Exam Skills & Year-8 Bridges

2 h · 110 marks. Exact form required: fractions, surds, $\pi$-multiples — never decimals. Section A short, Section B extended.

2 h · 110 marks. GDC allowed and expected — state the GDC step ('using GDC, ...') for the M1 mark. Solutions to 3 s.f. unless told otherwise.

1 h · 55 marks. Two long extension-style problems guiding you through unfamiliar territory. Read part (e) before starting part (a) — it tells you where you're going.

Method mark — awarded for the correct formula or set-up appearing on the page. Quote the rule explicitly to bank this.

Accuracy mark — awarded for a correct intermediate or final value arising from correct method.

Reason mark — awarded for the justifying sentence ('by the principle of induction...', 'since $f'(x) > 0$ on $[a,b]$, $f$ is increasing...').

Show working; give the answer. Working can earn M1 even if the final A1 is wrong.

FULL algebraic trail required. No shortcuts. You must end at the stated result.

Like 'find' but with a justification line — give the value AND a reason ('therefore...').

'Hence' = use the previous part's result. 'Hence or otherwise' = use it OR start fresh.

Final value only; no working expected. Often 1 mark, no partial credit.

Label every asymptote, intercept, and turning point with coordinates. Unlabelled features score 0.

(1) Quote the formula. (2) Show every algebra step on its own line. (3) Use exact form on Paper 1. (4) Check the requested interval for second solutions. (5) Write the closing sentence on proofs.

Paper 1/2: ~65 sec/mark. Paper 3: ~65 sec/mark. If a question is taking >2× the budget, flag it and move on.