What's the Best Way to Revise for IB Maths?

Do past papers topic by topic before you attempt full mocks — practice retrieving formulae and methods under exam pressure beats rereading notes every time. According to the IB, the current Analysis & Approaches and Applications & Interpretation guides had first exams in 2021, with substantial past-paper banks now available for both. Aim for 60% of study time on questions, 40% on notes and gap-filling.

Most students who get a 6 or 7 have worked through 8-12 full past papers per paper type (Paper 1, 2, and HL Paper 3 if relevant) by the time of their exam, plus dozens of topic-based question sets. Quality of marking matters more than raw quantity — mark against the actual scheme every time.

Questions first, notes second. Notes are for filling a specific gap you find while doing a question — not a starting point. If you can already do the question correctly, rereading the theory behind it wastes time you could spend on a topic you're actually weak in.

HL Paper 3 tests extended, multi-part investigation-style questions, usually drawn from two options-adjacent topics like sequences, geometry, or statistics modelling. Revise it by working through every available Paper 3 from the current syllabus era first — the question style is genuinely different from Papers 1 and 2, and familiarity with the format matters as much as content knowledge.

Maths AA (Analysis & Approaches) leans harder into pure algebraic proof and calculus rigour, so most students find AA HL the more demanding route. Maths AI (Applications & Interpretation) is technology-and-modelling focused with more real-world context — harder to call 'easier' outright, but generally less abstract.

A 7 usually needs consistent 80%+ scores across timed past papers in the final two months, not a lucky exam day. Grade 7 boundaries for AA HL Paper 1 have typically sat in the low-to-mid 70s out of 110 in recent sessions — check your subject's actual boundary each session via your school.

A strong IA topic is narrow, personal, and mathematically stretching — modelling your own sport's trajectory data, analysing a genuine local statistic, or exploring a specific proof extension. Avoid generic 'Maths in Football' topics with no original data; examiners mark against the Mathematical Exploration criteria, and Criterion B (Mathematical presentation) and E (Rigour) both reward depth over breadth.

The biggest one, by far: not writing enough working, so a correct final answer scores zero because there's no method (M) mark to award. Second most common — misreading whether a question wants exact form or a decimal answer, which loses easy A marks on an otherwise correct solution.

No — Paper 1 for both AA and AI is non-calculator, testing algebraic and analytic method by hand. Paper 2 (and Paper 3 for HL) allow a graphic display calculator throughout, and the IB publishes an approved GDC list each year — check your model is on it before exam season.

Practise with the actual IB formula booklet from day one of revision, not a personal cheat sheet — you'll sit the real exam with only that document, so get used to its exact layout, section headings and notation now, not the night before.

It depends on the degree they're aiming for, not which sounds 'more impressive'. AA HL is typically expected for Engineering, Physics or Mathematics degrees; AI is often perfectly accepted for Business, Psychology, Computer Science or Design courses — check specific university entry requirements before deciding, as they vary by course and country.

Private one-to-one tutoring for IB Maths commonly runs GBP 40-80 per hour depending on region and tutor experience, and a student sitting weekly for a year can add up to a significant sum. Self-study resources — structured notes, topical worksheets and mock papers — cost a fraction of that and let your child practise at their own pace.

IB Maths is assessed across two full years with a compulsory Internal Assessment worth 20% of the final grade, alongside exams — A-Level Maths in the UK is typically 100% exam-based with no coursework component. IB also mandates a broader spread of topics (statistics, calculus, and either pure algebra or applied modelling) within one course.

The most useful thing you can do isn't reteaching content — it's protecting consistent practice time and asking to see marked past papers, not just completed ones. Ask specifically: 'What did you get wrong this week, and did you redo it?' That question alone surfaces whether real revision is happening.