Algebra worksheet — GCSE Higher

1.A mobile phone tariff charges a fixed £15 plus 20p for every minute of calls made, so the total monthly charge, £C, for m minutes of calls is given by C = 15 + 0.2m. In a month where Ali's charge was £46.60, work out how many minutes of calls he made.

2.A company's cost, in £, for producing x items is shown on a graph. The tangent to the curve at x = 50 passes through (30, 400) and (70, 800). Interpret the gradient of this tangent in the context of the company's costs.

3.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.

4.Point R has coordinates (3, −5). Point R is reflected in the line y = 2 to point S. Write down the coordinates of S.

5.The equation x² − 5x − 2 = 0 can be solved using the iterative formula xₙ₊₁ = √(5xₙ + 2). The starting value is x₀ = 2, so x₁ is the value after the formula has been used once. Work out x₃ correct to 3 decimal places.

6.The table shows the height, in metres, of a firework rocket at various times, in seconds, during its flight: 40 at t = 2, 54 at t = 3, and 60 at t = 4. Use the chord between t = 2 and t = 4 to estimate the gradient of the height-time graph at t = 3, stating the correct units.

7.The graph of y = 60 × (0.5)ˣ is sketched for x ≥ 0. Which statement correctly describes what happens to the curve as x increases?

8.On a distance-time graph, a horizontal line segment shows a period when the graph's gradient is 0. What does this tell you about the journey during that time?

9.Six years ago Harry was three times as old as his brother Leo. Harry is now 24 years old. Work out Leo's age now.

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

11.A stack of firewood has 3 logs in the top layer. Each layer below has 4 more logs than the layer above it. Work out the number of logs in the 6th layer from the top.

12.Work out the value of 5m² + 3m when m = −2.4

13.The tangent to a curve at the point (5, 2) is the line y = mx + c. This tangent crosses the y-axis at (0, −8). Work out the gradient, m, of the tangent.

14.The iterative formula xₙ₊₁ = √(2xₙ + 15) is used repeatedly, starting from x₀ = 1. Work out the value that xₙ approaches, correct to 2 decimal places.

15.Work out the value of 4p² − 3 when p = 2.5