AAT ITBK study plan
AAT ITBK · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Fundamentals of double-entry bookkeeping
State the accounting equation and classify 20 named accounts as assets, liabilities, capital, income or expenses
Apply the double-entry rule to record 25 transactions, writing the debit and credit entry for each
Post 25 narrated transactions into T-accounts without referring to notes
Explain why every transaction affects at least two accounts
Your checkpoint
A timed 30-mark posting exercise: 25 T-account entries marked against a solution, scored at 85% or better, with every miss re-worked and annotated.
Fundamentals of double-entry bookkeeping & The trial balance and the accounting equation
Balance off 12 ledger accounts and bring down opening balances for the next period
Extract a trial balance from your own balanced ledger accounts
Test the accounting equation after each of 10 transactions to confirm assets equal capital plus liabilities
Identify which account balances belong in the debit column and which in the credit column of the trial balance
Your checkpoint
A trial balance extracted from your own posted ledger, with debit and credit totals agreeing, plus a written accounting-equation check for the closing position.
Business documents, coding and books of prime entry
Differentiate purchase orders, delivery notes, invoices, credit notes and statements, stating which document triggers which ledger entry
Code 20 transactions to the correct nominal account and book of prime entry using a supplied chart of accounts
Enter sales invoices, purchase invoices and credit notes into the sales day book, purchase day book and returns day books
Total each day book and transfer the totals to the general ledger
Your checkpoint
A completed set of day books for 20 transactions, with month-end column totals that tie back to the source documents listed alongside them.
Business documents, coding and books of prime entry
Record receipts and payments in a two-column cash book and balance it off
Operate an imprest petty cash book, including a reimbursement that restores the float to its agreed amount
Write journal entries for three non-cash adjustments and post them to the general ledger
Match each book of prime entry to the ledger accounts it feeds
Your checkpoint
A cash book, a petty cash book and three posted journal entries, presented with a reconciliation sheet showing every book total agreeing to its supporting total.
Banking systems and bank reconciliation
Compare cheque, BACS, Faster Payments, standing order, direct debit and card payments, stating the business use and the bank record produced by each
Update a cash book from a bank statement, adjusting for bank charges, interest received and dishonoured cheques
Identify the items that legitimately cause the cash book balance to differ from the bank statement balance
Your checkpoint
An updated cash book whose closing balance is carried forward correctly, with a short written note justifying each adjustment made from the statement.
Banking systems and bank reconciliation
Extract unpresented cheques, lodgements not yet credited and bank errors from a paired statement and cash book
Prepare a bank reconciliation statement starting from the bank statement balance and from the cash book balance
Explain to a non-accountant why a healthy business can still show an overdrawn bank statement
Your checkpoint
Two complete bank reconciliation statements prepared in 45 minutes, each reaching the same adjusted balance from both directions.
The trial balance and the accounting equation
Distinguish errors that unbalance the trial balance from those that do not, listing at least six error types with an example of each
Correct 10 errors by journal entry and clear a suspense account to nil
Restate the accounting equation after the corrections to show the effect on capital
Explain how compensating errors can leave a trial balance in agreement despite being wrong
Your checkpoint
A 10-error correction exercise with a suspense account cleared to zero, plus a one-page table of error types classified as trial-balance-affecting or not.
Fundamentals of double-entry bookkeeping & Business documents, coding and books of prime entry & Banking systems and bank reconciliation & The trial balance and the accounting equation
Sit a full-length timed mock paper covering all four domains in one session
Re-work every incorrect answer to the correct method with notes closed
Compile a one-page process sheet covering double entry, day books, bank reconciliation and suspense accounts
Rank your four domains by mock score and schedule targeted re-drilling for the weakest
Your checkpoint
Mock paper completed under exam time limits, scored at 80% or above, with an error log listing each mistake, its cause and the fix.
Milestones
Week 2: Extract a trial balance from your own ledger that balances on the first attempt, unaided, and state the accounting equation from it.
Week 4: Post 20 mixed transactions end to end from source document through day book to ledger with zero coding errors against the chart of accounts.
Week 6: Complete two bank reconciliations in a single 45-minute sitting and reach the same adjusted balance from both the cash book and the statement direction.
Week 8: Score 80% or above on a full-length timed mock across all four domains, with no domain below 65%.