Just a lil side note: i almost failed maths in grade 5-8. Now, I’m doing 2 Maths subjects (straight A+’s) and ranked the third highest in my class for the harder maths subject (out of 20 students). You can do anything if you set your mind to it. Be persistent. Happy studying! :)
1. Keep up do date with the class
Even if the teacher doesn’t set homework, there is always an expectation that whatever excercise isn’t finished in class, you do at home! My maths class moves very fast (we do about 3 concepts/excercises each class) and so its crucial that the first thing I do when I get home, is finish off my maths questions! This is particularly important in the learning process, because if you understand it when you learn it, you will be far ahead of anyone else in an upcoming test- all you will need to do is revise!
- don’t sit next to anyone distracting
- work efficiently in class
- the time that your waste in class, is the time you will have to spend at home
2. Do ALL the practice questions in your textbook
In my harder maths class, there are about 20 questions per excercise/concept (100+ per chapter) and so we might only get told to do about half of that. But, I strongly reccommend doing all of the questions! It is great practice and really consolidates your learning!
ALSO, as the questions go on, they tend to get harder. DON’T GIVE UP IF THEY’RE TOO HARD. Ask the teacher’s help, persevere, or look for a video on YouTube. These are the questions that will most likely be in your tests/exams.
If you can do the hardest question, you can most likely do all the questions!
If you get a question wrong, do AT LEAST 5 more of the same style, make sure you know it well!
3. Practice is everything
You cant really study for maths the same way that you might study for science. There is nothing to memorise (apart from formulas, but the best way to remember them is to practice). Studying for maths IS doing practice questions. That’s all there is to it.
- listen to some tunes (music with lyrics is fine for maths!)
- put on a movie ( just try to not get too distracted)
4. How to study for maths when you’re sick of it all
Humans are creatures of habit. We like routines and we stick to them. BUT, studying maths can become tedious if you are constantly doing the same thing every time.
- ditch the notebook and pencil. Buy some non-permanent glass markers and do some maths on your windows or mirrors! I do this ALL THE TIME! It’s actually really fun and it makes me feel like Russell Crowe from ‘A Beautiful Mind’ (haha). Alternatively, you could also use a whiteboard if you have one!
- study in the library or another part of your house!
- buy some different stationery (this is always so fun)
do all the chapter review questions in your textbook. These tend to be a compilation of all the most important questions you will need to know. Take your time, don’t give up.
Seek external resources for questions. I own other revision books for maths that isn’t part of my school’s recommended material. These really help when you need more questions to test yourself on.
Do practice papers. THESE ARE CRUCIAL. Most of the time, the material that they test you on will be from past papers, the questions are the same, but they change the numbers!
Take a deep breath. Drink some water. Focus. Time management is the issue for most people (including me :)), so when you feel like a question is too challenging, move on, come back to it when you finish with a fresh mind!
Cover photo credit: @littlestudyblrblog
