The Oxbridge entrance exams are demanding and finding the right support and teaching towards them can be difficult. At LondonSMP we know what the examiners are looking for and how best to prepare for them. This invaluable knowledge, what you need to know and the recipe for success, are contained in our Oxbridge Weekend Camps and courses.
Even if your child is not planning to read Maths at university, this Oxbridge preparation course teaches up to and beyond the level required of Maths and Further Maths A levels, optimising each pupil’s opportunity to secure the A or A* they desire.
Mastering Mathematical Logic and Reasoning for Years 11-12:
Strict mathematical reasoning is the essence of the subject of maths but sometimes it is hardly taught at school. Yet in the BMAT, TMUA, MAT and STEP exams set by leading universities as their entry requirement for students wishing to study maths, or a maths related subject, students have to show their abilities and skills in reasoning.
We advise potential Oxbridge candidates to begin studying mathematical reasoning by no later than Year 11, before starting Sixth Form, because the GCSE curriculum today already provides a wide range of fields where clear reasoning must be presented and errors in thinking analyzed and corrected. For Maths A level students in Year 12, these skills need to be developed still further because the reasoning and problem solving skills required at A level run still deeper.
During this camp we check and discuss the usual logical errors that occur when equations are solved:
- how one could find a new, nonexistent solution
- how is it possible to lose one
- what should be considered when square roots are in action
We will cover the famous proofs in Geometry and Number Theory step by step and discuss how the conditions of each theorem are related to the steps.
Pupils might relax on puzzles of logic but in this camp they will learn how to pay close attention when tackling questions where students have to carefully distinguish between necessary and sufficient conditions and when they investigate and judge the converse of statements.
A Levels and Oxbridge Maths - Differentiation and Curves for Year 13:
In this camp we will be addressing and learning to master subjects that are arguably the hardest in A-Level Mathematics and Further Mathematics:
- implicit differentiation
- curves and
- polar curves
We will practice these topics and use Geogebra software to develop and draw beautiful curves, create animations and reveal the properties of famous curves including the nephroid, cardioid, astroid and lemniscate.
To take part a pupil must have a PC or laptop (Windows or Mac OS) with a camera and mic and a stable internet connection.
The hours of the camp on Saturday and Sunday are 10am to 5pm, the fee is £380. Participants study in small groups according to age and experience.
Places are limited, please register your interest HERE.
The essential starting point is understanding what the examiners want: ‘Questions may test a candidate’s ability to apply mathematical knowledge in novel and unfamiliar ways and will often require knowledge of several different syllabus topics. Solutions will frequently require insight, ingenuity, persistence and the ability to work through substantial sequences of algebraic manipulation.’
This extract is from the specification of the STEP exam, the mathematical entrance exam to the University of Cambridge, the University of Warwick and Imperial College London. However, the requirements for the MAT admission test to Oxford and the TMUA test, used by several other universities, are similar.
This camp is taught by Dr Hrasko, LondonSMP’s Head of Maths. Andras holds a PhD in Mathematics from Roland Eotvos University (Budapest, Hungary) and an MSc in Mathematics from the University of Warwick. Over his 20-year teaching career, Andras has trained numerous winners in the annual IMO and the European Maths Olympiad for Girls. Andras also has a fine understanding of the exam demands of GCSE and A-levels and, as a specialist in STEP and MAT tests, has taught numerous pupils to success in their Oxbridge entrance exams.
Places are limited, please register your interest HERE.