How to prepare for your A-levels
Dr Lavan Ganeshkumar, PhD · updated 4 October 2026
The best preparation for A-levels is not reading ahead. It is closing the gaps from GCSE that the course builds on, and building one habit early: studying by testing yourself rather than re-reading. Most students who struggle in Year 12 do so because they arrived with weak foundations and kept the GCSE study habits that no longer work.
This applies whether you are about to start Year 12, a few weeks into it, or a parent trying to help. Nothing here needs an app.
What changes between GCSE and A-level
A-level moves from knowing to explaining and applying. GCSE questions largely ask you to recall or follow a method. A-level questions put the idea in an unfamiliar situation and ask you to reason about it, so recognising your notes is no longer enough.
The volume is also larger and the pace faster, and a topic taught in September is examined two years later. Material you do not revisit will fade before the exam.
Before you start: close the GCSE gaps
Each A-level builds directly on a few GCSE areas, and weakness there shows up immediately.
- Maths: algebraic manipulation, rearranging formulae, indices and surds, and graphs. Almost every science A-level assumes these.
- Chemistry: moles and balancing equations, bonding, and the periodic table trends.
- Physics: equations and units, rearranging, and standard form.
- Biology: cell structure, enzymes and basic genetics, plus the maths of percentages and ratios.
The first term: three habits that matter most
Do these from the first week and the rest of the course is easier.
- Test yourself instead of re-reading: close the notes and write down what you remember.
- Revisit each topic within a few weeks of it being taught, then again after a month.
- Do exam-style questions on every topic, and mark them against the mark scheme.
Know the exam structure early
Write down, for each subject, your exam board, the number of papers, how long each is, and what each covers. Knowing that a chemistry paper has a long practical-skills section, or that maths has a mechanics and statistics paper, tells you where to put your effort from the start.
Where Trayna fits, and where it does not
Trayna is a 24/7 online tutor in your pocket, on your tablet and on the web. Dr Lavan teaches you the topics in the app any time, anywhere, and an adaptive plan reinforces them each day from now to your exam. It is there for students who cannot afford 1-to-1 tutoring, and it is built to act like a 1-to-1 tutor: it teaches, it checks, and it adapts to how you are doing. The aim is that you really understand the subject and are prepared for it, not just that you have revised it. It is A-level only, for Maths, Chemistry, Physics and Biology. Maths follows Edexcel; Chemistry, Physics and Biology follow AQA.
If you want that structure done for you, the plan starts from your exam dates and works back.
It is for both Year 12 and Year 13. Year 13 students already use it, and Year 13 topics are being added as current students need them while Year 12 is the most complete, so check your topics in the app. If you only want free past papers, PMT does that better than we do, and we would rather you used it.
Common questions
How do I prepare for my A-levels?
Close any GCSE gaps the course builds on, learn to study by testing yourself rather than re-reading, revisit each topic within weeks of it being taught, and do exam-style questions marked against the mark scheme from the start.
How do I prepare for A-levels over the summer?
Spend the time on GCSE foundations rather than reading ahead: algebra for every science, moles for chemistry, equations and units for physics, and enzymes and genetics for biology. A few focused sessions a week is plenty.
What should I do before starting Year 12?
Check which GCSE topics you found shaky, fix those, find out your exam boards, and set up a simple way to test yourself on content as it is taught. Rest matters too.
How is A-level different from GCSE?
It asks you to explain and apply ideas in unfamiliar situations, not just recall facts. The workload is larger, and content taught in Year 12 is examined two years later, so revisiting it is essential.
How early should I start revising for A-levels?
Within weeks of a topic being taught. Spaced repetition needs gaps between repeats, so a plan that only starts in the spring has no room left for the spacing that makes it work.
Trayna does this automatically. You enter your subjects, your exam dates and how long you have each day, and it builds the route from today to those exams, then adapts it as you go. Maths follows Edexcel; Chemistry, Physics and Biology follow AQA.
Get Trayna on the App Store · on Google Play
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