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 '3.2 million' as a number in figures.
(a)320,000
(b)3,002,000
(c)32,000,000
(d)3,200,000
2.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
3.Freya types 4² + 3² into her calculator and writes down 49. Work out the correct value of 4² + 3².
(a)14
(b)25
(c)49
(d)12
4.Write down a prime number between 30 and 40.
(a)33
(b)31
(c)36
(d)34
5.Work out 20 − 8 ÷ 2 + 1
(a)16
(b)15
(c)7
(d)17
6.At an animal shelter, the ratio of cats to dogs is 2:5. There are 18 more dogs than cats. Work out the number of cats.
(a)6
(b)12
(c)9
(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 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
9.In the number 3.472, work out the value of the digit 7.
(a)0.007
(b)0.7
(c)0.07
(d)7
10.A textbook is reduced from £60 to £45. Work out the percentage reduction.
(a)33%
(b)15%
(c)75%
(d)25%
11.Write the ratio 4x : 6x in its simplest form, where x is a positive number.
(a)2x:3x
(b)4:6
(c)2:3
(d)3:2
12.Jack buys 3 books, each costing £4.25, and pays with a £20 note. Work out how much change he receives.
(a)£12.75
(b)£8.25
(c)£7.25
(d)£7.75
13.A recipe for one cake needs 2/3 of a cup of sugar. Priya has 3 1/2 cups of sugar. Work out how many complete cakes she can make.
(a)5.25
(b)5
(c)6
(d)7
14.A minibus can carry 16 passengers. A school is taking 179 pupils on a trip. By rounding 179 to the nearest 10, work out an estimate for the number of minibuses needed, given that the school cannot hire part of a minibus.
(a)180
(b)12
(c)10
(d)11
15.A restaurant adds a service charge of 15% to a bill of £120. Work out the service charge.
(a)£18
(b)£8
(c)£138
(d)£12
16.The price of a cycling helmet rises from £80 to £116. Work out the percentage increase.
(a)45%
(b)145%
(c)36%
(d)31%
17.Work out (−3) × 4 + 10
(a)−42
(b)−2
(c)−22
(d)22
18.Write 0.25 as a fraction in its simplest form.
(a)1/40
(b)1/25
(c)2/5
(d)1/4
19.Work out 250 ÷ 1000.
(a)25
(b)0.025
(c)2.5
(d)0.25
20.Write 250 g : 2 kg as a ratio in its simplest form.
(a)1:8
(b)5:40
(c)125:1
(d)8:1

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.

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