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Grade 7 to 9

From a strong 7 to a secure 9

A 7 shows they know the content. A 9 shows they can use it the way examiners reward at the very top. We teach that difference, one-to-one, with tutors who achieved a 9 themselves.

  • A tutor with a grade 9 in the subject they teach
  • Lessons built around top-band mark schemes, not more content
  • Timed exam practice and marking on Exceed Prep between lessons
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1-to-1Same tutor every week
Grade 9Tutors in their subject
EveryLesson reported to you
A teenage student working at a laptop with headphones on
Sound familiar?

Doing well, but not where they could be

School says they’re fine, so nobody pushes them.

Stretched, not left alone

High achievers often get the least attention in class. One-to-one, every minute is spent on what moves them from good to exceptional.

They know it all, but keep landing on a 7.

The marks are in the answers

At this level it’s rarely missing knowledge. It’s how answers are built, how precise they are and how time is used.

Revision has turned into rereading.

Practice that’s harder than the exam

Unfamiliar questions, timed conditions and examiner-style marking, so the real paper feels manageable.

What separates a 7 from a 9

Same knowledge. Very different answers.

Examiners reward the top grades for specific things. These are what we teach, subject by subject, using the mark schemes for your child’s exam board.

A typical grade 7 answer
A grade 9 answer
Command words
Grade 7Explains well, but drifts from what was asked
Grade 9Does exactly what the command word asks, including a clear judgement when it says evaluate
Precision
Grade 7Broadly right, with some vague wording or skipped steps
Grade 9Precise terminology and full method, so no marks are left for the examiner to doubt
Depth
Grade 7Makes good points, one after another
Grade 9Develops and links each point, building a sustained argument or chain of reasoning
Unfamiliar questions
Grade 7Strong on question types they have seen before
Grade 9Applies what they know to new contexts and multi-step problems
Timing
Grade 7Rushes the longest, highest-mark questions at the end
Grade 9Plans time by marks available, so the big questions get the most
Checking
Grade 7Loses a handful of marks to slips and misreads
Grade 9Checks systematically, because at the top every mark counts
The tutors

Taught by people who got the 9 themselves

A 9 in the subject they teach

Every tutor on this programme achieved a grade 9 in the GCSE subject they teach, so they know first-hand what a top answer looks like.

Russell Group graduates

From leading UK universities, then trained by Exceed in exam technique and mark-scheme teaching.

The same tutor every week

Matched on subject, exam board and personality, so lessons build on each other from the first week.

Across the teamGraduates of leading UK universities

  • University of Oxford
  • University of Cambridge
  • Imperial College London
  • University College London
  • King's College London
  • London School of Economics
A student smiling during an online lesson
Top-band answers, every lesson
How we teach the jump

Every lesson aims at the top band

  • Mark scheme first. We start from what a full-mark answer needs, then work back to how your child writes it.
  • Examiner-style feedback. Answers are marked the way an examiner would, with exactly where each mark was won or lost.
  • The hardest questions. Unfamiliar, multi-step and extended questions, because that is where 9s are decided.
  • Exam conditions. Timed practice so pace and planning are automatic by the real thing.
Exceed Prep · Timed question6 marks · 7:30
Evaluate the effectiveness of the measures taken. Use evidence to support your judgement.
4/6Marked against the mark scheme
Where you scoredTwo developed points, each supported with accurate evidence.
Where the marks wentNo overall judgement, so the answer can’t reach the top band.
Next timeFinish with a clear verdict that weighs both sides and says which matters most.
This question comes back as a re-test in three days, so the fix sticks.
Exceed Prep

Between lessons, practice that pushes

Our study platform gives high achievers the practice school rarely has time for.

  • Timed mode. Exam-style questions against the clock, set by mark value.
  • Instant marking. Feedback against the mark scheme, showing why marks were lost and what to do next time.
  • Re-tests. Questions they got wrong come back a few days later until the method is secure.
  • Hints, not answers. A nudge in the right direction, so the thinking stays theirs.
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How it starts

Three steps to get started

01

A consultation

Thirty minutes with our team. Tell us where your child is now, their target grades and which subjects matter most.

02

A grade 9 tutor, then a diagnostic

We match a specialist, and the first session finds exactly where top-band marks are slipping.

03

A plan to the 9

Weekly lessons, Exceed Prep between them and a written report to you after every lesson.

FAQ

Questions from parents

My child is already on a 7. Is tutoring worth it?
The jump from 7 to 9 is often the hardest to make alone, because the gaps are small and specific. One-to-one, a tutor can find exactly which marks are slipping and fix them, rather than reteaching content your child already knows.
Which subjects and exam boards?
All major GCSE subjects across AQA, Edexcel, OCR, WJEC/Eduqas and CCEA. Lessons follow your child’s exact specification and mark schemes.
Isn’t this just more past papers?
No. Past papers show where marks are lost. Lessons are spent on why, and on rebuilding answers until the top-band approach is automatic.
How often are lessons?
Most students have one or two lessons a week per subject, with Exceed Prep between them. We recommend a plan in the consultation based on your child’s targets and timeline.

Find out what stands between your child and a 9

A 30-minute consultation with our team to talk through their subjects, targets and how we would close the gap.

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Your 30-minute consultation
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