18 demanding questions: algebraic proof, functions, vectors, histograms, conditional probability and iteration.
🔺 Higher stretch — grade 8 and 9 topics
The top of a Higher paper is not the same content done faster — it is the statements that only appear at the top, and questions that hide two steps inside one instruction. This sheet gathers eighteen of them: algebraic proof and showing two expressions are equivalent, inverse and composite functions, transformations of graphs, the equation of a circle and its tangent, iteration, vectors used to construct a geometric argument, histograms with unequal class intervals, and conditional probability from a tree or a Venn diagram. It is deliberately hard and deliberately short. If you get half of it out, you are working where grades 8 and 9 are decided — and the worked answers are written to show the step that was actually being tested, not just the arithmetic around it.
- 1.A circle has equation x² + y² = 49. Work out the coordinates of the point(s) on the circle where the tangent is horizontal.
- 2.f(x) = x³ − 3x − 20, and the equation f(x) = 0 has exactly one solution. Work out the pair of consecutive integers between which that solution lies.y = x
- 3.A rectangular vegetable plot has an area of 30 m² and its length is 4 m greater than its width, x metres. This gives x² + 4x − 30 = 0, which can be solved using the iterative formula xₙ₊₁ = √(30 − 4xₙ). The starting value is x₀ = 3, so x₁ is the value after the formula has been used once. Work out x₃, and use it to find an estimate for the length of the plot, giving your answer correct to 1 decimal place.
- 4.In triangle OAB, OA = a and OB = b. M is the midpoint of OA, and N is the midpoint of OB. Express the vector MN in terms of a and b.
- 5.A circle has centre O(0, 0) and equation x² + y² = 169. The point Q has coordinates (10, 11). Work out which of these gives the correct position of Q together with correct working.
- 6.A number machine multiplies its input by 3 and then adds 7. The output is 1. Work out the input.
- 7.A rule turns each input into an output. An input of 0 gives an output of −1, an input of 1 gives an output of 1, and an input of 2 gives an output of 3. Work out the rule, writing the input as x and the output as y.
- 8.Triangle ABC is translated by the column vector with top number 3 and bottom number −5 to form triangle A′B′C′. Triangle A′B′C′ is then translated by the column vector with top number −7 and bottom number 2 to form triangle A″B″C″. Work out the single column vector that translates triangle ABC directly to triangle A″B″C″.
- 9.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)
- 10.Which of these equations represents the graph of y = 2ˣ translated by 3 units in the positive y-direction?
- 11.The graph of y = f(x) has x-intercepts at x = −2 and x = 6 and crosses the y-axis at (0, −12). Work out the x-intercepts and the y-intercept of y = −f(x).
- 12.p is the column vector with top number 5 and bottom number 1. q is the column vector with top number −2 and bottom number 3. Work out p − 2q, giving your answer as a column vector in the form (top, bottom).
- 13.A cumulative frequency graph for the diameters, d mm, of 320 ball bearings is plotted from these points (upper class boundary, cumulative frequency): (10, 30), (20, 90), (30, 190), (40, 280), (50, 320). Estimate the diameter below which 90% of the ball bearings measure.
- 14.A taxi firm charges a fixed fee of £3.50 plus £2.20 per mile. Work out the total cost of a journey of 6 miles.
- 15.The iterative formula xₙ₊₁ = xₙ³ − 2 is used repeatedly, starting from x₀ = 2. Which of these describes what happens to the sequence of values as n increases?
- 16.The point (4, 2) lies on the circle x² + y² = 20. Work out the equation of the tangent to the circle at (4, 2).
- 17.A scientist has grouped the lifetimes, in hours, of 300 batteries into classes of unequal width. She wants a diagram in which the number of batteries in a class is given by the area of its bar. Write down the type of diagram she should draw.
- 18.The graph of y = f(x) passes through the point (0, 4). Work out the y-coordinate of the point where the graph of y = f(x) − 6 crosses the y-axis.
What is on this worksheet?
The sheet holds 18 questions drawn from the MathsUK bank — the content areas covered: Algebra, Geometry and measures, Probability, Statistics (statements A6, A7, A13, A16, A20, G25, S3, P9). It is pitched at GCSE Higher and takes about 50 minutes to work through in full. It is built for independent practice, with full answers at the end for self-marking.
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 18 questions before checking — about 50 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 18 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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