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%.

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GCSE Foundation sample Paper 2 (calculator)

Maths · GCSE Foundation · Paper 2 · Calculator · 20 questions

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1.Work out 3 + 4 × 2²
(a)28
(b)67
(c)196
(d)19
2.Make a the subject of the formula b = 20 − a.
(a)a = 20 − b
(b)a = b − 20
(c)a = 20 + b
(d)a = −20 − b
3.A force of 20 N acts on an area of 4 m². Using pressure = force ÷ area, work out the pressure, in pascals.
(a)5
(b)24
(c)80
(d)16
4.A translation is described by the column vector $(- 5 6)$ . Write down the column vector of the translation that undoes it.
(a) $(6 - 5)$
(b) $(- 5 - 6)$
(c) $(5 - 6)$
(d) $(5 6)$
5.Two games at a school fete are played independently. The probability of winning game X is 3/8. The probability of winning game Y is 0.4. Which statement correctly compares the two games?
(a)Game X — 3/8 has the larger denominator.
(b)Equal — 3/8 rounds to 0.4 to one decimal place.
(c)Game Y — 0.4 is greater than 3/8.
(d)Game X — 3 is greater than 0, the units digit of 0.4.
6.The numbers 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 have a mean of 7 and a median of 7. The value 100 is now added to the list. Which measure is changed more by adding 100, and why?
(a)The median, because the median always jumps when the count of values changes from even to odd.
(b)The mean, because adding 100 to the list raises the mean by 100, from 7 up to 107.
(c)The mean, because every value counts towards it, so 100 pulls it from 7 up to about 20.3.
(d)The median, because 100 becomes the largest value, so the middle value moves from 7 to 12.
7.Grace buys three items costing £9.95, £19.90 and £4.99. Work out an estimate for the total cost, by rounding each price to the nearest pound.
(a)£34.84
(b)£35
(c)£32
(d)£40
8.The triangular numbers begin 1, 3, 6, 10, 15, ... Work out the next term in the sequence.
(a)25
(b)20
(c)18
(d)21
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.
(a)50%
(b)180%
(c)150%
(d)66.7%
10.Triangle ABC is similar to triangle PQR. Side AB is 8 cm and corresponds to side PQ, which is 12 cm. Side AC is 6 cm and corresponds to side PR. Work out the length of PR.
(a)16 cm
(b)10 cm
(c)9 cm
(d)4 cm
11.A café offers 3 types of sandwich, cheese, ham and egg, and 4 types of drink, tea, coffee, juice and water. A customer chooses one sandwich and one drink at random. Work out the probability that the customer chooses egg and water.
(a)1/7
(b)1/3
(c)1/4
(d)1/12
12.Which of these is equal to 5³?
(a)125
(b)25
(c)15
(d)53
13.A number machine adds 5 to its input. Work out the output when the input is 0.
(a)5
(b)−5
(c)0
(d)6
14.A shop's takings were £4500 in May. In June the takings fell by £900. Write the June takings as a fraction of the May takings, in its simplest form.
(a)4/5
(b)1/5
(c)5/4
(d)4/9
15.A garden designer describes a flower bed as a shape with four straight sides: exactly one pair of sides is parallel, those two parallel sides are different lengths, and the other two sides are equal in length to each other but not parallel to each other. Which shape should the designer draw?
(a)isosceles trapezium
(b)rhombus
(c)kite
(d)parallelogram
16.A rectangular tile measures 45 cm by 0.6 m. Work out its area, in square centimetres.
(a)270 cm²
(b)27 cm²
(c)2700 cm²
(d)27000 cm²
17.Which of these is a factor of 15x + 20?
(a)5
(b)3
(c)4
(d)10
18.A market stall sells apples at a fixed price per kilogram. Priya buys 3 kg for £5.40. Write the ratio of the mass in kilograms to the cost in pounds, in its simplest form.
(a)1 : 18
(b)9 : 5
(c)5 : 9
(d)3 : 5
19.Work out √144 − 2 × 3 + √25
(a)35
(b)11
(c)1
(d)7
20.At a youth club the ratio of juniors to seniors is 3:5. There are 40 members altogether. Work out how many seniors there are.
(a)24
(b)15
(c)5
(d)25

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.