Mathematics: Number Sense, Percents, and Geometry
What the questions test
The Mathematics section covers number sense and operations, fractions/decimals/percents, ratio and proportion, basic algebra (solving for an unknown), measurement and geometry (perimeter, area, volume, conversions), data interpretation (tables, graphs, mean/median/mode), and word problems. Calculators are generally not allowed, so practice mental-math shortcuts.
Trap 1: order of operations. Parentheses, then exponents, then multiply/divide left to right, then add/subtract left to right. So 6 + 2 × 5 = 16, not 40.
Trap 2: percent language. "25% of 80" means 0.25 × 80 = 20. But "increased by 25%" means adding 25% of the original: 80 + 20 = 100. Distinguish "of" from "increase/decrease by."
Trap 3: unit mismatch. Convert before computing. Traveling 45 minutes at 60 km/h: 0.75 h × 60 = 45 km.
Trap 4: reading too fast. Fraction-of-a-whole versus fraction-of-a-number questions reward careful reading more than speed.
Formulas to know: rectangle area = length × width; triangle area = ½ × base × height; circle area = πr²; circumference = πd; volume of a rectangular prism = length × width × height. Perimeter adds side lengths only.
Worked example
A $60 jacket is discounted 20%, then 10% is taken off the sale price. Final cost? $60 × 0.80 = $48; $48 × 0.90 = $43.20. The discounts do not simply add to 30% (which would give $42) because the second discount applies to the reduced price.