These are sets of starter questions that I have used with my Year 11 (Foundation) and Year 10 (borderline Higher/Foundation) classes this year. Each set of starters contains between 5 and 10 lessons worth of starters that test the same topics each lesson. Solutions are provided to all questions. The cover image shows the format of all starters. Topics tested are: Year 11 Set 1: Expanding brackets, collecting like terms, solving equations, prime factorisation, nth term of arithmetic sequences, percentages of amounts, substitution & sharing in a ratio. Year 11 Set 2: Averages, rounding, division, FDP, multiplying and dividing fractions, sharing in a ratio, factorising quadratics, expanding double brackets, mixed numbers and improper fractions, fractions of amounts, simplifying fractions. Year 11 Set 3: Multiplying fractions by integers, column addition, exterior angles of polygons, ordering negatives, fractions of amounts, solving equations, ratio and probability. Year 11 Set 4: Simplifying expressions, expressing one quantity as a fraction of another, standard form, multiplying mixed numbers, recognising arithmetic and geometric sequences, recognising parallel lines, percentage increase. Year 11 Set 5: Finding and using the nth term of an arithmetic sequence, converting mixed numbers to improper fractions, expanding double brackets, solving quadratics, multiplying and dividing decimals, probability. Year 11 Set 6: Solving equations (xs on both sides), number facts, calculating with negatives, ratio problems, simultaneous equations. Year 10 Set 1: Substitution, expanding double brackets, solving equations, significant figures, simplifying expressions, estimating square roots, index laws. Year 10 Set 2: Angles in parallel lines, angles in polygons, averages, index laws, recurring decimals, solving equations. Year 10 Set 3: Volume of cuboids, geometric notation, simplifying expressions, calculating with negatives, percentage increase and decrease, algebraic fractions, ordering fractions, solving equations. Year 10 Set 4: Re-arranging formulae, standard form, sharing in a ratio, factorising quadratics, expanding single brackets, substitution, estimation, multiplying and dividing decimals, index laws, expanding double brackets.

2 worksheets on the topic of Iteration, with answers provided. Each worksheet is available as a pdf and a Word document, in case you want to make any changes. In worksheet #1, all the answers are integers. I find this helps students understand the idea of a recursive formula, as they can perform all the calculations in their head. Students are given a recursive formula and the value of x1, and must calculate the values of x2, x3 and x4. They then cross off their answers in the grid at the top of the page. Once they’ve finished the entire worksheet, there will be 6 numbers in the grid they haven’t crossed off. These 6 numbers add up to 100. This is a nice, quick way for you to check that your students have completed the task correctly! The content on worksheet #2 is more challenging as students will need to know how to use the ANS button on their calculators in a recursive formula. This is just a simple practice worksheet - students write down the values of x2, x3, and x4 in the spaces and then move on to the next question.

A couple of activities on Frequency Trees (aimed at KS3). The worksheets are provided in pdf and Word, in case you want to make any edits. Solutions are provided. In “complete using the clues”, students are given 3 blank frequency trees, and 4 clues to go with each. They must use the clues to fill in each frequency tree. This requires some basic knowledge of fractions of amounts and ratio. In “true or false”, students are given a partially completed frequency tree and must fill in the remainder - this requires some basic number facts. Using their completed frequency tree, they must then decide which of the 13 statements at the bottom of the page are true. This will require some knowledge of fractions of amounts, percentages of amounts, and ratio.

A simple worksheet on Dividing Mixed Numbers - nothing fancy. 12 questions for students to complete. Once students have completed a question, they cross off the answer at the bottom of the page - if they can’t find their answer, they’ve made a mistake somewhere. There are 15 answers, so 3 won’t be used.

8 Time Series graphs and questions to accompany them. As well as questions on basic graph reading skills, I’ve also included questions that test other skills, for example averages, percentage increase, and writing one amount as a fraction of another. Solutions to all questions are provided. It’s possible to get all questions on one doubled-sided piece of A4 if you print 2 pages per sheet. Apart from the football-related graphs, all data is completely fictional! I’ve also uploaded the word documents so you can make any changes, if desired.

A basic fluency worksheet that makes the topic of adding fractions a bit more challenging. Rather than adding 2 given fractions, students have to determine what the missing numerator should be to give the calculation a certain answer. Solutions are provided.

A Tarsia puzzle (jigsaw puzzle) on finding the nth term of Quadratic Sequences. Pieces need to be cut out, and students have to work out the nth term of each sequence, and match it with the answer. I wasn’t able to upload the Tarsia file itself, so you can’t make any edits unfortunately. There is a pdf document of the puzzle, and the solution is also included.

In each block of the maze, students are given a value and a percentage they should decrease it by. An answer is given (the large number in each block). Students try to find a way through the maze, left to right, that only goes through correct answers (moving diagonally is not allowed!). Solutions provided.

Inside each shape are the instructions for the enlargement - the letter is the centre of enlargement, and the fraction is the scale factor. Unfortunately the letters which show the location of the centre of enlargement are quite small - sorry! Once all enlargements have been successfully completed, they should join together to create a short message. Solution included!

Next to each shape are the instructions for the enlargement - the letter is the centre of enlargement, and the number is the scale factor. Unfortunately the letters which indicate the centres of enlargement are quite small - sorry! Once all enlargements have been successfully completed, they should join together to create a short message. Solution included!

A presentation I designed to help me deliver the “Number Families” task from nrich (https://nrich.maths.org/13123). Rather than jumping straight in to set notation, it starts off getting pupils to list what they know about certain numbers. Then they imagine that numbers that share a certain property can be placed in the same “bucket”. This idea of a “bucket” is then used to introduce set notation.

A way to make solving equations a bit more interesting! Students have to pick 2 of the algebraic expressions and set them equal to each other. They then solve the equation they’ve created, and hope the answer is one of the targets on the right hand side of the page. If not, they create another equation! When I use this in my lessons, I say the first person to create an equation with a target answer gets to “claim” that answer and gets their name on the board. I find the students are really motivated by this, and do a lot more practice than they usually would! Possible solutions are provided.

My attempt at making practice of multiplying and dividing negative numbers a little more interesting! Students are given completed multiplication grids - but the numbers around the outside (which can be negative or positive) are missing. Students have to work out where the numbers should go to give the completed grid. Solutions are provided.

A Tarsia puzzle that covers “simple” Trig. Equations such as 4 sin x = 1. A few of the equations require knowledge of the identity tan x = sin x / cos x. Students solve the equations and match them up to the answers on another piece. When completed, all the pieces join up to make a hexagon. As space on the puzzle pieces was limited, I’ve used a code to tell students the range in which they are looking for solutions. For example, if an equation is followed by (A), they are looking for all solutions between 0 and 360 degrees. You will need to display the code on the board whilst students complete the puzzle. I wasn’t able to upload the Tarsia file, just a pdf copy of the puzzle pieces, so you won’t be able to edit the task, sorry.

A basic worksheet to ensure students are comfortable with the equal to and not equal to symbols. They have to check my answers to various calculations and put the appropriate symbol in the gap. Starts with calculating with integers, then addition/subtraction of decimals, then adding fractions, and finally multiplying/dividing decimals. Solutions provided.

An activity that I designed to make ordering fractions a bit more challenging for the more able in my group. Pupils are given 4 algebraic fractions, and must order them by size for particular values of the unknown. Solutions are provided.

A quick (less than 30 mins) investigation that I did with my Year 7s on Semiprimes.

Students are given a grid of one-step equations to solve. They’ll need 2 colouring pencils (any colours will do!) - one colour for even answers, and one colour for odd answers. I’ve included a file showing what the final image should look like! A nice activity for Friday Period 5!

This was designed for my Year 11 Foundation class. It is a second lesson after students have already had an introduction to solving quadratic equations by factorising, All quadratics in this lesson can be solved by factorising - they just must be re-arranged to give a quadratic equal to 0. There are 3 examples to go through - one which is a recap of previous work, and 2 quadratics that need to be re-arranged. There are 20 fluency questions for students to work through. The bronze questions at the top only have positive terms in the quadratic, while the gold questions underneath introduce some negatives. There are 2 problem solving questions at the end as an extension, or to finish off the lesson. These are both based on past exam questions.

I wanted something a little more challenging on the topic of Trapezia that still gave my students plenty of practice calculating areas, so I designed these questions. In each question, students are given a pair of trapezia and are told how their areas are linked (one is a multiple of the other). Students have to determine the area of one trapezium, use that to determine the area of the other one, and then finally use that to determine a missing value. Sheets I and II are very similar, but sheet III is a bit more challenging. Solutions are provided.