Ratio, proportion and rates of change worksheet — GCSE Higher

1.The speed of a car is given by v = d ÷ t. A car travels 180 km in 3 hours. Work out the average speed of the car in km/h.

2.A market stall sells apples at a fixed price per kilogram. Priya buys 3 kg for £5.40. Write the ratio of the mass in kilograms to the cost in pounds, in its simplest form.

3.A tank is filled at a rate of 3 litres every 2 minutes. Given that 1 litre = 1000 cm³, work out the flow rate in cm³ per minute.

4.The strength of a radio signal, in units, is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the transmitter, in km. At a distance of 2 km the signal strength is 20 units. Construct the equation connecting signal strength S and distance d, then work out the distance at which the signal strength is 5 units.

5.Two mathematically similar rectangles have widths 5 cm and 10 cm. The perimeter of the smaller rectangle is 18 cm. Work out the perimeter of the larger rectangle.

6.An ice-cream van's daily takings, in £, are modelled by a curve plotted against the average temperature that day, in °C. At a temperature of 22°C, the gradient of the tangent to this curve is 14. What does this gradient tell you about the takings at 22°C?

7.A scale drawing of a garden uses a scale of 1 : 20. Write down a formula for the real length, L metres, in terms of the length on the drawing, d centimetres, given that 1 metre = 100 centimetres.

8.The population of a town, P thousand, is plotted against time, t years, since 2020. A tangent to the graph at t = 6 has gradient 2.5. What does this gradient represent?

9.A shop's daily profit, in pounds, is plotted against the price charged for an item, in pounds. A tangent to the profit graph at a price of £15 passes through the points (12, 540) and (18, 480). Work out the instantaneous rate of change of profit with respect to price at £15, and state whether profit is increasing or decreasing there.

10.The number of members of a running club increases from 45 to 54. Work out the percentage increase.

11.The volume of water in a paddling pool, in litres, is plotted against the time since the tap was turned on, in minutes. What are the units of the gradient of a tangent to this graph?

12.A cyclist rides 30 km in 1 hour 30 minutes. Work out the average speed of the cyclist in km/h.

13.A graph shows y plotted against x. The graph is a curve that gets closer to both axes but never touches them, and y decreases as x increases. Write down whether this graph could show direct proportion, inverse proportion, or neither.

14.A map has a scale of 1 : 25 000. A footpath measures 6 cm on the map. Work out the real length of the footpath, in kilometres.

15.A cyclist travels d kilometres in t hours. Write down an expression, in terms of d and t, for the cyclist's average speed in km/h.