Sample paper · GCSE Foundation · grades 1–5
GCSE Foundation sample Paper 1 (non-calculator)
The real Paper 1 is 1.5 hour 30 minutes and 80 marks, non-calculator, and all three papers carry equal weight. This sample is 20 original questions in the same content proportions as the Foundation qualification — number 25%, algebra 20%, ratio, proportion and rates of change 25%, geometry and measures 15%, probability 7.5%, statistics 7.5% — with no calculator-only items. AO1 / AO2 / AO3 at this tier: 50% / 25% / 25%.
Non-calculatorGCSE Foundation
GCSE Foundation sample Paper 1 (non-calculator)
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- 1.A charity trek covers 830 miles over roughly 19 days. By rounding each number to 1 significant figure, work out an estimate for the number of miles walked per day.
- 2.A cinema sells adult tickets and child tickets. On one evening, 40 tickets are sold in total. There are 8 more adult tickets sold than child tickets. Work out the number of child tickets sold.
- 3.Ffion is paid £11.20 per hour. She works 6 hours on Monday and 4.5 hours on Tuesday. Work out her total pay for the two days.
- 4.A parallelogram has an area of 96 cm² and a base of 8 cm. Work out the perpendicular height of the parallelogram.
- 5.An archer hits the bullseye with probability 0.24 on any one shot. She wants to know how many shots she must take to expect to hit the bullseye 12 times. Work out how many shots this is.
- 6.A café sold 10 sandwiches on each of four days: 10, 10, 10, 10. Work out the range of the numbers sold.
- 7.A tank contains 120 litres of water. Water is drained out at a rate of 8 litres per minute for 6 minutes, and then a hose adds 15 litres. Work out how much water is left in the tank.
- 8.p = 4. Work out the value of 2p³.
- 9.A watering can holds 4500 cm³ of water. Given that 1 litre = 1000 cm³, work out the capacity of the watering can in litres.
- 10.A conservatory has a roof panel shaped like a regular octagon. Work out the interior angle of the octagon, then use it to work out the size of the reflex angle at the same vertex, on the outside of the roof panel.
- 11.A survey asked 80 people to name their favourite drink. The table shows the results: Tea 20 people, Coffee 32 people, Juice 16 people, Water 12 people. Work out the percentage of people whose favourite drink was Coffee.
- 12.Write the fraction 3/4 as a decimal.
- 13.Simplify 5a/6 − a/3
- 14.x is 2/3 of y. Write the ratio x : y in its simplest form.
- 15.A hexagonal prism has 8 faces and 12 vertices. Using F + V − E = 2, work out how many edges it has.
- 16.A window display has red baubles, gold baubles and green baubles in the ratio 4 : 5 : 6. What fraction of the baubles are not green?
- 17.To solve 6x − 4 = 2x + 20, Yusuf's first step is to subtract 2x from both sides. Work out what equation this gives.
- 18.Write the ratio 6a : 9a in its simplest form, where a is a positive number.
- 19.A garden path is measured by Jon as 12 m, correct to the nearest metre, and by Mia as 12.6 m, correct to the nearest 0.1 m. Which statement about the two measurements is correct?
- 20.A post 2 metres tall casts a shadow 3 metres long. At the same time a nearby tree casts a shadow 12 metres long. Work out the height of the tree.
How the 20 questions are shared out
- Number — 5 questions (25% of the qualification)
- Algebra — 4 questions (20% of the qualification)
- Ratio, proportion and rates of change — 5 questions (25% of the qualification)
- Geometry and measures — 3 questions (15% of the qualification)
- Probability — 2 questions (7.5% of the qualification)
- Statistics — 1 question (7.5% of the qualification)
Where an area has fewer printable questions than its share, the shortfall is filled from the other areas. These are original questions, not past papers.