20 questions with no calculator: the four operations, fractions, percentages, order of operations, factors and estimation.

✏️ Paper 1 non-calculator warm-up — Foundation

Maths · GCSE Foundation · 20 questions · ~25 min

MathsUKwww.geekhero.co.uk

Paper 1 is worth exactly as much as each calculator paper, and it is the one most Foundation students practise least. This sheet is a warm-up for it: twenty questions drawn from the number and ratio statements that turn up on the non-calculator paper year after year — column arithmetic with decimals and negatives, adding and subtracting fractions, percentages of amounts, priority of operations, factors and multiples, and estimating by rounding to one significant figure. Do it with a pen and nothing else. Twenty-five minutes is about right, but do not stop early if you need longer; the point is to find out which of these have quietly gone rusty, not to score well. Mark it, then go back to the topic page for whichever one cost you the most.

1.A textbook is reduced from £60 to £45. Work out the percentage reduction.
(a)33%
(b)15%
(c)75%
(d)25%
2.Work out 1 − 1/2 − 1/4 − 1/8 − 1/16. Give your answer as a fraction.
(a)1/16
(b)1/8
(c)15/16
(d)3/16
3.A recipe uses 160 g of flour. Sam wants to increase the amount by 1/4. Work out the new amount of flour.
(a)200 g
(b)128 g
(c)240 g
(d)40 g
4.A jacket normally costs £65. In a sale it is reduced by 20%, and the shop then takes a further £5 off at the till. Work out the final price.
(a)£48.00
(b)£52.00
(c)£47.00
(d)£40.00
5.A number is multiplied by 4, then 8 is added, giving the result 40. Work out the number.
(a)8
(b)128
(c)2
(d)12
6.40% of a number is 12 more than 25% of the same number. Work out the number.
(a)48
(b)80
(c)15
(d)30
7.A plank of wood is 5 1/4 m long. Pieces of length 3/4 m are cut from it. Work out how many complete pieces of 3/4 m can be cut from the plank.
(a)7
(b)3
(c)1
(d)6
8.A pair of trainers is priced at £80 online. The shop takes 25% off the price and then adds £10 for next-day delivery. Work out the total cost.
(a)£65
(b)£67.50
(c)£60
(d)£70
9.A recipe uses flour, sugar and butter in the ratio 8 : 3 : 5. Write the ratio of flour to the rest of the mixture (sugar and butter combined) in its simplest form.
(a)3 : 5
(b)8 : 3
(c)1 : 2
(d)1 : 1
10.Estimate the value of √45, giving your answer to the nearest whole number.
(a)2,025
(b)7
(c)6
(d)22.5
11.Write 0.325 as a fraction in its simplest form.
(a)13/40
(b)3/8
(c)8/25
(d)13/4
12.Work out 1/2 of 1/4 of 80.
(a)20
(b)10
(c)60
(d)40
13.A ribbon of length 90 cm is cut into two pieces in the ratio 4:5. Work out the length of the shorter piece.
(a)50 cm
(b)10 cm
(c)40 cm
(d)45 cm
14.A spreadsheet shows that 812 − 397 = 315. Work out an estimate for 812 − 397, by rounding each number to the nearest 100, to check whether the spreadsheet's answer is reasonable.
(a)415
(b)400
(c)300
(d)500
15.A pack contains 20 stickers. Noah gives 1/5 of the pack to his sister. Work out how many stickers he gives away.
(a)4
(b)5
(c)100
(d)16
16.A café orders 340 bread rolls at 24p each and 85 cakes at £1.35 each. Work out the total cost of the order.
(a)£114.75
(b)£81.60
(c)£196.35
(d)£122.91
17.Write 0.06 as a fraction in its simplest form.
(a)3/5
(b)3/50
(c)1/6
(d)3/500
18.A fruit punch is made from orange juice, pineapple juice and lemonade in the ratio 5:3:2. A jug holds 3.5 litres of punch in total. Work out the volume of pineapple juice needed.
(a)1.75 litres
(b)0.35 litres
(c)1.05 litres
(d)0.7 litres
19.Work out 20 − 8 ÷ 2 + 1
(a)16
(b)15
(c)7
(d)17
20.Write 1/5 as a percentage.
(a)20%
(b)5%
(c)50%
(d)25%

What is on this worksheet?

The sheet holds 20 questions drawn from the MathsUK bank — the content areas covered: Number, Ratio, proportion and rates of change (statements N2, N3, N4, N10, N12, N14, R4, R5, R9). It is pitched at GCSE Foundation and takes about 25 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 20 questions before checking — about 25 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.

Similar worksheets worth a look

🧮 Paper 1 non-calculator warm-up — Higher · 20 questions · ~25 min
🎯 Grade 4 pass booster · 25 questions · ~40 min
⚖️ Foundation to Higher crossover check · 20 questions · ~35 min
💷 Percentages and compound interest · 22 questions · ~40 min