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IB Maths AI SL Drilling Guide: Paper Order, Using Technology and a 12-Week Plan
TUTORZONE EXAM DRILL GUIDE · IB MATHEMATICS AI SL
Built on the published assessment framework: Paper 1 (short-response, technology allowed): Compulsory short-response questions; SL 1.5 h / 40% (SL 40%); Paper 2 (extended-response, technology allowed): Compulsory extended-response questions; SL 1.5 h / 40% (SL 40%); Mathematical exploration (IA): Independent investigation; 15 recommended hours; 20% at both lev (20% (SL and HL)). AI SL is two papers plus the exploration, forty per cent each and ninety minutes long. Method only: the order to drill the two papers, a twelve-week plan, splitting short and extended answers, pacing, common losses and an error log.
How is IB Mathematics AI SL assessed, and what does each part carry?
Paper 1 (short-response, technology allowed): Compulsory short-response questions; SL 1.5 h / 40% (SL 40%); Paper 2 (extended-response, technology allowed): Compulsory extended-response questions; SL 1.5 h / 40% (SL 40%); Mathematical exploration (IA): Independent investigation; 15 recommended hours; 20% at both levels (20% (SL and HL))
Assessment at a glance (2027)
| Component | Content | Weighting | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 (short-response, technology allowed) | Compulsory short-response questions; SL 1.5 h / 40% | SL 40% | 1.5 h |
| Paper 2 (extended-response, technology allowed) | Compulsory extended-response questions; SL 1.5 h / 40% | SL 40% | 1.5 h |
| Mathematical exploration (IA) | Independent investigation; 15 recommended hours; 20% at both levels | 20% (SL and HL) | 15 recommended hours |
Ten short-response questions in 90 minutes is about 8-9 minutes each. AI marks are rarely lost to computation but to ‘calculator output only, no model and no interpretation’ – keep two or three lines for the model and the interpretation in every answer.
What each paper is actually testing
| Paper | Drill focus | How marks are lost |
|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 (short-response, technology allowed) | Model first: variables, model, reason, then the GDC | Writes only the GDC readout in short answers, losing method marks for want of the substituted expression and units |
| Paper 2 (extended-response, technology allowed) | extract the data, choose a function or distribution, justify it | Spends extended-answer time redoing the short part, leaving the interpretation blank |
| Mathematical exploration (IA) | choose a real context you can model with data | Forgets unit conversion in distance, angle and currency items, so the order of magnitude is wrong |
What is each IB Mathematics AI SL paper really testing, and what should you drill?
Paper 1 (short-response, technology allowed): Model first: variables, model, reason, then the GDC; Paper 2 (extended-response, technology allowed): extract the data, choose a function or distribution, justify it; Mathematical exploration (IA): choose a real context you can model with data
Drill order: by topic, then by year, then the mark scheme
| Step | What you do | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1. By topic | Work through each topic, starting with the paper that allows least help (no calculator / closed book) | Exposes what is genuinely not understood |
| 2. By year | Whole papers to time, one or two a week | Trains pace, stamina and question selection |
| 3. Mark scheme | Go through the marking scheme question by question and log the scoring steps you missed | Most lost marks are written wrong, not thought wrong |
Should drilling go by topic first or by year?
By topic first, then whole papers by year, then the mark scheme. The first third of the time goes topic by topic (8-10 years of the same topic back to back), the middle switches to timed whole papers, and the last fortnight only redoes the recurring errors from your log.
A 12-week drilling timetable
| Week | Phase | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-3 | By topic: foundation | Topic by topic, starting with the easiest marks, building habits and recall |
| Weeks 4-6 | By topic: core | 8-10 years of the same topic back to back, errors classified by topic |
| Weeks 7-8 | By topic: advanced and electives | Elective and higher-order topics, now under time pressure |
| Weeks 9-10 | By year: timed papers | One full paper a week, timed, no reference materials |
| Week 11 | Mark scheme work | Question by question against the marking scheme; list the scoring steps you omitted |
| Week 12 | Plug holes and simulate | Only the recurring errors from your log, then one full exam simulation |
Subject-specific weighting for this timetable: Twelve weeks in three blocks: weeks 1-4 Paper 1 short answers at eight minutes each with unit and value checks; weeks 5-8 Paper 2 extended answers written in three parts of model, working and one-sentence interpretation; weeks 9-10 timed ninetyminute papers on alternating days; weeks 11-12 a full simulation and the error log. Two hours a week go to the exploration.
Use it properly: this is not a checklist to finish. Every week must keep time for redoing errors, or from week 9 you will be repeating the same batch.
Pacing
| Paper | Time | Suggested split |
|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 (short-response, technology allowed) | 1.5 h | about 85 min with 5 min checking |
| Paper 2 (extended-response, technology allowed) | 1.5 h | real-context modelling |
| Mathematical exploration (IA) | 15 recommended hours | four stages: topic, model, computation, interpretation |
How should the time be split inside each IB Mathematics AI SL paper?
Paper 1 (short-response, technology allowed): about 85 min with 5 min checking; Paper 2 (extended-response, technology allowed): real-context modelling; Mathematical exploration (IA): four stages: topic, model, computation, interpretation
The drilling mistakes that cost the most marks
| Mistake | What it looks like | What actually happens | Instead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calculator output only | Pressing buttons and writing the answer | IB marks method and interpretation separately | Write the variables and model, then the computation, then the interpretation |
| No model check | Stopping once a number appears | No verification or limitations, so the top band is lost | Test the model by graph or order of magnitude and state its limits |
| Units and accuracy | Bare numbers | IB marks units and significant figures | Check units and significant figures at the end of every answer |
The error log and the mark scheme
Four columns: where the mark went, what the scheme wanted, next action (the fixed three-part answer) and units card (one conversion per question). Only faults seen three times earn the final fortnight.
How many years should you drill?
The syllabus was first assessed in 2019 and fewer AI SL papers are public than AA ones; three or four sessions cover the question types, with the rest of the time on timing and the exploration. Earlier mathematics papers belong to the old syllabus.
How many years of past papers is enough?
The syllabus was first assessed in 2019 and fewer AI SL papers are public than AA ones; three or four sessions cover the question types, with the rest of the time on timing and the exploration. Earlier mathematics papers belong to the old syllabus.
Frequently asked questions
Is this page a mock paper or a drilling guide?
This is the IB Mathematics AI SL drilling guide: assessment structure, drill order, a 12-week timetable, pacing, common mark losses and the error-log method. For questions with answers, use the IB Mathematics AI SL mock papers linked under Related.
By topic or by year first?
By topic. Eight to ten years of the same topic back to back is what exposes repeating errors; going straight to whole papers just repeats the same batch under time pressure.
How should the error log be written?
Do not copy out questions. Per error record four things: question reference, which step failed (concept, wording, calculation), what the mark scheme requires, and the correct action next time.
Do SL students need the Paper 3 question types?
No. Paper 3 is HL only and SL sits two papers; time spent on the extended answers and the exploration pays more than unsat question types.
Official references
| Resource | What to use it for |
|---|---|
| IBO Mathematics AI subject brief (first assessment 2021) | Confirm SL Paper 1’s 40% in 1.5 hours and the technology policy |
| https://www.tutorzone.com.hk/en-ib-math-ai-past-paper-drill-guide/ | IB Maths AI drilling guide: modelling and a 12-week plan |
| https://www.tutorzone.com.hk/en-ib-math-aa-sl-mock-paper/ | IB Maths AA SL mock paper (no-technology Paper 1) |
Mock paper: IB Mathematics AI SL mock paper Practice: drill practice hub
Next step: find a tutor / register as a tutor
After drilling, the hard part is telling a conceptual error from a writing error. Tell us the year group, the school and your available times, and TutorZone will match you with a tutor who knows the HKEAA assessment requirements.
Demand for tutors in this subject is steady, and those who can explain the marking scheme and where marks are won are especially sought after. Register free; you pay only when a match succeeds.
