IGCSE Maths 4MA1 Year 10 starter questions: weeks 1–11
45 short questions to open a lesson for Edexcel IGCSE Maths A (4MA1) Higher, Year 10, weeks 1–11 of the teaching year, three or four a week. Each question is shown as an image with its text underneath; answers and mark schemes stay with teachers.
Week 1
Question 1: Order of Operations
Work out 3 + 4 × (2 + 5)^2.
Question 2: Fractions & Percentages
Write 7/20 as (a) a decimal, (b) a percentage.
Question 3: Expanding Brackets
Expand and simplify 4(2x - 3) - 3(x - 5).
Question 4: Linear Equations
Solve 5x - 7 = 2x + 11.
Week 2
Question 1: Prime Factors
Write 360 as a product of its prime factors in index form.
Question 2: HCF and LCM
A = 2³ × 3 × 5² and B = 2² × 3³ × 5. Find (a) the HCF of A and B, (b) the LCM of A and B. Give your answers in index form.
Question 3: Rounding
Use your calculator to work out (√(19.6 + 3.8²))/(2.1 × 0.47). Give your answer correct to 3 significant figures.
Question 4: Estimation
By rounding each number to 1 significant figure, estimate the value of (612 × 0.389)/4.87.
Week 3
Question 1: Fractions
Work out 23/4 - 15/6. Give your answer as a fraction in its simplest form.
Question 2: Fractions
Work out 12/3 ÷ 5/9.
Question 3: Recurring Decimals
Prove algebraically that 0.45 = 5/11.
Question 4: Indices
Simplify (a⁷ × a²)/(a⁴).
Week 4
Question 1: Fractional Indices
Evaluate (8/27)^(-2/3).
Question 2: Laws of Indices
Simplify fully (3x⁴y²)^3.
Question 3: Surds
Simplify √75 + √12, giving your answer in the form k√3.
Question 4: Rationalising Denominators
Rationalise the denominator and simplify 10/(√5).
Question 5: Surds
Expand and simplify (3 + √2)(3 - √2).
Week 5
Question 1: Standard Form
Work out (6.4 × 10⁵) ÷ (8 × 10⁻³). Give your answer in standard form.
Question 2: Standard Form
Write 0.000 305 in standard form.
Question 3: Reverse Percentages
In a sale, all prices are reduced by 15%. A jacket costs £68 in the sale. Work out the price of the jacket before the sale.
Question 4: Percentage Change
The population of a town increased from 24 500 to 26 950. Work out the percentage increase.
Week 6
Question 1: Compound Interest
Priya invests £4000 for 3 years at 2.5% per year compound interest. Work out the value of her investment at the end of the 3 years. Give your answer to the nearest penny.
Question 2: Depreciation
A car is bought for £18 000. Its value depreciates by 12% each year. Work out its value after 2 years.
Question 3: Ratio
£360 is shared between Ali, Ben and Cara in the ratio 2: 3: 7. How much does Cara receive?
Question 4: Ratio
The ratio of red to blue counters in a bag is 5: 3. There are 18 more red counters than blue counters. How many counters are in the bag altogether?
Week 7
Question 1: Speed
A train travels 171 km in 1 hour 48 minutes. Work out its average speed in km/h.
Question 2: Density
A metal block has mass 2.7 kg and volume 340 cm³. Work out its density in g/cm³. Give your answer to 3 significant figures.
Question 3: Bounds
The length of a rod is 36 cm, correct to the nearest centimetre. Write down the error interval for the length, L cm.
Question 4: Bounds in Calculations
d = 120 correct to the nearest 10 and t = 2.5 correct to 1 decimal place. Work out the upper bound for d/t. Give your answer to 3 significant figures.
Week 8
Question 1: Simplifying Expressions
Simplify (12a³b²)/(4ab⁵).
Question 2: Collecting Like Terms
Simplify 5x² - 3x + 2x² + 7x - 4.
Question 3: Surds
Show that 6/(√3) + √27 = 5√3.
Question 4: Bounds
A mass is 4.8 kg correct to the nearest 100 g. Write down its lower bound and upper bound.
Week 9
Question 1: Substitution
v² = u² + 2as. Work out the value of v when u = -3, a = 2.5 and s = 8, given that v > 0.
Question 2: Expanding Double Brackets
Expand and simplify (2x - 5)(3x + 4).
Question 3: Factorising
Factorise fully 12x²y - 18xy^2.
Question 4: Writing Expressions
A rectangle has length (3x + 2) cm and width (x - 1) cm. Write an expression, in its simplest form, for the perimeter of the rectangle.
Week 10
Question 1: Triple Brackets
Expand and simplify (x + 2)(x - 3)(x + 4).
Question 2: Factorising Quadratics
Factorise x² - 2x - 35.
Question 3: Difference of Two Squares
Factorise 49 - 4y^2.
Question 4: Factorising Quadratics
Factorise 6x² + x - 12.
Week 11
Question 1: Linear Equations
Solve 3(2x - 5) = 7 - 2(x + 3).
Question 2: Equations with Fractions
Solve (x + 4)/3 - (x - 2)/5 = 2.
Question 3: Forming Equations
The angles of a triangle are x°, (2x + 15)° and (3x - 27)°. Work out the size of the largest angle.
Question 4: Factorising
Factorise fully 3x² - 27.
More starter questions
Other weeks: Weeks 1–11 · Weeks 12–22 · Weeks 23–33. Answers and mark schemes are in the teacher tools.