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 polygons have perimeters in the ratio 2 : 5. Write the ratio of their areas in its simplest form.
- 2.Two quantities x and y are inversely proportional. When x = 2, the value of y is 15. Work out the value of y when x = 5.
- 3.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.
- 4.Two numbers a and b are in the ratio a : b = 3 : 4. Given that a = 15, work out the value of b.
- 5.A coach travels the 54 miles from London to Brighton in 1 hour 30 minutes. Work out the average speed of the coach, in mph.
- 6.Paint costs £14.40 for every 20 m² of wall it covers. Assuming the same rate, work out the cost of the paint needed to cover 56 m² of wall.
- 7.The exchange rate is £1 = 1.28 US dollars. Convert £350 into US dollars.
- 8.The width, the length and the height of a box are in the ratio 3:4:5. The length of the box is 16 cm. Work out the height of the box.
- 9.6 identical taps fill a paddling pool in 20 minutes. Each tap fills at the same steady rate. Work out how long 3 of these taps would take to fill the same pool.
- 10.The price of a jacket increases by 50% and then decreases by 50%. Describe the overall change from the original price.
- 11.Two mathematically similar jugs have heights 8 cm and 12 cm. The smaller jug holds 200 ml when it is full. Work out how much the larger jug holds when it is full.
- 12.Two investors put money into a business in the ratio 3:5. The first investor puts in £1,200. Work out the total amount invested by both investors.
- 13.A cyclist rides 19.3 km in 47 minutes. Work out her average speed, in km/h, to 1 decimal place.
- 14.The exchange rate is £1 = €1.15. Convert £200 to euros.
- 15.Priya is paid £58.50 for working 7.5 hours on a Saturday. Work out her rate of pay, in £ per hour.
- 16.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.
- 17.A factory machine produces bottles at a constant rate. In 45 minutes it produces 810 bottles. The factory needs 2,160 bottles for an order. Working at the same rate, work out how many minutes it will take to produce the order.
- 18.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.
- 19.Two mathematically similar garden ponds have surface areas of 12 m² and 27 m². The fencing needed to go around the smaller pond costs £96. Assuming the cost of fencing is proportional to the perimeter of the pond, work out the cost of fencing the larger pond.
- 20.A car uses fuel at a constant rate. It uses 24 litres of fuel to travel 300 km. Assuming the same rate, work out how many litres of fuel are needed for a journey of 175 km.
- 21.A shop sells rope by the metre. 3 m costs £7.50 and 5 m costs £11.00. Does this data show that the cost is directly proportional to the length of rope bought? Choose the correct verdict and reason.
- 22.Write the ratio 3/4 : 1/2 as a ratio of whole numbers in its simplest form.
- 23.Noah runs 2 km in 10 minutes. Work out how long he takes to run 5 km at the same speed.
- 24.Write 350 ml : 1.4 l as a ratio 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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