Ratio, proportion and rates of change worksheet — GCSE Higher

1.Simplify the ratio 12 : 18 : 30 to its simplest form.

2.Two mathematically similar hexagonal tiles have areas 18 cm² and 50 cm². Work out the ratio of the side length of the smaller tile to the side length of the larger tile, in simplest form.

3.In a choir of 30 singers, 40% are altos and the rest are sopranos. Write the number of sopranos as a fraction of the number of altos. Give your answer in its simplest form.

4.The tangent to a curve at the point where x = 4 has equation y = 3x − 2. Work out the instantaneous rate of change of y with respect to x at x = 4.

5.A beaker holds 500 g of a salt solution of concentration 12%. Pure water is added until the concentration falls to 8%. Work out the mass of water added.

6.Two mathematically similar polygons have perimeters in the ratio 2 : 5. Write the ratio of their areas in its simplest form.

7.A car is bought for £12000. Its value falls by 15% in the first year and by 10% in each year after that. Work out the value of the car 3 years after it was bought.

8.To make a shade of green paint, the amount of yellow paint used is always 0.75 times the amount of blue paint used. Write the amount of blue paint as a fraction of the amount of yellow paint, in its simplest form.

9.Write 400 g : 1.5 kg as a ratio in its simplest form.

10.The ratio of cats to dogs in a shelter is 3:4. There are 18 cats. Work out the total number of animals in the shelter.

11.The total cost, in pounds, of manufacturing a batch of components is plotted against the number of components produced. A tangent to this graph at a particular point has gradient 3.60. What does the value 3.60 represent?

12.A tangent to a curve at the point where x = 3 passes through the points (1, 2) and (5, 14). A candidate says: "The gradient of the tangent at x = 3 is 3, because 14 − 2 = 12 and 12 ÷ 4 = 3." Which statement is correct?

13.The height of a candle, in cm, is measured as it burns: t = 0 min, height = 20.0; t = 3 min, height = 18.7; t = 5 min, height = 17.5; t = 6 min, height = 16.6; t = 7 min, height = 15.4; t = 9 min, height = 13.4. Which pair of readings gives the best estimate of the instantaneous rate of change of the height at t = 6 minutes, and why?

14.A laptop bag has a mass of 2.4 kg. A school bag has a mass of 3.6 kg. Write the mass of the laptop bag as a fraction of the mass of the school bag, giving your answer in its simplest form.

15.A map has a scale of 2 cm : 5 km. A footpath measures 8 cm on the map. Work out the real length of the footpath, in kilometres.