How I Revised A-Level Maths: 5 Strategies That Actually Work

Written by: Ryan Sandhu

Academy Tutor at Medentors
Medical Student

A-Level Maths is where many students encounter their first significant academic challenge. At GCSE, you could scrape by with memorised formulas and a few last-minute past papers. At A-Level, though, calculus, algebra, mechanics, and statistics can all show up in the same exam – and suddenly the “cram and hope” method doesn’t work anymore.

If you’ve ever opened a paper and thought, “I don’t even know where to start,” you’re not alone. Every student feels that way at some point. The good news is that A-Level Maths isn’t about natural genius – it’s about revising in a way that keeps your skills sharp, builds exam technique, and makes papers feel less like traps. You’re misguided if you think that you are simply “bad at maths” and can’t improve.

Here are five proven strategies to not fumble that A* and some resources at the end to help you out:

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1. Don’t Let Core Skills Slip

One of the big shocks at A-Level is realising it’s not always the new content that trips you up. It’s the old stuff. A mechanics question falls apart if your algebra isn’t fluent. A probability question collapses because you can’t rearrange a quadratic. Suddenly, what you thought you’d left behind at GCSE is costing you marks.

That’s why you should always begin by strengthening the core and fixing foundational weaknesses. If algebra, trigonometry, and rearranging equations are second nature, you’ll save your brainpower for the reasoning steps that actually matter.

You don’t need hours for this. Ten minutes of daily practice on MadAsMaths, a quick YouTube walkthrough video, or rotating through a Year 12 topic each week – keeps the foundations alive. The difference is huge: when the basics feel automatic, big questions stop feeling like a fight and start feeling doable. Focus on foundations before you start building the house. The house will collapse otherwise!

2. Past Papers: Smarter, Not Sooner

Past papers are gold – but only if you use them properly. Too many students dive into full exams in October, burn through everything by spring, and then panic because they’ve run out of practice material.

A better approach is to phase them in:

  • Topic packs first. Use Physics & Maths Tutor to target specific skills. That way, you can hammer vectors one week and differentiation the next, without drowning in a whole paper.
  • Interactive practice in the middle. Dr Frost Learning makes revision less painful with instant feedback. Focus on small wins; they really add up over time.
  • Full papers later. Save exam-style conditions for when you’re building timing and stamina closer to June. The last thing you want is to be burnt out

The key is how you review. Don’t just tick or cross. Keep an “error bank”: write down every mistake, redo it the next day, then test yourself again a week later. Students at our Medentors Academy who do this see progress much faster because they’re actively training themselves out of bad habits instead of repeating them. You should spend more time learning from mistakes than attempting new questions!

And here’s the real win: using past papers this way turns revision from a cycle of “ugh, I’m still bad at this” into “oh wow, I actually fixed that.” That shift in confidence is worth as much as the practice itself.

3. How to Handle Big, Scary Questions

We’ve all opened a paper and frozen at the sight of a long mechanics problem. Too many words. Too many numbers. Too many marks at stake.

Here’s how to break that paralysis:

  1. Pull out the givens – write down the values and formulas.
  2. Sketch a quick diagram, even a rough one, to visualise what’s happening.
  3. Tackle it one part at a time. The first step is usually simple – something you could’ve managed at GCSE. Break the marks up into steps.

By breaking it down, the “monster” question becomes a sequence of manageable steps. And even if you don’t finish, you’ll often earn three or four marks just for setting up the right equations. That’s free credit for staying calm.

Our tutors spend a lot of time practicing this breakdown approach with students. Once you’ve seen how to dismantle a six-marker, the fear factor melts away – and those intimidating questions become easy opportunities instead of threats.

4. Learn the Examiner’s Style

One of the most frustrating things about A-Level Maths is losing marks when you technically got the maths right. It happens all the time. Forget a unit? Lose a mark. Don’t state an assumption? Lose a mark. Fail to show your working clearly? Yep, lose a mark.

The solution is to learn the examiner’s language. Watch how answers are written on ExamSolutions or TLMaths:

  • Every step is laid out logically.
  • Conclusions are phrased clearly (“Therefore, the acceleration is 2.5 m/s²”).
  • Units and assumptions are never left implied.

It might feel overly formal, but once you’re in the habit, it’s automatic – and it stops you bleeding marks for silly reasons. Focus on how the examiners want you to play the game. The ones who improve fastest are the ones who follow

5. Consistency Beats Cramming

The biggest myth is: “I’ll start properly in May.” That might have worked at GCSE, but it doesn’t fly here. A-Level Maths is too broad, and problem-solving skills are too fragile, to be crammed in a few frantic weeks.

The students who peak in June are the ones who’ve been doing little-and-often since the start of Y12. An hour, three times a week, is enough to keep topics alive and stop skills from slipping. Mix in old topics with new ones, then gradually introduce timed practice. By exam season, a two-hour paper won’t feel like an ambush – it’ll just feel like practice.

And here’s the bonus: consistency kills stress. Instead of arriving at the exam hall frazzled and panicked, you walk in calm, steady, and ready. If you know sticking to a plan is where you’ll struggle, Medentors Academy gives you accountability – a tutor who makes sure your revision doesn’t slide, so you’re always building towards the result you want.

Final Thoughts & Resource List

A-Level Maths can feel like climbing a mountain, but the climb is much easier when you’ve got the right system. Keep your basics alive, use past papers wisely, break big questions down, write like an examiner, and stay consistent.

Follow these strategies, and exam papers stop looking like traps. They start looking like opportunities. Whatever stage you’re on, keep going. It will definitely be worth it in the end. We’ll be here to support you throughout. 

Amazing Youtube Channels:

Topic-By-Topic Revision & Questions:

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