24 questions across ratio, direct and inverse proportion, compound measures and area and volume scale factors.
⚗️ Ratio and proportion mastery — Higher
Ratio, proportion and rates of change is 20% of a Higher paper and it is the area that rewards method over recall. This sheet works through it in one sitting: simplifying and sharing in a ratio, including the questions that give you one share or the difference rather than the total; expressing one quantity as a fraction or percentage of another; direct and inverse proportion, both numerically and as an equation with a constant k; compound measures — speed, density and pressure — with unit conversions built in rather than avoided; and the similar-shapes work where lengths, areas and volumes scale by the factor, its square and its cube. That last group is where Higher candidates lose the most marks in this area, so it is deliberately over-represented here.
- 1.Two mathematically similar water bottles have a volume scale factor of 8 from the smaller bottle to the larger bottle. Work out the surface area scale factor from the smaller bottle to the larger bottle.
- 2.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.
- 3.A toy manufacturer makes a model aircraft that is mathematically similar to the real aircraft, at a scale of 1 : 48. The wingspan of the model is 15 cm. Work out the wingspan of the real aircraft, giving your answer in metres.
- 4.A jumper costs £45 at Shop A, where it is reduced by 20%. The same jumper costs £34 at Shop B, where a further 10% reduction is then applied. Work out the difference between the two reduced prices.
- 5.A shade of paint is made by mixing blue paint and white paint. To make 5 litres of the shade, 2 litres of blue paint is used and the rest is white paint. Write the ratio of blue paint to white paint in its simplest form.
- 6.y is directly proportional to x², and x is positive. When x = 4, y = 32. Construct the equation connecting x and y, then work out the value of x when y = 200.
- 7.Two mathematically similar logos are printed on a poster. They have areas 20 cm² and 45 cm². Nadia says that the length scale factor from the smaller logo to the larger logo is 45 ÷ 20 = 2.25. Give a reason why Nadia is incorrect, and work out the correct length scale factor.
- 8.There are 400 students at a school. 25% of them have a brother, 40% have a sister and 15% have both a brother and a sister. Work out how many of the students have neither a brother nor a sister.
- 9.y is directly proportional to √x. When x = 25, y = 20. Construct the equation connecting x and y, then work out the value of x when y = 32.
- 10.Priya is paid £58.50 for working 7.5 hours on a Saturday. Work out her rate of pay, in £ per hour.
- 11.x × y is used to test whether two quantities are in inverse proportion. For the pairs x = 4, y = 15 and x = 6, y = 10, which statement is correct?
- 12.A printer prints at a constant rate. The time taken to print a batch of forms is inversely proportional to the printer's speed, in pages per minute. Printing at 20 pages per minute takes 15 minutes. Work out how long the same batch takes to print at 25 pages per minute. Give your answer in minutes.
- 13.The price of a games console is reduced by 10%. In a later sale the reduced price is reduced by 10% again. Work out the overall percentage decrease.
- 14.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.
- 15.A model car is built at a scale of 1 : 20 compared with the real car. Work out the factor by which the surface area to be painted on the real car is bigger than the surface area of the model.
- 16.The price of a share falls by 10% on Monday and then rises by 10% on Tuesday. Work out the overall percentage change from Monday's starting price.
- 17.A 1.5 kg bag of pasta costs £2.85 and a 2.4 kg bag of the same pasta costs £4.32. Work out which bag gives better value for money.
- 18.The number of euros, e, received is directly proportional to the number of pounds, p, exchanged. Exchanging £40 gives 46 euros. Work out how many euros are received for £65, giving your answer to the nearest euro.
- 19.y is inversely proportional to x². When x = 2, y = 8. Construct the equation connecting x and y, then work out the value of y when x = 4.
- 20.A train travels at a constant speed of 90 km/h. Work out the speed in m/s.
- 21.Write the ratio 5 : 8 in the form 1 : n.
- 22.A scale model of a shipping container is built at a scale of 1 : 30, using material with the same density as the real container. The model has a mass of 400 g. Work out the mass of the real container, giving your answer in kilograms.
- 23.A company's turnover this year is £180,000. Last year's turnover was £120,000. Write down this year's turnover as a percentage of last year's turnover.
- 24.Write the ratio 3/4 : 1/2 as a ratio of whole numbers in its simplest form.
What is on this worksheet?
The sheet holds 24 questions drawn from the MathsUK bank — the content area covered: Ratio, proportion and rates of change (statements R4, R5, R9, R10, R11, R12, R13). It is pitched at GCSE Higher and takes about 45 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 24 questions before checking — about 45 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 24 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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