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.Which of these units would be most appropriate to use when stating the mass of a small car?
- 2.Solve x² + 3x − 10 = 0.
- 3.A company's profit this year is 130% of last year's profit. Last year's profit was £40,000. Work out this year's profit.
- 4.A bearing is described as being exactly halfway between north and east, measured clockwise. What is the three-figure bearing?
- 5.A machine makes 4000 light bulbs a day and runs 5 days a week. Two inspectors test bulbs from this machine. Inspector A tests 40 bulbs and finds 4 faulty. Inspector B tests 500 bulbs and finds 30 faulty. Using the better of the two estimates, work out how many faulty bulbs the machine is expected to make in one week.
- 6.The age, in years, and the score in a reaction test are recorded for eight members of a sports club: (14, 92), (18, 88), (23, 85), (27, 80), (31, 78), (36, 74), (42, 70), (49, 65). The eight pairs are plotted on a scatter graph. Describe the correlation between age and score.
- 7.In a science experiment, the temperature of a liquid is recorded as 18.6 °C, correct to the nearest 0.2 °C. Write down the error interval for the actual temperature, T °C.
- 8.A theatre's front row has 18 seats. Each row behind has 4 more seats than the row in front. Which row has exactly 62 seats?
- 9.A worker is paid £13.20 per hour. Work out this rate of pay in pence per minute.
- 10.The point (5, −2) is reflected in the x-axis. Work out the coordinates of the image point.
- 11.A two-way table records how 80 students travel to school. 45 of the students are boys and the rest are girls. 27 of the boys walk to school. Work out the probability, as a fraction, that a student chosen at random from the boys walks to school.
- 12.A restaurant adds a service charge of 15% to a bill of £120. Work out the service charge.
- 13.In which quadrant does the point (−3, 0.5) lie?
- 14.A laptop priced at £520 is first increased by 15%, and then the new price is decreased by 20%. Work out the final price of the laptop.
- 15.A water tank is a cube with edges of length 2 m. Work out how many cubic centimetres the tank holds when it is full.
- 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.A company's profit is £500 in its first year. Each year after that, the profit is £300 more than the year before. Work out the profit in the company's 6th year.
- 18.Write the ratio 2 : 1/4 as a ratio of whole numbers in its simplest form.
- 19.Work out 36 ÷ (2 × 3)
- 20.A shop's profit, P pounds, is in direct proportion to the number of items sold, n. When 15 items are sold, the profit is £45. Write down the ratio n : P in its simplest form for this shop.
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.