Mathematics Information
Course Details and where to find the specification, course content and exam papers:
You are studying the OCR Linear course J560.
The specification and course content can be found here:
https://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/168982-specification-gcse-mathematics.pdf
What is the exam structure?
You will sit three papers:
Foundation:
Paper 1 – 1 hr 30 mins Calculator allowed
Paper 2 - 1 hr 30 mins Calculator NOT allowed
Paper 3 - 1 hr 30 mins Calculator allowed
Higher:
Paper 4 – 1 hr 30 mins Calculator allowed
Paper 5 - 1 hr 30 mins Calculator NOT allowed
Paper 6 - 1 hr 30 mins Calculator allowed
All papers cover the entire course
Online resources we subscribe to and recommend for studying and revision:
The Mathematics Department subscribes to: https://www.sparxmaths.uk/
On this platform, you can watch short revision videos on any topic from the course and practise answering questions at different levels.
How to log in: Log in to this site using your full school e-mail address and go to the Independent Learning section.
What other resources do we recommend to students?
When using online resources, remember to check they are for the correct exam board (OCR).
We recommend the following websites for revision materials:
Lots of topic-based questions and exam papers with video links in support
https://www.physicsandmathstutor.com/
For revision materials and past papers broken down into individual topics.
Lots of topic-based questions, past papers, grade specific papers, half papers, and interleaving resources.
What does revision in this subject look like?
All the usual revision techniques (self-quizzing using flashcards, knowledge organisers etc.)
Mathematics is very knowledge-heavy, so you need to spend lots of time doing retrieval activities.
After the retrieval stage, you need to try past papers. Remember not to skip over the big-mark questions – it is really important to practise completing these! Remember to practise timings and exam strategy.
Are there any specific exam tips or strategies?
Lots of past paper practise!
