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Remember to use any online resource alongside Edexcel's specification and past papers! You can find older papers from all specs on PMT.
New specification papers will be the most similar to the real exam.
Why
🥇Best topic notes
🥈Best resources to stretch you to an A*
🥉Amazing walkthroughs for all past papers
Honourable Mentions: ZeeshanZamurred, ShawonNotes (note some bits might not be relevant), TLMath, undergroundmath
—> Make sure to scroll all the way to the end on PMT to see the IAL Edexcel section.
—> You can use materials for Edexcel found in "Questions by Topic" in PMT to review your knowledge without spoiling new past papers, since all questions are old spec.
—> Be on the lookout since PMT was not entirely updated for the new Edexcel IAL spec; some material and questions may be missing, misleading, or irrelevant for you.
For convenience, here are all of Simon Baxter's notes from 2016 (taken from PMT):
Advice
Do as many exam questions as possible - I recommend completing all the available papers from the new specification, and even some older papers if you have time.
Avoid relying exclusively on the textbook early in the course, this is not enough to succeed in the exam - practise exam questions throughout the year.
Every question, begin by identifying which topics the question tests. Circle all the key pieces of information in the question; if you get stuck, you can look for clues as to what examiners are looking for.
Use your calculator to check your final answer, alongside any intermediary steps, like finding the roots of a quadratic.
TI84 Plus CE-T calculator rundown
To graph inequalities, enable the inequality graphing mode by pressing the "apps" button and then selecting option 8 "inequalz". Then press the "y=" button, and you should be able to change the equality sign by selecting your function, e.g. "Y1".
To quickly find solutions for an equation or symoltaneous, press the "apps" button and then select option 0 "PlySmlt2". The polynomial root finder lets you calculate the roots (graphically where a function crosses the x-axis) of a quadratic, cubic etc. The simolteneous equation solver will give you the solutions to a system of equations.
To quickly access certain functionality, like sums, derivatives, integrals, the binomial coefficient or one of your saved functions (Y1,Y2,Y3...), press "alpha" and then F1/F2/F3/F4/F5. This acts as a quick menu to the functionality provided in "math".
You can change your calculator's mode to "parametric" using the "mode" button. This helps when checking questions related to parametric equations.
You can store values to full accuracy using the "sto->" button.
You can get probabilities and coefficients related to statistical distributions by pressing the "2nd" button and then the "vars" button (giving you the "distr" option).
Switch from decimal to fraction by pressing "math" and then ">Frac"
There are many more things for which you can use the TI-84 - the key is to play around with it to familiarise yourself with where things are.
Remember
—> You should use the calculator to double check your work, not as an alternative to showing working!
—> Use the same calculator(s) throughout the year, so that you are familiar with it on exam day.
—> One downside of the TI-84 is that it cannot simplify surds. It may be useful to have another calculator, like the Casio fx-cg50, to deal with surds.
How to get an A*
How to get an A*
There are 6 papers in Edexcel's Mathematics IAL. Each paper is worth 75 points, and your mark is converted into a standard UMS score out of 100. You need 480 UMS points overall AND 180 UMS points in Pure 3 and Pure 4. Note that this means you have to perform especially well in P3 and P4, as other papers do not impact the second requirement for the A*.
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