A good Additional Mathematics study route does three things: it starts from the syllabus for your exam year, it repairs algebra before advanced topics, and it fits the sessions you can actually protect each week. This page shows how to build one, with a worked planning example.
The subject code is 0606. Open the Cambridge subject page first and read the topic list for your exam year, because the list of included topics and the calculator rules come from that document, not from a friend or an old website. Our Additional Mathematics learning guide gives the wider picture, and the 0606 code page lists what to confirm.
What should you confirm before planning?
Confirm four facts and write them at the start of your plan:
- Your code and exam year. The syllabus applies to a range of years.
- Your exam series and date. Your school or exam centre decides this, and it tells you how many weeks you have.
- Calculator rules and any given formulae. Read these in the syllabus rather than assuming.
- The topics your teacher says are included. Compare this with the syllabus list.
The syllabus and exam-year navigator gives a checking list for this step.
Which topics depend on which?
Some topics are doors to later ones. A sensible order looks like this:
| Stage | Topics | Why here |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Algebra base | algebraic equations and inequalities, quadratic structure and discriminants, polynomial factors and remainders | Every later topic uses these moves |
| 2. Functions and growth | functions and restrictions, simultaneous models, exponential and logarithmic reasoning | Adds notation and inverse thinking |
| 3. Geometry and trigonometry | straight lines and linearisation, circle methods, radians, identities, trigonometric equations | Coordinates and angles feed calculus |
| 4. Counting and series | permutations and combinations, series, binomial expansion, vector proofs | Mostly independent, good for flexible weeks |
| 5. Calculus | differentiation, stationary points, tangents and rates, integration, areas and motion | Needs stages 1 to 3 to be secure |
| 6. Mixed reasoning | non-calculator reasoning | Brings methods together |
If your school teaches in a different order, keep that order in class and use this table to spot missing prerequisites.
Worked example: turning a calendar into a plan
Suppose a student has 12 weeks before the mock exam, and can protect three 45-minute sessions a week.
Step 1, count sessions: 12 × 3 = 36 sessions.
Step 2, count topics: the table above lists 21 topic hubs, so a first pass of one session each uses 21 sessions.
Step 3, reserve repair and mixing: that leaves 36 − 21 = 15 sessions. Give 10 to second passes on the topics the mistake log shows are weak, and 5 to mixed practice.
Step 4, check the total: 21 + 10 + 5 = 36. The plan fits, with nothing squeezed.
Now the honest test.
If the same student also wanted 20 extra hours of past-style practice, the plan would overflow, and the planner should say so rather than hide it. The realistic revision planner reports overload in exactly this way. The fix is to shrink the goal or extend the calendar, not to add hours that do not exist.
What mistake breaks most plans?
A common slip is to plan every topic at the same depth. The plan looks tidy, but the student spends a session on a topic that is already secure and only one on the topic that keeps failing.
Correct it with evidence.
After each first pass, mark each topic as secure, shaky or not yet reachable. Spend second-pass sessions only on shaky topics, and move to the prerequisite if a topic is not yet reachable. Keep a simple mistake log so the decision is based on what you actually got wrong.
Self-check your plan
1. A student has 8 weeks and can protect two 60-minute sessions a week. How many sessions is that?
Show answer
8 × 2 = 16 sessions, or 16 hours in total.
2. The student wants a first pass of 21 topics at one session each. Does that fit?
Show answer
No. 21 sessions is more than 16, a shortfall of 5. The student must choose fewer topics for a first pass, find more sessions or check whether some topics are not needed for their exam year.
3. Why place differentiation before stationary points?
Show answer
Finding stationary points means setting a derivative equal to zero. If you cannot differentiate reliably, the stationary-point steps fail for the wrong reason.
Where does this lead next?
Once the route is written, start with the first stage, then use the original practice hub to test each one. The revision page explains how to use your mistakes to adjust the route.
Some students build a sensible plan and still cannot start unfamiliar questions. A teacher who can watch your first steps is useful here, and that is what online one-to-one Additional Mathematics tuition offers.