Primary 3 Maths exam paper analysis: 2012
PaperLah has 29 Primary 3 Maths exam papers from 2012, set by 12 Singapore primary schools, with 1,260 questions worth 2,682 marks. The topics carrying the most marks were Multiplication and division (17%), Whole numbers (15%) and Money (13%); together the top 4 topics account for half of all marks. Whole numbers appears in 97% of the papers. Multiple-choice questions make up 38% of marks, and 10% of questions are worth 3 marks or more, which usually means showing working. A typical paper has about 43 questions and 92 marks.
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 17% of marks in 2012 (all years: 18%); Whole numbers took 15% of marks in 2012 (all years: 13%); Money took 13% of marks in 2012 (all years: 12%).
Where the marks are
Topics ranked by their share of all marks. The blue ones above the line together make up half.
Show as table
| Topic | % of marks | Papers |
|---|---|---|
| Multiplication and division | 17.3 | in 27 of 29 papers |
| Whole numbers | 15.1 | in 28 of 29 papers |
| Money | 13.5 | in 28 of 29 papers |
| Addition and subtraction | 10.8 | in 28 of 29 papers |
| Word problems | 7.7 | in 26 of 29 papers |
| Fractions | 7.1 | in 17 of 29 papers |
| Number patterns | 5 | in 25 of 29 papers |
| Area and perimeter | 3.9 | in 11 of 29 papers |
| Time | 3.8 | in 16 of 29 papers |
| Mass | 2.9 | in 19 of 29 papers |
| Length | 2.7 | in 19 of 29 papers |
| Volume | 2.3 | in 15 of 29 papers |
| Bar graphs | 2 | in 12 of 29 papers |
| Lines | 1 | in 8 of 29 papers |
| Measurement and units | 1 | in 9 of 29 papers |
| Age problems | 0.8 | in 8 of 29 papers |
| Angles | 0.7 | in 9 of 29 papers |
| Tables and graphs | 0.7 | in 4 of 29 papers |
| Order of operations | 0.4 | in 2 of 29 papers |
| Ratio | 0.3 | in 2 of 29 papers |
| Picture graphs | 0.2 | in 2 of 29 papers |
| Algebra | 0.1 | in 2 of 29 papers |
| 2D shapes | 0.1 | in 1 of 29 papers |
| Position and direction | 0.1 | in 1 of 29 papers |
| Combinatorics | 0.1 | in 1 of 29 papers |
| Sets | 0.1 | in 1 of 29 papers |
| Quadrilaterals | 0.1 | in 1 of 29 papers |
What a paper is made of
How children answer, as a share of marks.
- Number answer 53%
- Multiple choice 38%
- Short answer 5%
- Open-ended (show working) 1%
- Other 2%
Show as table
| Format | % of marks |
|---|---|
| Number answer | 52.7 |
| Multiple choice | 38.4 |
| Short answer | 5 |
| Open-ended (show working) | 1.5 |
| Fill in the blank | 1.4 |
| Drawing or labelling | 1 |
Marks per question
Share of questions worth 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5+ marks. 1% have no marks printed. Higher-mark questions usually need working.
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| Marks | % of questions |
|---|---|
| 1 | 3.2 |
| 2 | 85.4 |
| 3 | 2.7 |
| 4 | 7.7 |
How likely a topic comes up
The share of papers with at least one question on the topic.
Show as table
| Topic | % of papers |
|---|---|
| Whole numbers | 96.6 |
| Money | 96.6 |
| Addition and subtraction | 96.6 |
| Multiplication and division | 93.1 |
| Word problems | 89.7 |
| Number patterns | 86.2 |
| Mass | 65.5 |
| Length | 65.5 |
| Fractions | 58.6 |
| Time | 55.2 |
| Volume | 51.7 |
| Bar graphs | 41.4 |
| Area and perimeter | 37.9 |
| Measurement and units | 31 |
| Angles | 31 |
| Lines | 27.6 |
| Age problems | 27.6 |
| Tables and graphs | 13.8 |
| Order of operations | 6.9 |
| Picture graphs | 6.9 |
| Ratio | 6.9 |
| Algebra | 6.9 |
| 2D shapes | 3.4 |
| Sets | 3.4 |
| Quadrilaterals | 3.4 |
| Position and direction | 3.4 |
| Combinatorics | 3.4 |
Exam types
Which school exams these papers come from.
Key facts
- 29 papers, 1,260 questions, 2,682 marks, from 12 schools.
- 4 topics carry half of all marks.
- Most-tested topic: Multiplication and division, 17% of marks.
- Most common topic across papers: Whole numbers, in 97% of papers.
- 10% of questions are worth 3 marks or more.
- Exam types: Mid-Year / SA1, End-of-Year / SA2 and Weighted Assessment / CA.
Questions parents ask
What topics come up most in Primary 3 Maths exam papers in 2012?
By share of marks, the most-tested topics were Multiplication and division (17%), Whole numbers (15%), Money (13%), Addition and subtraction (11%) and Word problems (7.7%).
How many questions and marks are in a Primary 3 Maths paper?
A typical paper in this set has about 43 questions and 92 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?
29 papers from 12 schools, from these exam types: Mid-Year / SA1, End-of-Year / SA2 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 · Maha Bodhi · Maris Stella High · Methodist Girls' · Nan Hua · Nanyang · Northland · Paya Lebar Methodist Girls' · Pei Chun · Pei Hwa · Raffles Girls' · Red Swastika · River Valley · Rosyth · Rulang · Singapore Chinese Girls' · St Hilda's · St Joseph's · Tao Nan · Temasek · Yang Zheng
Schools with Primary 3 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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