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 fruit bowl contains apples, pears and plums in the ratio 3 : 4 : 5. What fraction of the fruit are not plums?
- 2.Which expression means 'y squared, multiplied by 3'?
- 3.A film lasts 105 minutes. A documentary lasts 45 minutes. Write the length of the film as a fraction of the length of the documentary. Give your answer in its simplest form.
- 4.A pop-up canopy has two sloping supports that meet at the top. Each support makes an angle of 30° with the ground and is 6 m long. Using the exact value of cos 30°, work out the total width of the canopy's base.
- 5.A bag contains 5 letter tiles spelling the word MATHS, with one letter on each tile. Two tiles are drawn at random, one after the other, without the first tile being put back. Work out the probability that both tiles drawn are consonants.
- 6.A school posts a questionnaire about school dinners to the families of all 200 pupils. Only 30 families send theirs back, and 27 of those 30 say they are unhappy with school dinners. Give a reason why this result may not represent all 200 families.
- 7.Work out the highest common factor of 20 and 32.
- 8.Meera writes the statement 3(x + 4) = 3x + 12. Which of these correctly describes what she has written, with a reason?
- 9.1 litre = 100 centilitres. Work out how many centilitres there are in 6 litres.
- 10.How many vertices does a square-based pyramid have?
- 11.Two ordinary fair dice are rolled, one after the other. Work out the probability that the first dice shows a 6 and the second dice shows an even number.
- 12.A number is multiplied by 4, then 8 is added, giving the result 40. Work out the number.
- 13.Ben writes n + 4 ≤ 9. Which statement describes what Ben has written? Give a reason for your answer.
- 14.A concrete mix is made from gravel and cement in the ratio 5 : 1 by mass. The mass of cement is c kg and the total mass of the mix is m kg. Write down a formula for m in terms of c.
- 15.A line segment is measured with a ruler and found to be 6.5 cm long. What is this length in millimetres?
- 16.Which one of these statements about negative numbers is true?
- 17.The nth term of a sequence is 4n + 2. A term in the sequence has value 30. Work out its position, n, in the sequence.
- 18.y is directly proportional to x. When x = 4, y = 10. Work out the value of y when x = 6.
- 19.Work out √144
- 20.y is inversely proportional to x, so y = k ÷ x. When x = 5, the value of y is 8. Work out the value of k.
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.