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A* in A Level Maths/Physics

Anyone have an tips in getting A* in physics, or maths. Preferably AQA Physics and Edexcel Maths

Reply 1

I achieved A*A*A* in maths, further maths and physics (top student in all 😉) and my best advice is to just keep going over the practice questions. Maths and physics are easy enough to revise as there is a very clear right or wrong answer, and the exam questions are very repetitive so keep going through textbook questions. I never bothered with anything outside of textbook questions and past papers. Throughout the year, start going over older chapters and start redoing all of the practice problems (if you have time) or skip to the challenging ones (at least 3 challenging ones from each chapter). Then, closer to the exam period you’ll have a lot less to cover and can spend that time going over the concepts you weren’t confident with and past papers.

Whenever I did this, I took a structured approach. I went chapter by chapter to make sure I covered everything. I did maybe 2 easy, 2 medium and 3 hard (varied a little depending on my confidence in the topic). I always wrote anything I didn’t understand in red pen so it was easy to refer back to. No point in cheating yourself - write down everything you didn’t understand in red pen even if it’s the whole question. If I really didn’t understand a concept, I’d go ask my teacher (don’t waste time, use your resources) and spent a little more time perfecting it. Then when it came to revision periods, I’d go over all the questions I ever had to use my red pen for, and redo them. If I’m still having to use my red pen, build up my knowledge of the concept again. This approach meant I was covering weak subjects a few times over the months. Be comprehensive - cover all chapters. And if you hate a chapter and hate the maths in it - spend more time on it! You hate it for a reason, pretend you love it and pretend you LOVE the challenge until you really do. Trust me, it works. If you don’t have that much time, just be strategic. Hit your weak points. Do less questions but pick the ones that cover a large array of topics, and pick the hard ones.

But yes, during revision periods I would start with covering all red pen, then would go over any other topics I wasn’t sure on or wanted a bit of extra support on, then do past papers (use red pen!), then do a couple of questions from textbooks on the concepts I got wrong in the papers, then if I had any spare time at the end I’d redo the questions I got wrong in the past papers. Just keep reiterating and target your weak points. You’ve got this!!