Number worksheet — GCSE Higher

1.A minibus can carry 16 passengers. A school is taking 179 pupils on a trip. By rounding 179 to the nearest 10, work out an estimate for the number of minibuses needed, given that the school cannot hire part of a minibus.

2.In a music collection, the ratio of pop albums to rock albums is 5 : 3. Work out the number of rock albums as a fraction of the number of pop albums.

3.An allotment plot is divided into vegetables and flowers in the ratio 9 : 4. A third of the vegetable section is used for potatoes. What fraction of the whole plot is potatoes?

4.A rectangular plywood panel measures 2.4 m by 0.75 m. Work out the area of the panel in square metres, giving your answer as a fraction in its simplest form.

5.In a box of chocolates 5/8 are milk chocolates and the rest are dark chocolates. Work out the number of dark chocolates as a fraction of the number of milk chocolates.

6.A country's population is 8,340,000, and it is estimated that 1,950,000 of them live in the capital city. By rounding each number to 1 significant figure, work out an estimate for the number of people who do not live in the capital city.

7.A driving instructor is working out how many current-style UK number plates are possible. The format is 2 letters, then 2 digits, then a space, then 3 letters (for example AB12 CDE). The letters I, O and Q are never used in any letter position, leaving 23 allowed letters, but every letter and every digit may repeat anywhere on the plate. Work out how many different number plates are possible, giving your answer in standard form to 2 significant figures.

8.A courier's van has a weight limit of 850 kg for its parcels. The driver's display shows the total mass of the parcels loaded as 850 kg, correct to the nearest 5 kg. Decide whether the parcels are definitely within the weight limit.

9.A roll of ribbon is 8.4 m long. Ribbon is cut into pieces that are each 0.6 m long. Work out how many complete pieces can be cut from the roll.

10.Ava measures a metal rod and records its length as 15 cm, correct to the nearest centimetre. Ben measures the same rod and records its length as 14.8 cm, correct to the nearest 0.1 cm. Decide whether both records can be correct, and give a reason for your answer.

11.A spreadsheet shows that 812 − 397 = 315. Work out an estimate for 812 − 397, by rounding each number to the nearest 100, to check whether the spreadsheet's answer is reasonable.

12.In a school long jump competition Priya's jump is recorded as 3.8 m and Nadia's jump is recorded as 3.9 m, each correct to the nearest 0.1 m. Priya says she may have jumped further than Nadia. Decide whether Priya is right, and give a reason for your answer.

13.Work out √144 − 2 × 3 + √25

14.A number is multiplied by 4, then 8 is added, giving the result 40. Work out the number.

15.Priya adds 3.6 and 0.45 on paper and writes down 3.65 as her answer. Work out the correct value of 3.6 + 0.45.