Here's what to expect in Methods next year!
Whether you’re going into Year 11 or Year 12 Maths Methods, it’s a big step up from anything else you’ve done before.
The curriculum in Year 9 and 10 is usually very similar, with perhaps a couple of new topics. However, the jump for Year 10 to Year 11 Maths Methods is huge and the jump for Year 11 to Year 12 is even bigger. In fact, there is so much to cover that teachers often run out of time and end up rushing through a lot of the curriculum (especially in Year 12).
Scroll down to learn more about the year you are about to complete:
If you’re going into Year 11: in the first term you’ll generally cover a lot of sketching graphs and the algebra related to this.
After that, there is also bit of probability and a few other graph related topics which you haven’t seen yet.
The newest topic you’ll cover is called “Calculus” which is a lot scarier than it sounds – it’s mainly about calculating the gradient of graphs (click here to get a simple intro).
If you’re going into Year 12: you will cover most of the Year 11 in the first two terms, plus a few additional topics thrown into the mix.
You will also go into Calculus in much more detail and learn a variety of new techniques.
The biggest difference, however, is that Probability becomes a major topic and takes up almost a third of the year. For example, you will learn to use Calculus in Probability (which is actually not as bad as it sounds).
This is just a brief rundown: I've kept it very simple because I don't want to overload you with names of new topics you've never heard of - that doesn't help anyone! If you have any questions or want more detail about what to expect, click here to send me a message or email me at alex@mathsmethods.com.au.
Methods next year will be very challenging: Although a lot of the content is similar, the additional topics means that classes move a lot faster and the questions are more challenging.
In the first week of Term 1, most students find the topics deceptively easy, but then the pace ramps up and within the first few weeks (sometimes longer if your school moves slowly), you’ve fallen behind. Since each topic builds upon the previous one, it gets tougher and tougher, until you end up feeling like you’ll never catch up.
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We’ve all been told that Methods is going to be tough next year, but this isn’t very helpful unless we know what to do about it. I’m going to give you several solutions that will make your life much easier.
Avoiding this is simple and you already know the answer. If you find it hard to motivate yourself to study during the holidays (see, you already knew the answer), then don’t.
Find a way in which you don’t need to be motivated.
The easiest way is to attend a Workshop that covers all the concepts before you see them in class from a professional speaker who takes dull topics and will get you interested in them. Here’s one of literally hundreds of testimonials:
“Excellent presentation – fun and engaging. Slides were awesome – colourful and clear – excellent graphics and fun animations. I certainly cleared many things up and left the seminar armed with much more knowledge. Thank you, Alex.”
If you’d like to come along, register at:
https://mathsmethods.com.au/workshops
If you can’t make it to the Workshop, a good way to get motivated is to become pals with students who are already motivated to study. Just being in the atmosphere of students who perform well can bring up your motivation. Just make sure you commit to regular sessions and don’t flake. Go on, make the call – your ATAR will thank you.
Of course, motivation isn’t enough to master Methods and learning from the textbook is pretty rough. Many teachers find the textbook confusing and indirect – so imagine how the students feel! So, I decided to spend an entire year creating a series of animated videos which describe each topic in simple language with lots of colourful animations.
In 2016, I implemented these videos and my bound reference into a school of 89 Method students and it was the FIRST time ever that every single student passed.
If you’d like to learn more about these, check out below:
https://mathsmethods.com.au/course/mathsmethodstutorials/
I hope these three tips helped, if you want some more advice on how to get prepared for next year or want to know more about what to expect, you can send me a message below. Otherwise you can email me at alex@mathsmethods.com.au.
Don’t be shy, I’d be happy to hear from you 🙂
