Grade 9 Mathematics

Strand 1.0: Numbers - Question Bank

1.1 Sub-strand: Integers

A. Basic Operations on Integers

Use a number line to solve each of the following:

1. (+12) - (+7)

2. (-15) - (-6)

3. (+9) + (-14)

4. (-13) + (+21) - (-5)

5. (+30) - (-10) + (-25)

6. 50 + (-28) - 12

7. -100 - (-45) + 30

B. Combined Operations on Integers (Order of Operations)

Evaluate the following expressions:

1. (-7) + 4 × (-5)

2. 18 ÷ (-3) + (-6)

3. (-4) × (-3) - (-10)

4. 50 ÷ (-10) + 8 × 2

5. (-6) × (8 + (-2))

6. (15 - 25) ÷ (-2)

7. (-40 + 8) ÷ (-4) - 3
8. [(-12) × 6] / [(-3) + (-9)]

9. 5 × ((-2) - 3) + 15

10. [7 × (4 - (-6))] / (-5)

11. 24 ÷ (-6) + 3 × (8 - 11)

12. -36 ÷ ((-2)² + 5) - 7

13. [(-10 - 5) × 4] / [(-2) × 3]

14. 120 ÷ ((-8) - 4) + (-5) × (-2)

15. [4 × (-6) - (-10)] / -2

16. 19 - ((-4) × 3) + 18 ÷ (-9)

17. [(8 + (-20)) / 3] × (4 - 9)

18. ((-5)² - 10) ÷ (2 - (-1))

19. [100 ÷ ((-2) × 5)] / [-1 - 1]

20. 8 × [(-7 + 4) ÷ 3] - 11

C. Real-Life Applications of Integers

1. The temperature in Nairobi was 22°C at noon. By midnight, the temperature had dropped by 15°C.
What was the temperature at midnight?

2. A diver is 25 metres below the sea surface. A bird is flying 100 metres directly above the diver. What
is the bird's altitude above sea level?

3. Mount Kenya's peak is 5,199 metres above sea level. The lowest point in the Chalbi Desert is 110
metres below sea level. What is the difference in altitude between the peak of Mount Kenya and the
lowest point in the Chalbi Desert?

4. Mary has a bank balance of KSh 12,500. She deposits KSh 4,500 and then withdraws KSh 8,200. The
next day, she withdraws another KSh 6,000. What is her new bank balance?

5. On Monday, the temperature in a freezer was -18°C. On Tuesday, the temperature rose by 4°C. On
Wednesday, it dropped by 3°C. What was the final temperature on Wednesday?
6. A submarine is at a depth of -150 metres. It rises 60 metres, then dives 110 metres. What is its new
position relative to sea level?

7. In a quiz, 5 points are awarded for a correct answer, and 2 points are deducted (-2) for a wrong
answer. A team answers 10 questions correctly and 6 questions incorrectly. What is their total score?

8. The temperature at 6:00 AM was -5°C. It rose by 2°C every hour for the next 4 hours. What was the
temperature at 10:00 AM?

9. A company made a profit of KSh 5,000,000 in its first year. In the second year, it made a loss of KSh
1,200,000. In the third year, it made a profit of KSh 3,400,000. What was the company's net profit or loss
over the three years?

10. A building has 20 floors above ground and 3 basement levels. An elevator starts at floor 15, goes
down 11 floors, and then goes down another 6 floors. What floor is the elevator on?

1.2 Sub-strand: Cubes and Cube Roots

A. Cubes of Numbers

Find the cube of each of the following numbers (by multiplication):

1. 7

2. 12

3. 15

4. -5

5. -9

6. 0.4

7. 1.1

8. -0.2

9. 2/3

10. 1 ½

11. -3/5

12. 2.5
B. Cube Roots by Factor Method

Find the cube root of each of the following numbers using the prime factorization method:

1. 216

2. 729

3. 1000

4. 1728

5. 3375

6. 5832

7. 9261

8. 13824

9. -64

10. -125

11. 8/27

12. 125/343

13. 0.008

14. 0.125

15. ³√(27 × 64)

16. ³√(1000 × 216)

C. Cubes and Cube Roots using Tables or Calculators

(Note: These questions require mathematical tables or a calculator, as specified in the curriculum.)

Use a calculator or mathematical tables to find the value of:

1. 28³

2. (1.45)³

3. ³√120
4. ³√9500

5. (0.87)³

6. ³√0.05

7. (18.6)³

8. ³√45.75

9. ³√(-1500)

10. (0.033)³

D. Real-Life Applications of Cubes and Cube Roots

1. A large cubic water tank has a volume of 8,000,000 cm³. What is the length of one side of the tank in
centimetres?

2. A sculptor has a cubic block of marble with a side length of 1.2 metres. What is the volume of the
block?

3. A storage container is in the shape of a perfect cube. Its volume is 27 m³. What is the area of its base?

4. Find the side length of a cube whose volume is 125 cm³.

5. The volume of a cubic box is 729 cm³. What is the total length of all its edges?

6. A set of 64 small, identical cubes are stacked together to form one large cube. If the volume of one
small cube is 8 cm³, what is the volume of the large cube?

7. From the information in question 6, what is the side length of the large cube?

8. A cubic box has a volume of 2197 cm³. Can a rod of length 15 cm be placed along the diagonal of its
base? Justify your answer.

9. The volume of a cube is 0.064 m³. Find the length of its side in centimetres.

10. Three cubes have side lengths of 3 cm, 4 cm, and 5 cm respectively. They are melted down and
reformed into a single, larger cube. What is the side length of the new cube? (Hint: Find the total volume
first).

1.3 Sub-strand: Indices and Logarithms

Simplify the following expressions, leaving your answer in index form:

1. 5⁴ × 5²

2. a⁷ × a³

3. 10⁸ ÷ 10⁵

4. p¹² ÷ p⁴

5. (x³)⁵

6. (2b²)³

7. 7⁰

8. (3y)⁰

9. 4⁻²

10. 10⁻³

11. 2⁵ × 2⁻³

12. m⁶ ÷ m⁻²

13. (x⁵ × x³) / x²

14. (p⁴q²) × (p³q⁵)

15. (12y⁷) / (3y³)

16. (3² × 3⁴) ÷ 3⁶

17. 5²ˣ × 5⁻ˣ

18. (a³b⁻²)⁴

19. 9^(1/2)

20. 27^(2/3)

21. 16⁻(1/4)

22. (5a⁵b³) / (15a²b⁶)

23. (2³)² × 2⁻⁴

25. (8/125)^(2/3)

B. Solving Equations using Indices

Find the value of the unknown (x) in each equation:

1. 2ˣ = 16

2. 5ˣ = 125

3. 10ˣ = 10000

4. 3ˣ⁺¹ = 27

5. 7ˣ⁻² = 1

6. 4ˣ = 32 (Hint: Use base 2)

7. 9²ˣ = 27 (Hint: Use base 3)

8. 25ˣ⁻¹ = 5

9. 2³ˣ⁻² = 128

10. 10ˣ = 0.01

11. 8ˣ = 1/64

12. 3 × 3ˣ = 243

13. (1/4)ˣ = 64

14. 5²ˣ⁺¹ ÷ 5ˣ = 625

15. 16ˣ = 0.25

C. Relating Powers of 10 to Common Logarithms

1. Given 10³ = 1000, write this statement in logarithmic form.

2. Given log₁₀(100) = 2, write this statement in index form.

3. Find the value of x if log₁₀(x) = 4.

5. Express the following in Logarithmic Form

10¹ = 10

log₁₀(1) = 0

10⁻¹ = 0.1

log₁₀(0.001) = -3

10⁵ = 100000

6. What is the value of log₁₀(1)?

7. What is the value of log₁₀(10)?

8. Given log₁₀(2) ≈ 0.301, what is 10⁰·³⁰¹ approximately equal to?

9. If 10ˣ = 50, which of the following is true?

a) log₅₀(10) = x

b) log₁₀(50) = x

c) logₓ(50) = 10

10. Use a calculator to find the value of:

a) log₁₀(58)

b) log₁₀(2500)

c) log₁₀(0.5)

d) log₁₀(0.007)

1.4 Sub-strand: Compound Proportions and Rates of Work

A. Proportional Parts (Ratios)

1. Divide KSh 7,000 in the ratio 3:4.

3. A recipe for concrete requires cement, sand, and gravel in the ratio [Link] by volume. If a builder
needs 28 m³ of concrete, what volume of sand does he need?

4. A piece of land is divided into three plots (A, B, C) in the ratio [Link]. If plot A is 15 hectares, what is
the total area of the piece of land?

5. Two numbers are in the ratio 7:5. Their sum is 144. Find the two numbers.

6. The ratio of boys to girls in a school is 4:5. If there are 360 boys, how many girls are in the school?

7. Increase the quantity 450 kg in the ratio 7:5.

8. Decrease the price KSh 1,200 in the ratio 3:4.

9. A sum of money is shared between two people. The first person gets 3/8 of the total. What is the
ratio in which the money was shared?

10. The angles of a triangle are in the ratio [Link]. Find the size of the largest angle.

B. Compound Proportions (Ratio Method)

1. If 5 men can build a wall in 12 days, how long will it take 6 men working at the same rate?

2. A car travels 210 km on 15 litres of petrol. How far can it travel on 25 litres?

3. 8 workers can dig a trench in 6 hours. How many workers are needed to dig the same trench in 4
hours?

4. 6 taps can fill a tank in 3 hours. How long will it take 4 taps to fill the same tank?

5. 12 people can consume 72 kg of maize in 20 days. In how many days will 15 people consume 90 kg of
maize?

6. A factory produces 500 items in 3 days using 4 machines. How many items can be produced in 9 days
using 6 machines?

7. If 10 men working 8 hours a day can complete a job in 15 days, how many days will it take 12 men
working 5 hours a day to complete the same job?

8. A farmer has enough feed to last 40 cows for 25 days. If he sells 10 cows, how many more days will
the feed last?
9. A project requires 30 workers to complete it in 40 days. If 10 workers fail to show up, how many extra
days will it take the remaining workers to complete the project?

10. 5 pumps running for 6 hours a day can empty a reservoir in 2 days. How many hours a day must 3
pumps run to empty the same reservoir in 4 days?

C. Rates of Work

1. John can paint a house in 6 days. Peter can paint the same house in 12 days. How long will it take
them if they work together?

2. Pipe A can fill a water tank in 3 hours. Pipe B can fill the same tank in 6 hours. If both pipes are
opened at the same time, how long will it take to fill the tank?

3. Machine X can produce 1,000 bolts in 4 hours. Machine Y can produce 1,000 bolts in 5 hours. If both
machines run together, how long will it take them to produce 1,000 bolts?

4. Two taps, A and B, can fill a bath in 10 minutes and 15 minutes respectively. A drain, C, can empty the
bath in 30 minutes. If the bath is empty and all three (taps and drain) are opened, how long will it take
to fill the bath?

5. Ann can weed a shamba in 10 hours. Her younger sister, Jane, can weed the same shamba in 15
hours. Ann works alone for 4 hours and is then joined by Jane. How long will it take them working
together to finish the remaining work?

6. A water tank is 2/5 full. Tap A can fill the tank in 10 minutes, and Tap B can empty it in 15 minutes. If
both taps are opened, how long will it take to fill the *remaining* part of the tank?

7. Three people (Tom, Dick, and Harry) can complete a job in 4 hours, 6 hours, and 8 hours respectively.
They all start the job together. Tom leaves after 1 hour, and Dick leaves 1 hour before the job is finished.
How long did the job take in total?

8. A pool has two inlet pipes and one outlet pipe. Inlet A fills it in 5 hours. Inlet B fills it in 8 hours. The
outlet C empties it in 4 hours. If the pool is half-full and all three pipes are opened, what will be the state
of the pool after 10 hours?

9. It takes 12 men 5 days to complete a job. What fraction of the job is completed by 8 men in 1 day?

10. A contractor hires two machines, A and B, to do a job. Machine A alone would take 10 days. Machine
B alone would take 15 days. The contractor wants the job finished in 6 days. If both machines are used,
will the job be completed on time? Show your calculations.