Start by downloading the November 2026 timetable for your administrative zone and writing every exam component into one calendar. Then build revision backwards from the first paper, leaving time for timed practice, feedback and adjustments if Cambridge issues a revised timetable.
Confirm the correct administrative zone
Cambridge timetables are organised by administrative zone, so a subject code and paper can sit on different dates or times for candidates in different locations. Use your school’s confirmed zone as the deciding source, then check the official Cambridge timetable rather than relying on a screenshot shared in a parent group.
Record each paper separately. For example, an IGCSE student taking Mathematics, English Language and Biology may have multiple components for each subject. An International A Level student may have AS and A Level components spread across several weeks. Add the component code, date, local start time and paper duration.
Ask your school examinations officer to confirm any detail that is unclear, especially if your child is sitting a retake or a subject with practical, speaking or coursework-related requirements.
Watch for timetable revisions before locking the plan
Save the timetable PDF and check the version date. Cambridge can publish updates, and a revision may affect a paper’s date, timing or instructions. Set a calendar reminder to check the official timetable again at the start of each month, then weekly from the final month before exams.
Keep the revision plan flexible. Avoid booking every weekend or placing all tutor sessions on fixed dates months ahead. Reserve a small number of sessions for papers that move, topics that prove harder than expected, or feedback after a mock.
Parents can make this easier by keeping one shared calendar for school deadlines, family commitments, tutoring and exam dates. Ghana-based families should also confirm local lesson times when working with an online tutor in another time zone.
Work backwards from the first exam
Start with the first paper rather than the last. Count the available weeks, then divide the time into three phases: content repair, exam practice and final review.
The first phase should focus on the topics your child cannot yet explain or apply independently. Use school tests, mock results, classwork and past-paper errors to choose priorities. A student who repeatedly loses marks on IGCSE algebra should spend more time there than on a topic they already answer confidently.
In the middle phase, move towards timed questions and full papers. Marking matters here. A score alone does not show whether the problem was missing knowledge, a rushed calculation, weak command-word interpretation or poor time management. A Student’s Timed Paper Gap. Understanding Is Not Becoming Marks explores why familiar content can still fail to become marks under exam conditions.
Use the final phase for targeted review, formula recall, error logs and realistic paper timing. Do not introduce a large new study plan in the final days. Sleep, routine and clear materials become part of preparation at that stage.
Match tutoring sessions to the work that needs feedback
Tutoring has the most value when it sits beside a clear revision task. A weekly session can work well early in the plan, with extra sessions around a difficult unit, a mock paper or the weeks before a paper that needs close feedback.
Bring specific material to each lesson: a marked paper, a list of questions, a school topic outline or a set of recurring errors. “Help with Chemistry” gives a tutor little to work from. “I lose marks on stoichiometry questions and run out of time on Paper 4” creates a focused session.
Families in Ghana can choose in-person tuition where available or live online support worldwide. The important fit is curriculum knowledge, availability and the student’s actual exam sequence. A tutor supporting Cambridge IGCSE should work from the relevant syllabus, paper format and the student’s current evidence, rather than a generic revision worksheet.
Build a weekly plan a student can keep using
A practical week has a limited number of priorities. Give each subject one main task, one timed task and one review task. For example:
- Complete two focused Mathematics topic sets, then correct every missed question.
- Write one timed English response and compare it with the mark scheme or teacher feedback.
- Attempt one Biology structured-question section, then list the command words that caused difficulty.
- Use a tutor session to review the errors that repeated across the week.
Leave one study block open. School assessments, family events and tiredness happen. A plan with no recovery room usually becomes a plan students stop using.
Set the next appointment around the calendar
Bring the completed timetable, current grades or mock papers, availability and learning support needs to the first conversation. That gives the tutor matching process enough detail to identify the right curriculum-specific support and propose a lesson rhythm that fits the dates ahead.
Accelerate Tutors offers one-, five- and ten-lesson prepayment options. Current hourly fees and payment terms are listed on the fees page and can change, so check them before booking. The immediate next step is simple: enter every component from the confirmed zone timetable into one calendar, then choose the first subject that needs a marked timed paper this week.
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