Primary 4 Science exam paper analysis: 2017
PaperLah has 28 Primary 4 Science exam papers from 2017, set by 11 Singapore primary schools, with 1,467 questions worth 1,997 marks. The topics carrying the most marks were Matter (13%), Heat (12%) and Life cycles (10%); together the top 5 topics account for half of all marks. Matter appears in 82% of the papers. Multiple-choice questions make up 54% of marks, and 0.2% of questions are worth 3 marks or more, which usually means showing working. A typical paper has about 52 questions and 71 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: Matter took 13% of marks in 2017 (all years: 15%); Heat took 12% of marks in 2017 (all years: 13%); Life cycles took 10% of marks in 2017 (all years: 11%).
Where the marks are
Topics ranked by their share of all marks. The blue ones above the line together make up half.
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| Topic | % of marks | Papers |
|---|---|---|
| Matter | 12.8 | in 23 of 28 papers |
| Heat | 11.8 | in 15 of 28 papers |
| Life cycles | 10.3 | in 22 of 28 papers |
| Light | 10 | in 17 of 28 papers |
| Magnets | 9.8 | in 21 of 28 papers |
| Classification | 9.5 | in 22 of 28 papers |
| Materials | 8.4 | in 22 of 28 papers |
| Plant parts and transport | 6.6 | in 19 of 28 papers |
| Digestive system | 6.2 | in 20 of 28 papers |
| Living and non-living things | 3 | in 18 of 28 papers |
| Scientific investigation | 2.6 | in 21 of 28 papers |
| Plant reproduction | 2.2 | in 15 of 28 papers |
| Human body systems | 2.2 | in 11 of 28 papers |
| Electricity | 1.7 | in 11 of 28 papers |
| Fungi and bacteria | 1.1 | in 8 of 28 papers |
| Adaptations | 0.6 | in 7 of 28 papers |
| Changes of state and water cycle | 0.4 | in 4 of 28 papers |
| Environment and ecosystems | 0.4 | in 4 of 28 papers |
| Photosynthesis | 0.3 | in 3 of 28 papers |
| Respiratory and circulatory systems | 0.2 | in 2 of 28 papers |
| Reproduction in humans and animals | 0.1 | in 3 of 28 papers |
| Forces | 0.1 | in 1 of 28 papers |
What a paper is made of
How children answer, as a share of marks.
- Multiple choice 54%
- Open-ended (show working) 24%
- Short answer 13%
- Fill in the blank 5%
- Other 5%
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| Format | % of marks |
|---|---|
| Multiple choice | 53.6 |
| Open-ended (show working) | 23.6 |
| Short answer | 12.7 |
| Fill in the blank | 5 |
| Drawing or labelling | 2.1 |
| Word bank | 1.3 |
| Number answer | 1.2 |
| Other | 0.7 |
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.
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| Marks | % of questions |
|---|---|
| 1 | 51.3 |
| 2 | 42.8 |
| 3 | 0.2 |
How likely a topic comes up
The share of papers with at least one question on the topic.
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| Topic | % of papers |
|---|---|
| Matter | 82.1 |
| Life cycles | 78.6 |
| Classification | 78.6 |
| Materials | 78.6 |
| Magnets | 75 |
| Scientific investigation | 75 |
| Digestive system | 71.4 |
| Plant parts and transport | 67.9 |
| Living and non-living things | 64.3 |
| Light | 60.7 |
| Heat | 53.6 |
| Plant reproduction | 53.6 |
| Human body systems | 39.3 |
| Electricity | 39.3 |
| Fungi and bacteria | 28.6 |
| Adaptations | 25 |
| Environment and ecosystems | 14.3 |
| Changes of state and water cycle | 14.3 |
| Reproduction in humans and animals | 10.7 |
| Photosynthesis | 10.7 |
| Respiratory and circulatory systems | 7.1 |
| Forces | 3.6 |
Exam types
Which school exams these papers come from.
Key facts
- 28 papers, 1,467 questions, 1,997 marks, from 11 schools.
- 5 topics carry half of all marks.
- Most-tested topic: Matter, 13% of marks.
- Most common topic across papers: Matter, in 82% of papers.
- 0.2% 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 4 Science exam papers in 2017?
By share of marks, the most-tested topics were Matter (13%), Heat (12%), Life cycles (10%), Light (10%) and Magnets (9.8%).
How many questions and marks are in a Primary 4 Science paper?
A typical paper in this set has about 52 questions and 71 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?
28 papers from 11 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 Chiau · Nan Hua · Nanyang · Paya Lebar Methodist Girls' · Pei Chun · Pei Hwa · Raffles Girls' · Red Swastika · Rosyth · Rulang · Singapore Chinese Girls' · St Hilda's · St Joseph's · Tao Nan · Temasek
Schools with Primary 4 Science 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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