Sample paper · GCSE Foundation · grades 1–5
GCSE Foundation sample Paper 2 (calculator)
The real Paper 2 is 1.5 hour 30 minutes and 80 marks, 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 a calculator allowed. AO1 / AO2 / AO3 at this tier: 50% / 25% / 25%.
CalculatorGCSE Foundation
GCSE Foundation sample Paper 2 (calculator)
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- 1.A country has an area of 25,000,000 hectares. Write this area in standard form.
- 2.A market stall's cost of hiring n tables is modelled by two formulas: Formula A: C = 3(2n + 5); Formula B: C = 6n + 15, where C is in pounds. A stallholder says the two formulas always give the same cost. Work out the cost given by each formula when n = 4, and use your results to decide whether the stallholder is correct.
- 3.Rice costs £3.20 per kg. Work out the cost of the rice in pence per 100 g.
- 4.A parallelogram has an area of 54 cm² and a base of 9 cm. Work out its perpendicular height.
- 5.A fair six-sided dice is rolled once. Write down the probability that the score is an even number.
- 6.A table shows the time each of four pupils took to run 100 m: Oliver 12 seconds, Grace 15 seconds, Ethan 10 seconds, Freya 14 seconds. Write down the name of the fastest runner and the time taken.
- 7.A jumper is reduced by 15% in a sale to a price of £42.50. Work out the original price.
- 8.A tank already contains some water and is then filled at a constant rate. After 2 minutes it contains 50 litres in total; after 7 minutes it contains 150 litres in total. Work out the rate at which water is added, in litres per minute.
- 9.A company's turnover this year is £180,000. Last year's turnover was £120,000. Write down this year's turnover as a percentage of last year's turnover.
- 10.A textbook contains the instruction 'Draw AB' and, on the next line, the statement 'AB = 5 cm'. Which statement about the notation AB is correct?
- 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.Write down the decimal that is equal to 3/5.
- 13.Solve 5x − 9 = 16
- 14.A film runs for 2.25 hours. Work out the length of the film in minutes.
- 15.A support strut for a shed roof is in the shape of a right-angled triangle. The two shorter sides of the strut are 5 m and 9 m. Work out the length of the sloping strut (the hypotenuse). Give your answer correct to 1 decimal place.
- 16.Insert one pair of brackets into 2 + 3 × 5 − 1 so that the calculation is equal to 24. Which calculation is correct?
- 17.A water butt holds 200 litres and is being drained at a steady 8 litres per minute. Write down the function for the amount of water y, in litres, left after x minutes.
- 18.Two mathematically similar polygons have perimeters in the ratio 2 : 5. Write the ratio of their areas in its simplest form.
- 19.Simplify x⁶ ÷ x²
- 20.Two mathematically similar circles have radii 4 cm and 20 cm. Write the ratio of the area of the smaller circle to the area of the larger circle in its simplest form.
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.