Photon Guidebook: Mathematics Applications and Interpretation SL for the IB Diploma
By Ejaz Ahmad with the Photon Academy team
From the basics to full IB exam questions. The whole AI SL course in one volume. Each chapter shows how the IB asks the topic, teaches it step by step with the graphic display calculator, then trains every type of question until you can score on it under exam conditions.
- One volume
- 15 chapters
- about 628 pages
- E-book: read in your browser
- 2-year access
- Print edition coming soon
An IB Maths AI SL guide built around the exam
This guide is for IB Diploma students taking Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation at Standard Level who want to go from understanding a topic to scoring on it in the exam. It covers the whole AI SL course in one volume: number and algebra, functions, geometry and trigonometry, statistics and probability, and calculus, then ends with an exam strategy chapter.
Most textbooks teach a topic and then set exercises. This guide starts from the exam. Each topic chapter opens with How IB asks this: our count of every SL exam question on the topic since 2021 and the question types that carry the marks. It then teaches the topic step by step and works through every question type one at a time: how to recognise it, the method, a fully marked worked example and where marks are lost. Practice comes in three steps, from basics to full extended-response questions.
AI is a graphic display calculator course in every paper, so every chapter has a Using your GDC panel for the TI-Nspire CX II and the Casio fx-CG50, and every page is written for SL: there is no HL-only content to skip. The book is revised every year. This is the 2026 Edition, written by Ejaz Ahmad with the Photon Academy team in Singapore. It is also part of how we teach AI SL in our IB Maths tuition. Taking HL? See the AI HL guide.
What’s inside the IB Maths AI SL guide: questions, mark schemes and calculator skills
How IB asks this
Our count of every SL exam question on the topic since 2021, and the question types that carry the marks, so you know where to spend your time.
Every question type explained
For each type: a typical question, the idea, the steps and a fully marked worked solution, with where marks are lost.
Marked line by line
Worked examples are marked the way examiners mark, with M1, A1 and R1 on each line.
Using your GDC
A calculator panel in every chapter, with keystrokes for the TI-Nspire CX II and the Casio fx-CG50: finance solver, statistics, matrices and graphs.
Going further
Harder problems in every topic chapter, for students aiming at a 7.
Practice in three steps
Basics, Tutorial and Mastery: build the skill, then apply it, then answer full exam-style questions under exam conditions.
Free worked solutions online
Every practice question has a worked solution online, free, one page per chapter at ibtuition.sg/guidebook/aisl/.
Exam strategy
A final chapter on how to work through Paper 1 and Paper 2, with the calculator skills the exam rewards.
Contents
Fifteen chapters in one volume: the five units of the AI SL course in syllabus order, then exam strategy.
One volume Units 1–5 · Exam strategy · Chapters 1–15 · about 628 pages
- 1Number: standard form, logarithms and error
- 2Sequences, series and financial mathematics
- 3Functions and graphs
- 4Modelling with functions
- 5Triangles, bearings and circles
- 6Three-dimensional geometry
- 7Voronoi diagrams
- 8Describing data
- 9Correlation and regression
- 10Probability
- 11Probability distributions
- 12Statistical tests
- 13Differentiation
- 14Integration
- 15Exam strategy (SL)
Free sample chapter and sample pages
A few pages from the book, as they appear in the reader. Select a page to enlarge it.
Read Chapter 2 free
Sequences, series and financial mathematics, the whole chapter, in the same page-turn reader the e-book uses. No sign-in needed.
How IB asks this: every AI SL exam question on Sequences, series and financial mathematics since 2021, counted and ranked by marks (Ch 2) A question type: a typical question, the idea, the steps and a worked solution marked line by line (Ch 2) Going further: harder problems for students aiming at a 7 (Ch 2) Practice in three steps: Basics, Tutorial and Mastery (Ch 2) Chapter opener: Probability (Ch 10) A second question type, with its worked solution (Ch 10) Going further: harder problems in Probability (Ch 10) Exam strategy: working through Paper 1 and Paper 2 (Ch 15)
Buy the IB Maths AI SL e-book (S$150)
One payment, the whole book. You read it in your browser straight after payment, on your Photon Academy account.
You will sign in with Google before paying, so the book is linked to your account.
Complete book
Units 1–5 · Exam strategy · Chapters 1–15
- Chapters 1–15, about 628 pages
- Read online on phone, tablet or laptop
- 2-year access, personal licence
S$150E-book · one-time payment
Read the e-bookA printed edition is on the way. Its price and release date will appear here.
Secure payment by HitPay (card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayNow). Photon Academy never sees your card details. Already bought it? Open My e-books.
E-book and print
| E-book | ||
|---|---|---|
| Available | Now | Coming soon |
| How you read it | In your browser, with a page-turn reader, contents navigator and search | Printed book |
| Devices | Phone, tablet or laptop | – |
| Access | 2 years, on your account | – |
| Download or print | No PDF download or printing; personal licence, watermarked | – |
| Worked solutions | Free online for every practice question | |
About the author: Ejaz Ahmad
Ejaz Ahmad is an IB-certified teacher of Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches HL (and Applications and Interpretation) and Physics HL, with a B.Eng. (Mechanical) from the National University of Singapore. He has taught the IB since 2015 and has worked with over 1,000 IB students in Singapore and abroad, many of whom have scored 7 in AA HL and 45 points overall.
He wrote this guide with the Photon Academy team. Meet the tutors or read about Photon Academy.
IB Maths AI SL guidebook: frequently asked questions
How long can I read the e-book?
Your purchase gives you two years of access to the whole book in the online reader, on your Photon Academy account. My e-books shows how long you have left.
Which devices can I read it on?
Any phone, tablet or laptop with an up-to-date web browser. Sign in with the same Google account you bought it with; there is nothing to install.
Can I download a PDF or print the book?
No. The e-book is read online in the page-turn reader and there is no PDF download or print option. It is a personal licence and each page carries your account details as a watermark.
Is there a print edition?
A print edition is coming soon. Its price and release date will be announced on this page.
Does it cover the whole AI SL course?
Yes. One volume of 15 chapters covers all five units of the Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation SL course (number and algebra, functions, geometry and trigonometry, statistics and probability, calculus), then ends with an exam strategy chapter. It is S$150 as an e-book.
I take AI HL. Is this the right book?
No. The AI HL guide is a separate book in two volumes, with the HL-only content and a Paper 3 chapter. This SL guide contains only SL content.
Are the questions real IB past paper questions?
No. Every question in the book is an original IB-style question written by Photon Academy. The book is independent and is not endorsed by the International Baccalaureate.
Which calculator does the book use?
AI is a graphic display calculator course in every paper, so each chapter has a Using your GDC panel with keystrokes for the TI-Nspire CX II and the Casio fx-CG50.
Where are the worked solutions to the practice questions?
Worked solutions for every practice question are free online at ibtuition.sg/guidebook/aisl/, one page per chapter.
What is the refund policy?
Refund terms will be published with the terms of sale. If you have a question about an order, email info@ibtuition.sg.
Can a school or tuition centre order copies?
Yes. For school or group orders, contact Photon Academy at info@ibtuition.sg or through the contact page.
The questions in this book are original IB-style questions written by Photon Academy; they are not IB past paper questions. This book is independent and is not endorsed by or affiliated with the International Baccalaureate Organization. More free help: IB Maths AI SL cheatsheets · IB Maths paper analysis · all Photon books.