Welcome to my 194th gems post. This is where I share some of the latest news, ideas and resources for maths teachers.1. 1st Class Maths
It's great to see more A level resources from 1st Class Maths. There's now a full collection of excellent exam style questions for the statistics content of AS level maths, and now he's started to add mechanics exam style questions too. Unlike collections of exam questions on other websites which are often just made using ExamWizard, these questions are totally original and carefully thought through, meaning this is an excellent resource for use in lessons or for homework or revision.
I've added these to my Mechanics resource library.
Also check out the accompanying videos which are very high quality and well explained as always.
3. Circle Theorems
Conference Dates
Subject Associations
No doubt you're aware that the long-awaited merger of maths subject associations has now happened and the Association for Mathematics in Education (AMiE) has been born. Congratulations and well done to everyone involved in this lengthy process. It's going to be great to have a single body representing maths teachers in the UK.
2. Dr Austin
Thank you to Dr Austin for continuing to add incredibly useful resources to her website. Recent additions include multi-step trigonometry problems and a Pythagoras Pile Up.
There are also some new resources for congruency proofs, a topic that has always been under resourced.
Dr Austin also continues to grow her A level collection. Recent additions include resources for binomial expansions and trigonometry.
Dan Lewis' post on Bluesky about angles in the same segment got me thinking about how I don't provide enough non-examples when teaching circle theorems (see Task 2 below).
4. M4TH5
The website m4th5.co.uk has been redesigned. It features a number of free resources including a free and easy to use calculator emulator, interactive A level maths flashcards, an AS Further Maths Starter generator and a 100-mark A level exam paper with worked solutions (which is free, but only if you create an account).
The website m4th5.co.uk has been redesigned. It features a number of free resources including a free and easy to use calculator emulator, interactive A level maths flashcards, an AS Further Maths Starter generator and a 100-mark A level exam paper with worked solutions (which is free, but only if you create an account).
5. RISPs
Many of you will already be familiar with Jonny Griffiths' RISPs - a collection of open-ended investigative activities aimed at A level students. Jonny has updated the collection and created a new RISPs eBook which can be accessed at risps.co.uk. Thank you Jonny!
Many of you will already be familiar with Jonny Griffiths' RISPs - a collection of open-ended investigative activities aimed at A level students. Jonny has updated the collection and created a new RISPs eBook which can be accessed at risps.co.uk. Thank you Jonny!
Update
TMUA
I have a number of students taking TMUA in January so am very grateful for the resources that have been shared for this. @andrewmaths1 has posted an excellent set of questions in a blog post and @etzsmc has shared another set of TMUA notes and exercises on TES: this time for TMUA Paper 2 on Logic and Proof.
Conference Dates
Complete Maths conference dates for 2026 have been published. #mathsconf40 is on 7th March in the South, #mathsconf41 is on 6th June in the Midlands and #mathsconf42 is on 17th October in the North. As always, I'll attempt to attend all three if I can afford to.
The MEI Conference takes place on 2nd and 3rd July 2026 at Keele University. I'm speaking on the Friday so will be there then, and may also attend on the Thursday, depending on my timetable and school commitments. If I can't get the Thursday off school then I will still endeavour to attend the conference dinner on the Thursday night (a free bar sponsored by Casio is not to be missed!) Have I mentioned that I absolutely love the MEI Conference? I highly recommend it.
Subject Associations
No doubt you're aware that the long-awaited merger of maths subject associations has now happened and the Association for Mathematics in Education (AMiE) has been born. Congratulations and well done to everyone involved in this lengthy process. It's going to be great to have a single body representing maths teachers in the UK.
News from me
My latest post 'Things I assumed you knew' went down well, with a lot of readers getting in touch to say that they learnt something new from it (particularly the quick way of using equation editor).
I'm looking forward to reading Tom Briggs' book 'The Mathematicians' Library: The Books That Unlocked The Power Of Numbers' which my husband kindly bought me for Christmas.
Thank you to Jamie Frost for hosting drinks at his house followed by a meal at his local pub just before Christmas. As always it was lovely to catch up with this brilliant bunch of maths teachers.
Finally, I'll leave you with this brilliant 3D printed tool for drawing trig graphs from @thechalkface.bsky.social.
Happy New Year everyone! All the best for 2026.
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