Sample paper · GCSE Higher · grades 4–9

GCSE Higher 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 Higher qualification — number 15%, algebra 30%, ratio, proportion and rates of change 20%, geometry and measures 20%, probability 7.5%, statistics 7.5% — with a calculator allowed. AO1 / AO2 / AO3 at this tier: 40% / 30% / 30%.

CalculatorGCSE Higher

VersionsA only A + B A + B + Csame questions, different order

AnswersQuestions only With answer key Key only

New sheet

GCSE Higher sample Paper 2 (calculator)

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

MathsUKwww.geekhero.co.uk

1.Work out (4 × 10³) × (3 × 10¹). Give your answer in standard form.
(a)7 × 10⁴
(b)12 × 10⁴
(c)1.2 × 10⁴
(d)1.2 × 10⁵
2.f(x) = x + 3 and g(x) = 2x. Work out fg(x).
y = x + 3
(a)2x² + 6x
(b)2x + 3
(c)3x + 3
(d)2x + 6
3.The value of a delivery van, in £, is plotted against its age, in years, since it was bought. At age 2 years, the gradient of the tangent to the graph is −950. What does this tell you about the van at age 2 years?
(a)Falling at 950% per year
(b)Rising at £950 per year
(c)Falling at £950 per year
(d)Falls by £950 over the next year
4.Work out the exact value of tan 30° + tan 30°.
(a)2√3/3
(b)√3/3
(c)√3
(d)2√3
5.A bag contains 5 yellow marbles and 3 blue marbles. Noah takes a marble at random, notes its colour and puts it back in the bag. He then takes a second marble at random. Work out the probability that the first marble is yellow and the second marble is blue.
(a)15/16
(b)9/64
(c)5/8
(d)15/64
6.The masses, m kg, of 160 fish caught by a trawler in one day are grouped into classes of unequal width: 0 ≤ m < 10, 40 fish; 10 ≤ m < 30, 60 fish; 30 ≤ m < 45, 30 fish; 45 ≤ m < 50, 30 fish. A histogram is to be drawn from this table. Which set of frequency densities, listed in the same order as the classes above, is correct?
(a)40, 60, 30, 30
(b)4, 3, 2, 3
(c)4, 3, 0.5, 6
(d)4, 3, 2, 6
7.Simplify x⁶ ÷ x²
(a)x¹²
(b)x³
(c)x⁸
(d)x⁴
8.Write down the expression that means the same as 'subtract 5 from n, then divide the result by 2'.
(a)(n − 5)/2
(b)n/2 − 5
(c)2(n − 5)
(d)(5 − n)/2
9.Tap A fills a swimming pool in 6 hours. Tap B pours water twice as fast as tap A. The time taken to fill the pool is inversely proportional to the rate of flow. Work out how long tap B takes to fill the pool.
(a)3 hours
(b)12 hours
(c)4 hours
(d)1.5 hours
10.In quadrilateral ABCD the two sides AB and BC are each 6 cm long and meet each other at B. The two sides CD and DA are each 9 cm long and meet each other at D. No side of ABCD is parallel to any other side. Write down the mathematical name of this quadrilateral.
(a)Isosceles trapezium
(b)Kite
(c)Parallelogram
(d)Rhombus
11.Four bags each contain counters, some of which are winning counters. The probability of taking a winning counter is 5/12 from the red bag, 3/8 from the blue bag, 7/24 from the green bag and 1/3 from the yellow bag. Work out which bag has the smallest probability of giving a winning counter.
(a)The blue bag (3/8)
(b)The red bag (5/12)
(c)The green bag (7/24)
(d)The yellow bag (1/3)
12.Write these numbers in order, starting with the largest: 7/8, 0.8, 78%, 17/20
(a)7/8, 17/20, 0.8, 78%
(b)7/8, 0.8, 17/20, 78%
(c)78%, 0.8, 17/20, 7/8
(d)17/20, 7/8, 0.8, 78%
13.In a shop a shirt costs £x and a pair of trousers costs £(2x + 30). Together the two items cost at least £150. Work out the lowest possible price of the shirt.
(a)£50
(b)£120
(c)£60
(d)£40
14.A plumber charges a call-out fee plus an hourly rate. The total charge, C pounds, for a job lasting h hours is shown on a straight-line graph. The line passes through the points (2, 70) and (5, 130). Work out the call-out fee, in pounds.
(a)£10.00
(b)£20.00
(c)£70.00
(d)£30.00
15.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.
(a)3√3 m
(b)6√3 m
(c)12 m
(d)6 m
16.Describe a sequence of two transformations that maps the graph of y = cos x onto the graph of y = cos(x + 90°) − 2.
y = cos(x)
(a)Translate −90° in x, then translate +2 in y.
(b)Translate −90° in x, then translate −2 in y.
(c)Reflect in the x-axis, then translate −90° in x.
(d)Translate +90° in x, then translate −2 in y.
17.A box holds 60 crayons. 25 of the crayons are broken and the rest are unbroken. Write the number of unbroken crayons as a fraction of the number of broken crayons. Give your answer in its simplest form.
(a)5/7
(b)2/5
(c)7/12
(d)7/5
18.In triangle OAB, OA = a and OB = b. P is the point on OA such that OP = (1/3)a, and Q is the point on OB such that OQ = (1/3)b. Express the vector PQ in terms of a and b.
(a)(1/3)a − (1/3)b
(b)b − a
(c)(1/3)b − (1/3)a
(d)(2/3)b − (2/3)a
19.The first five terms of a quadratic sequence are −1, 4, 13, 26, 43. Work out an expression, in terms of n, for the nth term.
(a)4n² − n − 2
(b)5n − 6
(c)2n²
(d)2n² − n − 2
20.The equation x² − 4x + k = 0 has two different real solutions. Work out the range of values of k.
(a)k < 16
(b)k ≤ 4
(c)k > 4
(d)k < 4

How the 20 questions are shared out

Number — 3 questions (15% of the qualification)
Algebra — 6 questions (30% of the qualification)
Ratio, proportion and rates of change — 4 questions (20% of the qualification)
Geometry and measures — 4 questions (20% 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.