How to Revise Maths
Your complete guide to revising maths effectively — based on what actually works, not what feels productive.
You've probably been here before: you spend an evening "revising" maths, feel like you've done loads, then sit a test and realise you can't actually do any of it.
That's not because you're bad at maths. It's because the revision methods most students use don't actually work.
This guide will change that.
Why Revision Feels So Hard
Let's be honest — maths revision is different from other subjects. You can't just "read through your notes" and hope it sticks. Maths is a doing subject. You learn it by solving problems, making mistakes, and figuring out where you went wrong.
The problem is: most revision advice isn't designed for maths. Highlighting your notes? Useless. Making pretty flashcards and never testing yourself? Waste of time. Re-reading worked examples? Feels productive, learns nothing.
Here's the uncomfortable truth: effective revision doesn't feel easy. If you're cruising through revision feeling confident and comfortable, you're probably not learning much. Real learning happens when your brain has to struggle a bit.
But here's the good news: once you understand how your brain actually learns, revision becomes much more efficient. You'll spend less time revising and remember more of it.
The Difference Between Feeling Busy and Actually Learning
Picture two students revising for the same test:
Student A spends two hours copying notes into a new notebook, highlighting key formulas, and reading through worked examples. They feel great — look at all that work!
Student B spends 45 minutes doing practice questions without looking at their notes, checking their answers, and re-doing the ones they got wrong. It feels frustrating and hard.
Who does better in the test?
Student B. Every time.
The difference? Student A was recognising information (easy, feels good). Student B was retrieving information from memory (hard, feels uncomfortable, actually works).
Your brain doesn't get stronger by looking at maths. It gets stronger by doing maths — especially when it's difficult.
Revision Myths — Busted
Let's clear up some common beliefs that waste your time:
❌ "I'm just not a maths person"
There's no such thing. Research consistently shows that maths ability isn't fixed — it grows with practice. If you're struggling, it's not your brain that's the problem, it's your method.
❌ "I need to understand everything before I practice"
Actually, the opposite is often true. Attempting problems (even badly) before you fully understand them helps your brain engage with the material. Struggle first, then learn.
❌ "Highlighting and re-reading helps me remember"
It really doesn't. Studies show highlighting has almost no effect on learning. Your brain is just recognising information, not encoding it into memory.
❌ "I work better with long revision sessions"
Your brain actually learns more efficiently in shorter, spaced sessions. Four 25-minute sessions across a week beats one 2-hour marathon session — significantly.
❌ "I should revise topics one at a time until I've mastered each one"
This feels logical but backfires badly. Mixing topics up (interleaving) is harder but leads to much better exam performance. More on this in our strategies section.
❌ "If I can do the practice questions, I know it"
Only if you can do them without looking at similar examples first. In the exam, you won't know what topic a question is testing. You need to practise identifying what type of problem you're facing, not just how to solve it.
What Actually Works
The good news: cognitive scientists have spent decades figuring out what genuinely helps learning. Here are the key strategies that work — especially for maths:
🔄 Spaced Repetition
Don't cram everything in one go. Spread your revision out over time, returning to topics at increasing intervals. Sounds slower, but you'll remember far more for far longer.
🧪 Retrieval Practice
Test yourself constantly. Don't re-read your notes — close them and try to write down what you remember. The struggle of trying to recall information is what makes it stick.
🔀 Interleaving
Mix different topics in the same revision session. Don't do 20 Pythagoras questions then 20 algebra questions. Do 5 Pythagoras, 5 algebra, 5 percentages, then mix them all up.
💪 Desirable Difficulty
If revision feels easy, you're probably not learning. That uncomfortable feeling when you can't remember something? That's your brain building stronger connections.
🔍 Elaborative Interrogation
Don't just memorise that something is true — understand why it's true. Ask "why does this work?" and "how does this connect?" to build deeper understanding.
Each of these is explained in detail in the pages below.
Your Revision Roadmap
📈 The Science of Learning
Understand why these techniques work. Learn about the forgetting curve, how memory actually works, and why your brain isn't broken — it just needs the right approach.
🔄 Spaced Repetition
Learn the 2-3-5-7 system and how to schedule your revision so topics don't slip through the cracks.
🧪 Retrieval Practice
Discover techniques like the blank page challenge, cover-write-check, and how to use flashcards properly (most people get this wrong).
🔀 Interleaving
Find out why mixing topics beats blocking them, and how to structure revision sessions that mimic exam conditions.
💪 Desirable Difficulty
Learn why struggle is a sign that learning is happening — and how to find the right level of challenge.
🔍 Elaborative Interrogation
Discover the power of asking "why?" — turning shallow memorisation into genuine understanding.
📅 Your Year 11 Timeline
A realistic schedule for the whole year — from September through to the night before.
🛠️ Revision Tools
How to use flashcards, past papers, and MathsGuide itself to maximise your revision.
❌ Common Revision Mistakes
The revision equivalent of our Misconception Museum — learn what to avoid.
Remember: You're not bad at maths. You've just been using methods that don't work. Time to change that.