NB Francophone G8 Math exam-day guide
NB Francophone G8 Math · Prepare for the day ahead.
Your checklist
Confirmation of sitting details (date, time, room, duration)
Ask your teacher or the school office to confirm the exact date, start time, room, and expected length of the sitting. Write it down. Late-arrival and re-entry rules vary by centre, so confirm with the provider rather than assuming.
Acceptable identification
Many centres require a student card, health card, or another photo document. The exact list is set locally, so confirm with the provider which documents are accepted and whether the school card alone is enough.
Two or more HB pencils, a good eraser, and a sharpener
Bring spares. Graph work, number lines, and diagrams are easier to correct neatly with a soft pencil, and a blunt pencil slows you down on grid or geometry questions.
Metric ruler marked in centimetres and millimetres
Grade 8 work often asks you to draw or measure lengths, perimeters, and sides of figures to the nearest millimetre. Check that the zero mark is not worn away before the sitting.
Protractor and compass (if permitted)
Angle measurement, circle construction, and triangle drawing may appear. Whether these instruments are allowed in each part of the test is set by the provider, so confirm with the provider before relying on them.
Calculator (if permitted) with working batteries
Calculator use is often restricted to certain sections or may not be allowed at all. Confirm with the provider whether a calculator is permitted, which models are accepted, and whether the school supplies one.
Reference or formula sheet, if one is provided
Ask whether a formula sheet, conversion table, or geometry reference is supplied with the test or must be memorized. If it is supplied, practise using it during review so you can find entries quickly.
Plain watch (no smart features)
A simple watch helps you pace yourself if the room clock is hard to see. Smartwatches and phones are usually collected or banned, so confirm with the provider which timepieces are allowed.
Water bottle and a small snack, if breaks are allowed
Rules on food and drink at the desk differ between centres. Confirm with the provider whether a bottle and a snack may be kept at your table or only consumed during a supervised break.
Rough paper or scrap paper, if not supplied
Most centres provide rough paper, but confirm with the provider. If you must bring your own, keep it blank, unmarked, and show it to the invigilator before the test begins.
A short French mathematics vocabulary list to review
Instructions and questions will be in French. Re-read terms such as aire, périmètre, volume, médiane, étendue, rapport, taux, pourcentage, inéquation, and plan cartésien so wording never blocks a question you can actually solve.
A plan for sleep, breakfast, and travel
Decide the night before how you will get to school and who to call if something goes wrong. Being rested and fed affects accuracy on multi-step problems far more than one extra hour of cramming.
Plan the day
Do a light, targeted review rather than starting new topics. List the three or four units you feel least secure about, reread your notes on them, and work one timed set of mixed questions to practise moving between topics and checking answers.
Gather your pencils, eraser, sharpener, ruler, and any permitted instruments in one pouch. Test the calculator, replace batteries, and put everything in your bag early so nothing is forgotten on the day.
Stop learning new material. Reread the reference sheet, if one is supplied, and practise the French vocabulary of the topics you reviewed. Redo two or three problems you previously got wrong, checking each step against your notes.
Pack the bag, lay out clothes, confirm the start time and room one last time, and set two alarms. Avoid late-night study. Aim for a normal night's sleep, since careless errors on routine calculations usually come from fatigue.
Eat a normal breakfast, arrive at least twenty minutes early, and use the washroom before entering the room. Once seated, take a few slow breaths and read the front-page instructions and mark allocations carefully before writing.
Scan the whole paper. Note which questions carry the most marks and which section, if any, allows a calculator. Sketch a rough time budget with a few minutes left at the end for checking, and start with questions you know well.
Answer the questions you can do confidently, showing each step, and mark anything you skip with a small symbol so you can return to it. Write units on every measurement answer and label diagrams with the values you were given.
Estimate the answer first, then compute, then compare the two. Check that the calculator is in normal mode rather than a statistics or fraction-display mode, and copy intermediate results carefully so you do not lose digits.
Check that no question is blank, that answers are in the requested form (simplified fraction, decimal, unit), and that each result is reasonable in size. Erase stray marks on grids and make sure your final answer is clearly indicated.
Rules to check
Follow every instruction given by the invigilator. Only approved materials may be on your desk; anything else, including notes, cases, and bags, should be stored where you are told to put it.
Bring the identification your centre requires. The accepted documents are set locally, so confirm with the provider in advance which ones are valid and what to do if you do not have them.
Phones, smartwatches, and other connected devices must normally be switched off and stored away. Whether a calculator is permitted, and which models, is set by the provider; confirm this before the test rather than on the day.
Breaks and permission to leave the room are usually supervised and may not be allowed in the final minutes of the sitting. Confirm with the provider how breaks are handled so you can plan your water intake accordingly.
Most mathematics marking gives credit for correct method even when the final number is wrong, so write the steps, not just answers. Ask your teacher to confirm how the paper is scored before the exam.
Work independently: no talking, no passing materials, and no comparing answers during breaks. Raise your hand and wait if you need an invigilator, a replacement pencil, or clarification of the printed instructions.
If you cannot start a question, leave it, mark it, and move on; return to it with the remaining time. Unless the provider states otherwise, do not leave items blank, since an estimate or partial working may still earn credit.
If you are ill or unable to attend, contact your school as early as possible. The procedures and deadlines for a missed sitting are set by the provider, so confirm them directly rather than relying on classmates.