Better Maths Clear maths tutorials for UK students, parents and teachers

Better Maths

Clear maths tutorials for UK students, parents and teachers

Latest Articles

The Last Clear Step: Building a Shared Language for Maths Difficulty
Parents & Home Learning

The Last Clear Step: Building a Shared Language for Maths Difficulty

When a pupil says only “I don’t get it”, the useful information is often hidden rather than absent. This article sets out a short stuck-point routine that helps students, parents and teachers locate the last clear step, classify the difficulty and ask a precise question.

The Unit as Warning Light: A Pre-Calculation Habit for GCSE Maths
Exam Technique

The Unit as Warning Light: A Pre-Calculation Habit for GCSE Maths

Most marks lost in GCSE maths are lost before the calculation begins, at the moment a student decides which numbers to combine. This article sets out a fifteen-second units check that exposes mismatched information, surfaces hidden conversions, and gives parents and teachers a prompt that works before the working starts.

Where the Boundary Lies: Translating Comparative Language Into GCSE Inequalities
Exam Technique

Where the Boundary Lies: Translating Comparative Language Into GCSE Inequalities

Students often know how to solve an inequality but lose marks when the question uses everyday comparative language. This article sets out a short translation routine for at least, at most, no more than and related phrases, with UK exam examples and a boundary check.

The Final Sentence: Why a GCSE Maths Answer Needs a Closing Check
Exam Technique

The Final Sentence: Why a GCSE Maths Answer Needs a Closing Check

A GCSE Maths answer can be numerically correct and still fall short if the final line lacks units, sensible rounding or a clear response to the question. This article sets out a short closing routine that helps students finish answers with purpose and helps parents spot the difference between a calculation and a completed response.

Reading the Reference: A Purposeful Approach to GCSE Maths Formulae
Exam Technique

Reading the Reference: A Purposeful Approach to GCSE Maths Formulae

A formulae page rewards recognition rather than last-minute searching. This guide sets out how students can rehearse supplied formulae so that the sheet supports method, substitution and checking under exam conditions.

The Pencil Before the Equation: Diagrams as Working in GCSE Maths
Exam Technique

The Pencil Before the Equation: Diagrams as Working in GCSE Maths

A labelled sketch can turn a dense GCSE maths question into a set of visible relationships. This article explains which diagram families are worth rehearsing and how to make a drawing count in a written solution.

Before the Method: Constructive Opening Moves for Stalled GCSE Maths Questions
Exam Technique

Before the Method: Constructive Opening Moves for Stalled GCSE Maths Questions

A blank page at the start of a GCSE maths question is not a verdict on ability. This article sets out five low-risk opening moves that create traction, expose the next step and leave evidence of method for the examiner.

Foundation or Higher: A Working Framework for the GCSE Maths Tier
Parents & Home Learning

Foundation or Higher: A Working Framework for the GCSE Maths Tier

The GCSE maths tier decision is rarely settled by a single mock result. This guide offers parents and carers a calm, evidence-based way to review Foundation and Higher with their child and their school.

The Instruction Behind the Sum: Command Words in GCSE Maths
Exam Technique

The Instruction Behind the Sum: Command Words in GCSE Maths

GCSE maths questions rarely fail students on the mathematics alone. Often the lost marks sit in a small instruction word — 'show that', 'hence', 'otherwise', 'justify' or 'explain'. This guide sets out what each command word expects and how teachers and parents can help students read the question before they answer it.

After the Demonstration: A One-Minute Routine That Builds Independent Maths
Exam Technique

After the Demonstration: A One-Minute Routine That Builds Independent Maths

A worked example can create a convincing feeling of understanding without leaving behind the ability to reproduce it. This article sets out a short, repeatable routine for the minute after a demonstration, helping GCSE and KS3 students turn recognition into independent method.

Formula Fluency: Helping GCSE Maths Students Know Which Rule to Reach For
Exams & Revision

Formula Fluency: Helping GCSE Maths Students Know Which Rule to Reach For

A formula sheet can reassure students without teaching them when a rule applies. This guide sets out a practical routine for GCSE Maths revision in 2026, from active recall and simple derivations to spotting question clues and building a personal rescue plan.

Pace, Not Panic: A GCSE Maths Exam-Hall Timing Plan That Holds Under Pressure
Exam Technique

Pace, Not Panic: A GCSE Maths Exam-Hall Timing Plan That Holds Under Pressure

Many GCSE maths marks are lost to the clock rather than to missing knowledge. This plan sets out a three-pass approach, a move-on rule and low-stakes drills that make timing a habit rather than a hope.

Questions Before Answers: A Parent's Homework Routine for When Maths Gets Stuck
Parents & Home Learning

Questions Before Answers: A Parent's Homework Routine for When Maths Gets Stuck

When a child says they do not know where to start, the tempting response is to explain the method. This routine uses three short prompts to keep the thinking with the child and turn a stalemate into a workable next step.

The Marks Between the Lines: Layout Habits That Help GCSE Examiners Follow Your Maths
Exam Technique

The Marks Between the Lines: Layout Habits That Help GCSE Examiners Follow Your Maths

Clear working is not a cosmetic extra in GCSE maths; it is how method marks become visible to an examiner. This guide explains what examiners need to follow and offers five low-effort layout habits students can build in ordinary homework.

From Fixed Verdict to Next Step: Talking to a Child Who Says Maths Is Not for Them
Parents & Home Learning

From Fixed Verdict to Next Step: Talking to a Child Who Says Maths Is Not for Them

When a child says they are simply bad at maths, the first reply matters. This parent-facing guide offers realistic scripts that acknowledge frustration, avoid empty reassurance and move the conversation towards strategy and next steps.

Evidence, Not a Verdict: Turning a GCSE Maths Mock Into a Working Revision Map
Exam Technique

Evidence, Not a Verdict: Turning a GCSE Maths Mock Into a Working Revision Map

A returned mock paper is usually read for its percentage and then filed away. Read differently, the script shows exactly which kinds of error are costing marks, and what to do about them over the winter and spring. This guide sets out a five-category diagnosis and a realistic plan built from it.

Words First, Numbers Second: The KS2 Vocabulary That Changes What a Question Asks
Curriculum & Transition

Words First, Numbers Second: The KS2 Vocabulary That Changes What a Question Asks

Plenty of Key Stage 2 children can do the calculation but still answer the wrong question, because the wording has quietly shifted the task. This guide looks at the terms most likely to cause trouble and the short, practical routines that make them stick.

Rough Work, Right Answers: Building an Estimation Check Into Everyday Maths
Exam Technique

Rough Work, Right Answers: Building an Estimation Check Into Everyday Maths

Estimation is not a shortcut for weaker students; it is a disciplined checking habit that exposes unlikely answers before they cost marks. This guide sets out a simple routine for using rough values across fractions, decimals, percentages and algebra.

Beyond Reassurance: A Parent's Checklist for a Productive Maths Parents' Evening
Curriculum & Transition

Beyond Reassurance: A Parent's Checklist for a Productive Maths Parents' Evening

Parents' evening can easily end with general reassurance and no clear next step. These ten questions help parents leave with specific information about maths fluency, misconceptions, homework and support.

Buttons, Brackets and Blind Spots: What Calculator Papers Really Reward at GCSE
Exam Technique

Buttons, Brackets and Blind Spots: What Calculator Papers Really Reward at GCSE

Calculator-allowed papers are designed to test reasoning, not dexterity. This guide looks at the small, repeatable habits — bracket errors, premature rounding, awkward fraction entries and careless use of memory keys — that quietly cost marks, and sets out a checklist students, parents and teachers can actually use.