Algebra worksheet — GCSE Foundation

1.A scout leader is 44 years old and one of the scouts is 16 years old. Work out how many years it will be until the leader is exactly twice as old as the scout.

2.A rectangular photo has length (x + 3) cm and width x cm. Its area is 40 cm². Work out the value of x.

3.The formula for the perimeter of a rectangle is P = 2(l + w). One rectangle has l = 9 cm and w = 4 cm. A second rectangle has l = 6 cm and w = 5 cm. Work out how many cm greater the perimeter of the first rectangle is than the perimeter of the second.

4.Solve 5x² − 15x = 0.

5.Ethan is 10 years old and his father is 40 years old. Work out how many years ago Ethan's father was seven times as old as Ethan.

6.Harry is 14 years old and Mia is 8 years old. Will Harry ever be exactly twice as old as Mia? Give a reason for your answer.

7.Solve the inequality 6.3x + 1.8 ≤ 40. Hence write down the greatest number with exactly one decimal place that satisfies the inequality.

8.Mia buys 3 identical notebooks and a pen costing £1.50. She pays a total of £9.90. Form an equation using n for the cost of one notebook, and solve it to find n.

9.A runner's journey is shown on a distance-time graph: she runs 8 km in the first hour, rests for 30 minutes with no distance gained, then runs a further 4 km in the next 30 minutes. Work out her average speed for the whole journey, in kilometres per hour.

10.A gym charges a joining fee plus a monthly fee. Anna paid £100 in total after 3 months of membership. Ben paid £160 in total after 6 months of membership (same joining fee and monthly fee as Anna). Work out the monthly fee.

11.A taxi fare in pounds is given by F = 2.50 + 1.20m, where m is the number of miles travelled. Sam takes a taxi for a journey of 6 miles. Work out the fare.

12.A cyclist's distance-time graph shows the following: she travels 12 km in the first 30 minutes at a steady speed, then rests for 30 minutes, then travels a further 8 km in the next 15 minutes. Work out her average speed, in km/h, for the whole journey.

13.A ball's height, h metres, t seconds after being thrown follows h = (t − 1)(9 − t). Given that the ball is at ground level at t = 1 and t = 9, work out at what time t the ball reaches its maximum height, using symmetry.

14.The graph of W = 840 ÷ L shows how the width, W metres, of a rectangular field of area 840 m² depends on its length, L metres. Use the relationship to work out the width when the length is 35 m, and hence the perimeter of the field.

15.A currency conversion graph shows that £4 is equivalent to 5 US dollars. Use this to work out how many US dollars are equivalent to £24.