20 questions on the grade 4-5 content both tiers share — a fair test of whether a Higher entry is the right call.

⚖️ Foundation to Higher crossover check

Maths · GCSE Foundation · 20 questions · ~35 min

MathsUKwww.geekhero.co.uk

The tier decision is made by the school, but it is made on evidence, and this sheet is designed to produce some. Every question on it sits in the crossover band — the grade 4 to 5 content that appears on both the Foundation and the Higher papers: multiplying out and factorising, solving linear equations and inequalities, straight-line graphs and gradients, ratio and proportion, Pythagoras' theorem, angle reasoning, and averages from a frequency table. A student who works through this comfortably has the foundation a Higher entry needs. A student who is guessing on half of it will almost certainly come away with a better grade from a Foundation paper they can attempt in full. Useful for a parents' evening conversation, and for a department deciding entries.

1.The angles of a triangle are in the ratio 2:3:4. Work out the size of the smallest angle.
(a)80°
(b)60°
(c)40°
(d)20°
2.Solve 3x − 5 = 4.
(a)9
(b)−1/3
(c)6
(d)3
3.Simplify 5a/6 − a/3
(a)7a/6
(b)2a/3
(c)4a/3
(d)a/2
4.Noah wrote down the numbers 9, 3, 7, 1, 5 and said, “The median is 7, because 7 is in the middle of my list.” Is Noah right? Give a reason for your answer.
(a)Yes — the mean of the five numbers is 7, so the median is 7 as well.
(b)No — in order the numbers are 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, so the median is 5.
(c)No — in order the numbers are 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, so the median is 3.
(d)Yes — 7 is the third of the five numbers he wrote, so it is the median.
5.Solve the inequality 3x + 6 ≤ 0.
(a)x ≤ 2
(b)x ≤ −2
(c)x ≥ −2
(d)x ≤ −18
6.Solve 2x + 7 = x + 13
(a)x = 2
(b)x = 20
(c)x = −6
(d)x = 6
7.An amount of money is shared in the ratio 1:2:3. The largest share is £90 more than the smallest share. Work out the total amount that was shared.
(a)£180
(b)£540
(c)£135
(d)£270
8.Simplify (5x² + 3x − 2) − (2x² − x + 5)
(a)3x² + 4x + 3
(b)3x² + 2x + 3
(c)7x² + 2x + 3
(d)3x² + 4x − 7
9.A bag contains red counters and blue counters in the ratio 5:3. There are 56 counters in the bag altogether. Work out how many counters are blue.
(a)35
(b)7
(c)28
(d)21
10.A right-angled triangle has a hypotenuse of 10 cm and one of its other angles is 45°. Work out the length of one of the two shorter sides. Give your answer to 1 decimal place.
(a)10.0 cm
(b)5.0 cm
(c)7.1 cm
(d)14.1 cm
11.A right-angled triangle has angles of 90°, 40° and x°. Work out the value of x.
(a)45
(b)130
(c)90
(d)50
12.Two of the angles in a triangle are 50° and 70°. Work out the size of the third angle.
(a)60°
(b)240°
(c)110°
(d)120°
13.Simplify 2a + 3b − a + 2b − b
(a)a + 4b
(b)a + 6b
(c)5ab
(d)3a + 4b
14.A charity shop and a school share collection-box money in the ratio 5 : 8. The charity shop receives £47.50. Work out how much the school receives.
(a)£29.69
(b)£76.00
(c)£57.00
(d)£123.50
15.A rectangular garden has its length and width in the ratio 5:3. Given that the perimeter of the garden is 64 m, work out the width of the garden.
(a)8 m
(b)24 m
(c)12 m
(d)20 m
16.Simplify 2b − 1 + 2b − 4 + 2b
(a)6b − 5
(b)6b − 3
(c)6b + 5
(d)8b − 5
17.The same jumper is sold at two shops. Shop A charges £40 and Shop B charges £50. Write down the price at Shop A as a percentage of the price at Shop B.
(a)90%
(b)80%
(c)20%
(d)125%
18.A car is bought for £17,500. Its value decreases by 12% in the first year, and by a further 10% of its reduced value in the second year. Work out the value of the car at the end of the second year, giving your answer to the nearest pound.
(a)£15,400
(b)£13,860
(c)£13,650
(d)£15,750
19.A regular hexagon is divided into six identical triangles by joining its centre to each of the six vertices. Work out the size of the angle of one of these triangles at the centre of the hexagon.
(a)30°
(b)45°
(c)120°
(d)60°
20.A right-angled triangle has a hypotenuse of 29 cm and one shorter side of 20 cm. Work out the length of the other shorter side.
(a)441 cm
(b)21 cm
(c)35 cm
(d)9 cm

What is on this worksheet?

The sheet holds 20 questions drawn from the MathsUK bank — the content areas covered: Algebra, Ratio, proportion and rates of change, Geometry and measures, Statistics (statements A4, A17, A22, A9, R5, R9, G20, G3, S4). It is pitched at GCSE Foundation and takes about 35 minutes to work through in full. It works as a class handout, a homework, or a warm-up before a test.

How to use the sheet well

Print it or open it on screen — both work. Printing is A4; the screen view fits phones and tablets.
Do all 20 questions before checking — about 35 minutes is the guide, but there is no time pressure.
Check the answers — press “Show answers” or print the answer page separately.
Redo the questions you got wrong — twice as effective as doing 20 fresh ones.
“New questions” — builds a fresh sheet on the same statements, so you can practise again without repeats.

Why this sheet helps

MathsUK worksheets use questions graded by difficulty and a fair spread of correct-answer positions (the answer is not always (a)) — so the student really has to think about each question rather than guess a pattern. Every question is tagged to a DfE content statement and checked before it enters the bank. The answers come with a step-by-step explanation, not just a value — so a wrong answer becomes a lesson.

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