12 short questions across all six content areas, designed as a lesson starter or a daily warm-up.
⏱️ Ten-minute starters — Foundation
Twelve short questions, two from each of the six content areas: number, algebra, ratio, geometry, probability and statistics. Nothing here needs more than a minute, and nothing needs a calculator. It is built as a lesson starter — print it, hand it out, take ten minutes, mark it together — and it works just as well as a daily warm-up at home in the fortnight before a mock. The value is in the spread rather than the depth: a student who has spent a week on algebra can find out in ten minutes what a week away from statistics has cost. Generate a new sheet whenever you want a fresh twelve on the same pattern.
- 1.A 5 kg bag of potatoes costs £4.50. Work out the cost per kilogram.
- 2.A point lies on the y-axis. What can be said about the x-coordinate of that point?
- 3.Which of these ratios is equivalent to 6 : 10 : 14?
- 4.£2000 is invested in a savings account that pays 5% compound interest each year. Work out the value of the investment at the end of 2 years.
- 5.A locus consists of all the points that are the same perpendicular distance from two parallel lines 6 cm apart. Describe this locus.
- 6.A shape is made by joining a rectangle measuring 10 cm by 6 cm to a semicircle of diameter 6 cm along one of the rectangle's shorter sides. Work out the exact area of the shape, in terms of π.
- 7.Make b the subject of the formula a = 5b.
- 8.Solve x − 4 = −9
- 9.A sequence has the position-to-term rule: the nth term is 3n. Write down the first four terms of the sequence.
- 10.A rectangular field measures 19.6 m by 48.3 m. Work out an estimate for the area of the field, by rounding each length to 1 significant figure.
- 11.A quality inspector tests 145 light bulbs and finds that 33 are faulty. Work out the relative frequency of a bulb being faulty, as a percentage correct to 1 decimal place.
- 12.The probability that Leo wakes up before his alarm is 0.35. The probability that his younger sister wakes up before her alarm, independently of Leo, is 0.28. Work out the probability that neither of them wakes up before their alarm.
What is on this worksheet?
The sheet holds 12 questions drawn from the MathsUK bank — the content areas covered: Number, Algebra, Ratio, proportion and rates of change, Geometry and measures, Probability, Statistics. It is pitched at GCSE Foundation and takes about 10 minutes to work through in full. It works as a class handout, a homework, or a warm-up before a test.
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 12 questions before checking — about 10 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 12 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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