Differentiation

Differentiation Tutoring

Expert 1-to-1 support for students who need help with differentiation — from building foundations to exam-level mastery.

Find Your Tutor

What is differentiation?

Differentiation finds the rate of change of a function. It is used to find gradients, identify maxima and minima, and solve optimisation problems.

Key concepts

Our tutors cover the full range of differentiation topics, including:

  • Differentiation from first principles
  • Power rule, chain rule, product rule, quotient rule
  • Tangents and normals
  • Stationary points and nature of turning points
  • Optimisation problems
  • Implicit and parametric differentiation

Where students struggle

Differentiation is one of the topics students most commonly seek help with. Here are the areas our tutors focus on:

  • Choosing when to use chain, product, or quotient rule
  • Finding the nature of stationary points
  • Setting up real-world optimisation problems
  • Implicit differentiation

Year groups

Differentiation is part of the curriculum for Year 12, Year 13. The level of difficulty increases as students progress, with more abstract and exam-focused content at GCSE and A-Level.

How a tutor helps with differentiation

A dedicated maths tutor provides focused, personalised support that a classroom teacher simply can't. They identify exactly where your child is getting stuck, explain concepts in a way that makes sense to them, and provide the practice needed to build real confidence. For differentiation, this targeted approach makes all the difference.

Exam relevance

Differentiation is one of the highest-weighted topics at A-Level, appearing in pure maths and applied contexts. Expect 2-3 differentiation questions per paper.

What parents say

Our daughter went from dreading maths homework to actually enjoying it. Her tutor made everything click.
Sarah T.Parent, Bournemouth
The matching process was brilliant — they found a tutor who understood exactly where my son was struggling.
James R.Parent, Bristol
Worth every penny. My daughter gained two grades in six months and her confidence is through the roof.
Priya M.Parent, London

Frequently asked questions

Differentiation finds the rate of change of a function. It is used to find gradients, identify maxima and minima, and solve optimisation problems.

Differentiation is studied by students in Year 12, Year 13. The depth and complexity increase at each level.

Choosing when to use chain, product, or quotient rule. Finding the nature of stationary points. Setting up real-world optimisation problems. Implicit differentiation. A dedicated tutor helps students work through these challenges with clear explanations and plenty of practice.

A 1-to-1 tutor identifies exactly where your child is stuck, breaks down difficult concepts into manageable steps, and provides targeted practice. This focused approach is much more effective than trying to keep up in a classroom of 30.

Differentiation is one of the highest-weighted topics at A-Level, appearing in pure maths and applied contexts. Expect 2-3 differentiation questions per paper.

Ready to get started?

Tell us about your child and we'll match them with a tutor who fits.

Find Your Tutor