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Year 9: Building the Foundations
Many schools start GCSE content in Year 9, while others start in Year 10. Either way, this is the year to make sure the basics are secure, because everything at GCSE builds on them.
- Times tables up to 12 × 12, recalled quickly
- Fractions, decimals and percentages, and moving between them
- Negative numbers and the order of operations
- Simple algebra: collecting like terms, expanding brackets and solving equations
How You Can Help: keep homework regular, and if your child is shaky on any of the list above, now is the cheapest and calmest time to fix it.
Year 10: Most of the New Content
Most of the GCSE course is taught in Year 10. Topics move quickly, and gaps from earlier years start to show, especially in algebra. Many schools hold end-of-year exams or mocks in the summer term, and some begin to think about tiers.
How You Can Help: ask about the end-of-year exam results and which topics went badly. The summer holiday before Year 11 is a valuable time to close those gaps.
Year 11: The Exam Year
| When | What Usually Happens | How You Can Help |
|---|---|---|
| September to October | Final topics taught. Revision begins. | Set up a weekly revision routine early. |
| November to December | First mock exams (practice GCSEs at school) in many schools | Look at the mock papers together. Note the weak topics. |
| January to February | Second mocks in many schools. The school registers your child for the exams, including the tier. | Talk to the teacher about the tier before 21 February. |
| Easter holidays | The most important revision break | Use a revision planner. Practise full past papers. |
| May to June | The three GCSE Maths papers | Keep routines calm. Sleep, food and short, focused revision. |
| August | Results day | Plan the next step, including resits if needed. |
Exact mock dates vary from school to school, so check the school calendar. For summer 2027, the GCSE Maths papers are on Friday 14 May, Thursday 27 May and Monday 14 June, and GCSE results day is Thursday 19 August 2027.
The GCSE Maths Exams
| Exam Board | Papers | Calculator |
|---|---|---|
| AQA | 3 papers, 1 hour 30 minutes each | Paper 1 is non-calculator. Papers 2 and 3 allow a calculator. |
| Edexcel | 3 papers, 1 hour 30 minutes each | Paper 1 is non-calculator. Papers 2 and 3 allow a calculator. |
| OCR | 3 papers, 1 hour 30 minutes each | The middle paper is non-calculator. The other two allow a calculator. |
| Eduqas | 2 papers, 2 hours 15 minutes each | Component 1 is non-calculator. Component 2 allows a calculator. |
All the papers count towards the final grade, and there is no coursework. Each paper can cover any topic, so revising only "what came up last time" is a risky strategy.
Year 12 and Beyond
If your child does not get a grade 4, they will keep studying maths at college or sixth form. GCSE Maths can be resat in the November resit exams or the following summer. If they do well, A Level Maths or Core Maths (a practical maths course for 16 to 18-year-olds, about half the size of an A Level) may be options. My guide, Is Your Child Ready for A Level Maths?, explains what to look for.