Level and you can find them here:

https://www.physicsandmathstutor.com/a-level-maths-papers/c4-edexcel/
Reply 11
Original post by Callicious
I did. Just do Madasmaths. I did nothing nothing else. Do all the papers, all of them.

You didn't do any new spec papers?
Original post by Callicious
I did. Just do Madasmaths. I did nothing nothing else. Do all the papers, all of them.

That's cool did you use exam solutions (youtube channel) ?
Original post by curiousperson123
Thank you for replying
Have you done the new spec past papers and what's the IAL paper?


If you want the old spec papers in order from 2005 to 2017 then physicsandmathstutor is the one. In my opinion if you master the old spec and sit the new spec you would literally get 85%. Not much has changed. I didn’t even notice the difference
Original post by Notnek
You didn't do any new spec papers?

Just Madasmaths. It's like Physics/etc... I sincerely believe that if you're competent at it, the style that the question is asked in doesn't matter, which I assume is this new spec stuff... I did 'em like... jesus 4 years ago already, and I think they had a new spec then (I heard talk of that?) but idk...

Anyway, just Madasmaths!
Original post by curiousperson123
That's cool did you use exam solutions (youtube channel) ?

Written solutions or none at all. "None at all" because eventually you'll learn to recognize a bad answer from a good one.
Reply 18
Original post by Kawalas108
If you want the old spec papers in order from 2005 to 2017 then physicsandmathstutor is the one. In my opinion if you master the old spec and sit the new spec you would literally get 85%. Not much has changed. I didn’t even notice the difference

This is not the case for most students, as shown by the dramatic difference in grade boundaries between old and new spec. The average student who just prepares using old spec papers will struggle with new spec papers.
I haven’t got an A* (yet lol) but I’m going to put my two pence in.

I think it’s easy to fall into the trap of doing past papers, as some of the content might be missed from the paper. So you need to develop a routine to review all chapters from the textbook regularly.

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