Get your dream grades with expert GCSE Maths Tuition
Achieve 8/9s, or whatever would make you ecstatic on results day. Get into your 1st choice university. Expert online tutoring from Dr Andrew Lawson, a Cambridge graduate with over 12,000 hours of experience. Feel confident and supported, not lost or alone.
You’ll become a master of:
Sets and Venn diagrams
Surds
Graphs and transformations
Probability
Circle theorems
The Sine and Cosine rule
Common mistakes students make in GCSE Maths
GCSE’s are some of the first exams children are working towards and oftentimes schools neglect how to revise and learn properly. You’ll see this reflected in the common mistakes that students make in GCSE chemistry.
Not trying to improve their accuracy and speed
Everyone uses the phrase “silly mistakes”. It refers to mistakes based not on a lack of knowledge, but when doing the question.
But here’s the thing - every mistake loses marks. And people keep making these mistakes and keep losing marks. Marks on a topic they have spent many hours perfecting. But they spend no time on their accuracy and speed, so important in every exam.
I have developed a few simple techniques that increase accuracy and speed you up. You can pick them up in minutes and they take no extra effort. This can make a significant difference in your A-Level Maths results.
Not figuring out how to approach harder questions
They tend to be towards the end of each paper. These are also usually high mark questions, which means not knowing how to start can have a big impact on your result. You don’t have to be able to finish these questions, but you don’t want to score zero. It is important when faced with a difficult question, to be able to break it down into 2 or more steps. The first step can get you a third or half the marks. Losing 10 marks at the end is better than losing 20.
Top questions from parents
What Maths GCSE topics do students tend to struggle with the most?
Drawing and understanding graphs usually needs a lot of practice.
Circle theorems are universally hated, especially the alternate segment theorem. I have a technique for teaching these that works really well.
Three more unpopular topics are probability, 3d trigonometry and the sine/cosine rules.
How long before my GCSE Maths exam should I start tutoring?
Ideally September or October. At the start of the new school year.
This way, you can get as high a grade as you want. Only your effort will limit you. Not your current ability. You should have 1 lesson a week. Maybe 2 a week if you want to FULLY cover 2 or 3 subjects.
If you have left it later than this:
- 3-4 months before an exam.
- The holidays, summer, half terms.
I can advise you on how many lessons a week and hours of homework you will need to reach your goals. - Finally, occasional lessons anytime during your course. For capable students before interviews, entrance exams, or competitions. Or when hitting a tricky topic.
The earlier you realise you need help the better.
What sort of grade improvements do you see across your students Maths GCSE grades?
Students usually see a good improvement, with most seeing a 2 to 4 grade increase.
I have seen greater improvements than this several times. Most of my students end up getting 7-9s.
How long does it take to see grade improvements with your private tutoring?
With weekly lessons, improvement in the topics we go over will be fast. Usually after the first lesson pupils are feeling much better.
However, there can be a wide variation. Sometimes there are so many gaps, we are going to need a few weeks to a couple of months to fill them all in.
If you come to me in the 2nd year of your GCSEs and most of the first year is a mystery to you, all the topics from the previous year will have to be covered. This is at the same time as keeping up with the new material.
Most tests are done on new material, so it is important both are done in parallel.
Tests are a priority over previous material, as teachers use them to build up a picture of you.
Don’t worry though, as this is easily the case with more than half of my clients. It just takes a bit of extra effort.
If a current topic needs previous knowledge you aren’t good at, I will teach you just the bits you need as we go. When we have time we can cover the rest in detail.
How regularly do I need private tutoring to get the best possible GCSE Maths result?
Weekly lessons throughout the last or both years of the GCSE are my usual advice. I don’t offer fortnightly lessons at a fixed day/time. But you can book ad-hoc lessons any time with my online booking system.
If you a lot of help with 1 subject, but only a bit for 1/2 others, 1 lesson a week is OK. To cover two or more subjects fully, 2 lessons a week are needed.
More than 1 lesson a week is advisable if you really need a decent boost, or if you start tuition later in the year, especially near exams.
Sometimes pupils are so busy during term time, they can only fit lessons in during holidays. Here we do a concentrated block of lessons, usually 2 or more a week. This requires genuine work and dedication between lessons.
We put the emphasis on understanding as well as memorisation. This ensures you have all the tools you need to tackle any exam question.
How I approach tuition
I have a proven teaching structure to make sure you truly understand every topic, and get enough practice with exam technique from day one. We also periodically revisit material so you don’t forget old topics and previous lessons.
Fundamentals
Start with getting a solid grip on any missing fundamentals for every topic.
Problem-solving
Introduce problem-solving skills right from the start, so you're 100% ready come exam time.
One topic at a time
Work on one topic at a time until it is understood, not just memorised.
Past paper questions
End each lesson by doing past paper questions from your exam board.
Revisit Old Topics
Begin practicing questions at random from multiple topics once you have mastered them.
Get Exam Ready
Bring it all together using full mock exams and marking them during sessions.
I’ve helped over 300 students smash their GCSE Maths exams
Andrew is a fantastic tutor
Helen
GCSE Maths & Chemistry
Absolutely awesome tutor!!!
Rose
GCSE Maths, Physics & Chemistry
Highly recommended for GCSE & A-Level
Michaela
GCSE & A-Level
Andrew is a knowledgeable and professional teacher.
Eunsoo
GCSE Maths, Physics & Chemistry
Andrew really focuses on using knowledge and understanding, not just memorising and parroting facts
Davide
GCSE Maths & Physics
We are delighted with the quality of tuition and would highly recommend Andrew for tutoring
Justine
GCSE Maths
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Ratio, Proportion and Rates of Change
Statistics
Number
Algebra
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All major exam boards covered
Techniques for every question type, specific to your exam board from a university examiner.
Master exam technique to maximise your marks
I’ve exam techniques for every style of question. I will show you how the mark scheme works so you drop no marks on wordy questions. Ways to remember everything, how to answer practical questions, calculation tricks, I’ll explain units, and more.