Mini practice paper: 8 questions
Mixed-difficulty questions from across the Geography syllabus. Tap "Show answer" after each to check yourself.
Q1 · Difficulty 1/3
At which type of plate margin do two plates move towards each other?
- Destructive (convergent) margin
- Constructive (divergent) margin
- Conservative (transform) margin
- Collision-free margin
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Destructive (convergent) margin
At a destructive (convergent) margin plates move together; oceanic crust is subducted beneath continental crust, causing earthquakes and explosive volcanoes.
Q2 · Difficulty 1/3
The growth in the proportion of a country's population living in towns and cities is called:
- Urbanisation
- Migration only
- Deindustrialisation
- Suburbanisation only
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Urbanisation
Urbanisation is the rising share of people living in urban areas, driven by rural-urban migration and natural increase, and is happening fastest in LICs and NEEs.
Q3 · Difficulty 1/3
Which single measure combines income, education and life expectancy to assess a country's development?
- The Human Development Index (HDI)
- Gross National Income only
- Birth rate only
- The literacy rate only
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — The Human Development Index (HDI)
The HDI is a composite index combining income (GNI per head), education and life expectancy, giving a fuller picture than a single economic measure.
Q4 · Difficulty 2/3
Which glacial erosion process involves ice freezing onto rock and pulling pieces away as the glacier moves?
- Plucking
- Abrasion
- Attrition
- Deposition
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Plucking
Plucking occurs when meltwater freezes onto rock, and as the glacier moves it pulls loose fragments away. Abrasion is the scratching of the bedrock by this debris.
Q5 · Difficulty 2/3
'Managed retreat' (coastal realignment) involves:
- Allowing low-value land to flood and the coastline to move back naturally
- Building the tallest possible sea wall
- Importing sand every year
- Blasting cliffs to make them vertical
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Allowing low-value land to flood and the coastline to move back naturally
Managed retreat allows the sea to flood low-value land, creating salt marshes that absorb wave energy. It is cheaper and more sustainable than defending every stretch of coast.
Q6 · Difficulty 2/3
Which is an example of MITIGATING climate change rather than adapting to it?
- Switching to renewable energy to cut emissions
- Building higher sea walls
- Growing drought-resistant crops
- Installing water-saving devices
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Switching to renewable energy to cut emissions
Mitigation reduces the causes of climate change, e.g. cutting emissions with renewable energy. Adaptation (sea walls, drought-resistant crops, water saving) helps people cope with the effects.
Q7 · Difficulty 1/3
The 'range' of a data set is calculated by:
- Subtracting the smallest value from the largest
- Adding up all the values
- Finding the most common value
- Dividing by the number of values
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Subtracting the smallest value from the largest
Range = highest value − lowest value. It measures the spread of the data.
Q8 · Difficulty 1/3
A deep, armchair-shaped hollow high on a mountainside where a glacier began is called a:
- Corrie (cirque)
- Drumlin
- Levee
- Spit
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Corrie (cirque)
A corrie (cirque) is an armchair-shaped hollow carved by a small glacier; it often contains a tarn (lake) after the ice melts.
AQA GCSE Geography FAQ
What does the AQA GCSE Geography exam look like?
The AQA GCSE Geography exam is structured across 3 components. Paper 1: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification. Paper 2: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification. Paper 3: Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions. Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Can I download a free AQA GCSE Geography past paper?
Real AQA past papers are published directly by AQA on their official website. Kramizo doesn't redistribute copyrighted past papers, but we do generate free AI-written practice papers in the exact same style — same command words, same difficulty tier, same mark conventions. Use this practice paper as warm-up, then time yourself on official past papers before exam day.
How is AQA GCSE Geography graded?
Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass. Kramizo's practice questions are tagged with difficulty 1-3 mapping roughly to the lower, middle, and top grade boundaries you'll encounter in the real exam.