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Primary 2 Maths exam paper analysis: 2016

PaperLah has 25 Primary 2 Maths exam papers from 2016, set by 13 Singapore primary schools, with 833 questions worth 1,344 marks. The topics carrying the most marks were Multiplication and division (24%), Addition and subtraction (12%) and Money (11%); together the top 4 topics account for half of all marks. Multiplication and division appears in 92% of the papers. Multiple-choice questions make up 27% of marks, and 7.9% of questions are worth 3 marks or more, which usually means showing working. A typical paper has about 33 questions and 54 marks.

Based on 25 papers from 13 schools · Updated 2026-10-13

These figures describe the school papers in PaperLah's collection, not official MOE or SEAB weightings. They help with planning revision; they can't predict a particular exam.

Compared with all years: Multiplication and division took 24% of marks in 2016 (all years: 20%); Addition and subtraction took 12% of marks in 2016 (all years: 16%); Money took 11% of marks in 2016 (all years: 9.7%).

25papers from 13 schools
33questions in a typical paper
54marks in a typical paper
4topics carry half of all marks

Where the marks are

Topics ranked by their share of all marks. The blue ones above the line together make up half.

Multiplication and divisionin 23 of 25 papers24.4%
Addition and subtractionin 23 of 25 papers12.1%
Moneyin 20 of 25 papers10.8%
Fractionsin 16 of 25 papers8.3%
Above this line: 4 topics carry half of all marks
Whole numbersin 15 of 25 papers6.5%
Massin 17 of 25 papers6.5%
Lengthin 16 of 25 papers6%
Number patternsin 21 of 25 papers5.7%
Timein 15 of 25 papers5%
Picture graphsin 12 of 25 papers2.9%
Show as table
Topic% of marksPapers
Multiplication and division24.4in 23 of 25 papers
Addition and subtraction12.1in 23 of 25 papers
Money10.8in 20 of 25 papers
Fractions8.3in 16 of 25 papers
Whole numbers6.5in 15 of 25 papers
Mass6.5in 17 of 25 papers
Length6in 16 of 25 papers
Number patterns5.7in 21 of 25 papers
Time5in 15 of 25 papers
Picture graphs2.9in 12 of 25 papers
2D shapes2.5in 9 of 25 papers
Volume2.2in 11 of 25 papers
Measurement and units1.7in 6 of 25 papers
Word problems1.5in 8 of 25 papers
Solid figures and nets1.4in 11 of 25 papers
Area and perimeter0.6in 3 of 25 papers
Lines0.5in 6 of 25 papers
Ratio0.4in 3 of 25 papers
Position and direction0.3in 3 of 25 papers
Factors and multiples0.3in 2 of 25 papers
Tables and graphs0.2in 2 of 25 papers
Circles0.1in 1 of 25 papers
Spatial visualization0.1in 1 of 25 papers

What a paper is made of

How children answer, as a share of marks.

  • Number answer 56%
  • Multiple choice 27%
  • Fill in the blank 7%
  • Short answer 6%
  • Other 4%
Show as table
Format% of marks
Number answer55.6
Multiple choice27.3
Fill in the blank6.9
Short answer6
Drawing or labelling3.3
Word bank0.4
Open-ended (show working)0.4
Other0.1
Rewrite / synthesis0.1

Marks per question

Share of questions worth 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5+ marks. 6% have no marks printed. Higher-mark questions usually need working.

1: 37% of questions37%12: 49% of questions49%23: 6% of questions6%34: 2% of questions2%4
Show as table
Marks% of questions
136.7
249.5
36
41.9

How likely a topic comes up

The share of papers with at least one question on the topic.

Multiplication and division92%
Addition and subtraction92%
Number patterns84%
Money80%
Mass68%
Fractions64%
Length64%
Whole numbers60%
Time60%
Picture graphs48%
Show as table
Topic% of papers
Multiplication and division92
Addition and subtraction92
Number patterns84
Money80
Mass68
Fractions64
Length64
Whole numbers60
Time60
Picture graphs48
Volume44
Solid figures and nets44
2D shapes36
Word problems32
Measurement and units24
Lines24
Area and perimeter12
Ratio12
Position and direction12
Factors and multiples8
Tables and graphs8
Circles4
Spatial visualization4

Exam types

Which school exams these papers come from.

End-of-Year / SA213 papers52%
Mid-Year / SA17 papers28%
Weighted Assessment / CA5 papers20%

Key facts

  • 25 papers, 833 questions, 1,344 marks, from 13 schools.
  • 4 topics carry half of all marks.
  • Most-tested topic: Multiplication and division, 24% of marks.
  • Most common topic across papers: Multiplication and division, in 92% of papers.
  • 7.9% of questions are worth 3 marks or more.
  • Exam types: End-of-Year / SA2, Mid-Year / SA1 and Weighted Assessment / CA.

Questions parents ask

What topics come up most in Primary 2 Maths exam papers in 2016?

By share of marks, the most-tested topics were Multiplication and division (24%), Addition and subtraction (12%), Money (11%), Fractions (8.3%) and Whole numbers (6.5%).

How many questions and marks are in a Primary 2 Maths paper?

A typical paper in this set has about 33 questions and 54 marks. Papers vary by school and by exam (weighted assessments are shorter than mid-year and end-of-year exams).

Which exams and schools are included?

25 papers from 13 schools, from these exam types: End-of-Year / SA2, Mid-Year / SA1 and Weighted Assessment / CA. The schools are listed further down this page.

Can I download these papers?

No. PaperLah doesn't share the papers as downloads. Children practise them online one question at a time, with instant marking, and parents see which topics need work.

Schools included

ACS (Junior) · ACS (Primary) · Ai Tong · Anglo-Chinese School · CHIJ · CHIJ St Nicholas Girls' · Catholic High · Henry Park · Holy Innocents · Maha Bodhi · Maris Stella High · Methodist Girls' · Nan Chiau · Nan Hua · Nanyang · Paya Lebar Methodist Girls' · Pei Chun · Pei Hwa · Raffles Girls' · Red Swastika · Rosyth · Rulang · Singapore Chinese Girls' · St Andrew's · St Hilda's · Tao Nan · Temasek

Schools with Primary 2 Maths papers in the collection (all years). Papers are past school assessments; PaperLah is not affiliated with MOE, SEAB or the schools.

How this analysis is made

Every question in each paper is tagged with its topic, format and marks as printed. The figures above are counts over those questions: a topic's share of marks, the share of papers that include it, and so on. Topic names come from the papers and their answer keys, so similar topics can appear under slightly different names. Only aggregate figures are shown here; the questions themselves are practised inside PaperLah.

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