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.Write 45 minutes : 2 hours as a ratio in its simplest form.
(a)9:24
(b)8:3
(c)45:2
(d)3:8
2.Write the ratio 3/4 : 1/2 as a ratio of whole numbers in its simplest form.
(a)3:1
(b)3:2
(c)2:3
(d)2:1
3.Order these three values from smallest to largest: 3/8, 0.43, 41%.
(a)3/8, 41%, 0.43
(b)0.43, 41%, 3/8
(c)3/8, 0.43, 41%
(d)41%, 0.43, 3/8
4.The number of members of a running club increases from 45 to 54. Work out the percentage increase.
(a)9%
(b)120%
(c)20%
(d)16.7%
5.Which of these ratios is equivalent to 5 : 4?
(a)15 : 12
(b)4 : 5
(c)15 : 16
(d)9 : 8
6.A class has 28 pupils. 16 of the pupils are girls and the rest are boys. Write the ratio of girls to boys in its simplest form.
(a)4:7
(b)3:4
(c)8:6
(d)4:3
7.Write 90 as a product of its prime factors.
(a)2 × 3² × 5
(b)2 × 45
(c)2 × 3 × 15
(d)3 × 3 × 10
8.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
9.Work out an estimate for 6.4 × 3.9, by rounding each number to the nearest whole number.
(a)18
(b)25
(c)24
(d)28
10.A shop buys boxes of pens for £4 each. It sells each box on to a school for £3 more than it paid, and charges an extra £2 delivery fee for the whole order. A school orders 5 boxes. Work out the total cost of the order.
(a)£45
(b)£37
(c)£25
(d)£22
11.A sponsored walk is 36 km long. Aisha has completed 8/12 of the walk. Work out how far she has walked.
(a)288 km
(b)4.5 km
(c)12 km
(d)24 km
12.40% of a number is 12 more than 25% of the same number. Work out the number.
(a)48
(b)80
(c)15
(d)30
13.Simplify the ratio 45 : 30 : 75 to its simplest form.
(a)2 : 3 : 5
(b)15 : 10 : 25
(c)9 : 6 : 15
(d)3 : 2 : 5
14.A water tank holds 80 litres when full. It currently contains 60 litres. Work out what fraction of the tank is empty.
(a)1/4
(b)1/3
(c)3/4
(d)1/5
15.Work out 25% of 200.
(a)50
(b)100
(c)25
(d)800
16.Work out √144 − 2 × 3 + √25
(a)35
(b)11
(c)1
(d)7
17.A charity shop buys a coat for £24 and sells it for a profit that is 3/8 of the buying price. Work out the selling price.
(a)£27.00
(b)£15.00
(c)£9.00
(d)£33.00
18.Freya uses her calculator to work out 7² and writes down 14. Work out the correct value of 7².
(a)49
(b)14
(c)9
(d)77
19.Work out an estimate for 6.8 × 41, by rounding each number to 1 significant figure.
(a)28
(b)240
(c)280
(d)350
20.Write 0.25 as a fraction in its simplest form.
(a)1/40
(b)1/25
(c)2/5
(d)1/4

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