macbakeib88 Posted April 12, 2018 Report Share Posted April 12, 2018 I'm doing maths Sl and i'm finding it to be really difficult... I understand most of the concepts however when I attempt past paper questions I have no idea how to do them and I always get them wrong, and it feels like I know nothing. Does anyone have any tips with maths SL, because I'm really struggling and I need to get at least a 5 overall [proving difficult to do, because I was never good at maths] Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
yara560 Posted April 12, 2018 Report Share Posted April 12, 2018 (edited) With maths, the only thing you can really do is do a bunch of questions. When you're getting the questions wrong, are you spending time going through the markscheme and trying to understand it? This is crucial. Then you should go back to the textbook questions and try again, there's really no easy way to get good at math. Just a lot of practice. If you need help with understanding concepts I would advise you to start going for lessons or extra help outside of school to try and understand the method and applications of concepts, if not you can always ask your teacher questions and things like that. Or even try going through questions with a friend (who's good at math lmao). But I would really stress the importance of practice. Make sure you're doing the textbook questions regularly, not just before the test. Also, the past paper questions are meant to be done only when you've covered all the content, so don't be too worried if you're finding them hard atm. Persevere through and you can do it. I also find khan academy videos help to an extent with some difficult to understand topics. Hope this helps! Edited April 12, 2018 by yara560 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
inriya Posted April 21, 2018 Report Share Posted April 21, 2018 (edited) On 4/12/2018 at 8:47 PM, macbakeib88 said: I'm doing maths Sl and i'm finding it to be really difficult... I understand most of the concepts however when I attempt past paper questions I have no idea how to do them and I always get them wrong, and it feels like I know nothing. Does anyone have any tips with maths SL, because I'm really struggling and I need to get at least a 5 overall [proving difficult to do, because I was never good at maths] Hello there. (9 days late but I hope it's not too late for me to answer this). I have actually scored 7 for my Maths SL throughout my two years of IB, but I do understand why people are not understanding some of the concepts at times because Maths can be such a challenge. There are actually some tips for getting 7 in Maths SL other than attempting past paper questions which I am willing to share my past experience here. Personally, I think the most reliable method is for you to practice through past paper, which I know that you have tried doing it, but if you got some questions wrong, I must agree with @yara560 that you must refer to the answer scheme to understand why you are wrong. If you know what you have made mistakes on, try doing the question again to refreshen your memory. It could be because you forgot a particular step, or you just forgot the theory. You must identify what you really do not know and refer back to the textbook and look at examples in textbooks. Next thing that I would recommend (if you have a good math teacher who is willing to help you), is to ask the teacher. The teacher certainly has more experience in teaching and doing maths than any of us answering here. Ask the teacher if you have any problems or difficulties. I am quite sure the teacher is willing to answer and help you if you have the courage to ask him/her. These are the few problems that you might encounter in answering: Not understanding the question (Take a highlighter and highlight key points, it helps) Forgot the theory to be applied (Refer back to the book & answer scheme) Missing a procedure while answering (Same as 2.) You...you didn't press your calculator right in Paper 2 (...Try it again? Or try with a marking scheme in front of you) You rely too much on your calculator that you are struggling in Paper 1. (In this case, practice more with your 心算） Maths is a straightforward subject and you do not really have to be too afraid of it. If you are so fearful for your exams, all questions will look much harder. Try the methods that I have recommended up here. If you need any further help, message me and I'll help you (in Chinese or English as you like!). Edited April 21, 2018 by inriya I always make typos. 2 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbakeib88 Posted April 22, 2018 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2018 On 4/21/2018 at 11:02 AM, inriya said: Hello there. (9 days late but I hope it's not too late for me to answer this). I have actually scored 7 for my Maths SL throughout my two years of IB, but I do understand why people are not understanding some of the concepts at times because Maths can be such a challenge. There are actually some tips for getting 7 in Maths SL other than attempting past paper questions which I am willing to share my past experience here. Personally, I think the most reliable method is for you to practice through past paper, which I know that you have tried doing it, but if you got some questions wrong, I must agree with @yara560 that you must refer to the answer scheme to understand why you are wrong. If you know what you have made mistakes on, try doing the question again to refreshen your memory. It could be because you forgot a particular step, or you just forgot the theory. You must identify what you really do not know and refer back to the textbook and look at examples in textbooks. Next thing that I would recommend (if you have a good math teacher who is willing to help you), is to ask the teacher. The teacher certainly has more experience in teaching and doing maths than any of us answering here. Ask the teacher if you have any problems or difficulties. I am quite sure the teacher is willing to answer and help you if you have the courage to ask him/her. These are the few problems that you might encounter in answering: Not understanding the question (Take a highlighter and highlight key points, it helps) Forgot the theory to be applied (Refer back to the book & answer scheme) Missing a procedure while answering (Same as 2.) You...you didn't press your calculator right in Paper 2 (...Try it again? Or try with a marking scheme in front of you) You rely too much on your calculator that you are struggling in Paper 1. (In this case, practice more with your 心算） Maths is a straightforward subject and you do not really have to be too afraid of it. If you are so fearful for your exams, all questions will look much harder. Try the methods that I have recommended up here. If you need any further help, message me and I'll help you (in Chinese or English as you like!). thank you so much! these were extremely helpful, and i'll be sure to message you if i'm struggling in the future :) 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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