May 2026 Contest — Grade 7
The May 2026 North Star contest paper for Grade 7 has 12 questions and a 60-minute limit. Two sample questions with worked solutions are below, and you can take the whole paper online for free — no account, no sign-up.
- Grade
- Grade 7
- Questions
- 12
- Time limit
- 60 minutes
- Contest
- May 2026
- Subject
- Mathematics
- School year
- 2025-26
Before you start
- The timer starts when you press Start and runs for 60 minutes.
- Answer the 12 questions in any order; each is multiple choice.
- Your answers are marked as you go. Nothing is saved to an account, so finish in one sitting.
Sample questions
The first and last questions from this paper, with their worked solutions.
Question 1 — Advanced Mathematics
A sneaker collector is numbering their boxes from 1 to N. When they finish, they notice a weird pattern in the box numbers:
- The digit 0 appears exactly four times.
- The digit 9 appears exactly five times.
What is the number "N" on the very last box?
- A.47
- B.48
- C.49
- D.57
- E.None of these
Show the worked solution
To find the number N on the very last box, we need to analyze the occurrences of the digits 0 and 9 as we number the boxes from 1 to N.
First, let's look at the digit 0. The numbers containing the digit 0 in order are:
10 (1st zero)
20 (2nd zero)
30 (3rd zero)
40 (4th zero)
50 (5th zero)
Since the digit 0 appears exactly four times, the last box number N must be at least 40, but it must be strictly less than 50 (otherwise, the number 50 would introduce a 5th zero). Thus, we have:
40 le N < 50
Next, let's look at the digit 9. The numbers containing the digit 9 in order are:
9 (1st nine)
19 (2nd nine)
29 (3rd nine)
39 (4th nine)
49 (5th nine)
59 (6th nine)
Since the digit 9 appears exactly five times, the last box number N must be at least 49, but strictly less than 59 (otherwise, the number 59 would introduce a 6th nine). Thus, we have:
49 le N < 59
To satisfy both conditions simultaneously:
1. N must be between 40 and 49 (inclusive).
2. N must be between 49 and 58 (inclusive).
The only integer that satisfies both conditions is N = 49.
Let's verify for N = 49:
The numbers containing 0 are 10, 20, 30, and 40 (exactly 4 times).
The numbers containing 9 are 9, 19, 29, 39, and 49 (exactly 5 times).
Both conditions are perfectly met. Therefore, the number on the very last box is 49.
The answer is C
Question 12 — Advanced Mathematics
Four lemonade stands are selling cups of lemonade:
- Stand P charges 20% more than Stand Q
- Stand Q charges 25% less than Stand R
- Stand S charges 50% more than Stand R
What is the relationship between the prices at Stand S and Stand Q?
- A.Stand S is twice of Stand Q
- B.Stand P is 25% higher than Stand S
- C.Stands S and P charge exactly the same
- D.Stand S is 40% higher than Stand P
- E.Stand P is 20% higher than Stand S
Show the worked solution
To find the relationship between the prices of the lemonade stands, we can assign a convenient value to one of the stands and calculate the prices of the others.
Let the price of a cup of lemonade at Stand R be 100.
1. Find the price at Stand Q:
Stand Q charges 25% less than Stand R.
Price at Stand Q = 100 - (25% of 100) = 100 - 25 = 75.
2. Find the price at Stand P:
Stand P charges 20% more than Stand Q.
Price at Stand P = 75 + (20% of 75) = 75 + 15 = 90.
3. Find the price at Stand S:
Stand S charges 50% more than Stand R.
Price at Stand S = 100 + (50% of 100) = 100 + 50 = 150.
Now, let's compare the prices at Stand S and Stand Q:
Price at Stand S = 150
Price at Stand Q = 75
Since 150 is exactly twice of 75 (75 x 2 = 150), Stand S is twice of Stand Q.
This matches option A.
The answer is A
Take the whole paper
All 12 questions, 60 minutes, marked as you go. No account needed.