Primary 6 Science exam paper analysis: 2015
PaperLah has 24 Primary 6 Science exam papers from 2015, set by 14 Singapore primary schools, with 1,548 questions worth 1,959 marks. The topics carrying the most marks were Energy (8.7%), Forces (8.6%) and Heat (7.1%); together the top 8 topics account for half of all marks. Forces appears in 100% of the papers. Multiple-choice questions make up 52% of marks, and 0.1% of questions are worth 3 marks or more, which usually means showing working. A typical paper has about 65 questions and 82 marks.
These figures describe the school papers in PaperLah's collection, including prelims, not official PSLE papers or topic weightings. They help with planning revision; they can't predict a particular exam.
Compared with all years: Energy took 8.7% of marks in 2015 (all years: 8.2%); Forces took 8.6% of marks in 2015 (all years: 9%); Heat took 7.1% of marks in 2015 (all years: 7.3%).
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 8.7 | in 24 of 24 papers |
| Forces | 8.6 | in 24 of 24 papers |
| Heat | 7.1 | in 23 of 24 papers |
| Environment and ecosystems | 6.5 | in 20 of 24 papers |
| Electricity | 6.4 | in 21 of 24 papers |
| Photosynthesis | 5.2 | in 21 of 24 papers |
| Plant reproduction | 5.1 | in 21 of 24 papers |
| Food chains and webs | 5 | in 17 of 24 papers |
| Scientific investigation | 4.8 | in 23 of 24 papers |
| Changes of state and water cycle | 4.7 | in 21 of 24 papers |
| Adaptations | 4 | in 16 of 24 papers |
| Light | 4 | in 22 of 24 papers |
| Magnets | 4 | in 23 of 24 papers |
| Matter | 4 | in 22 of 24 papers |
| Respiratory and circulatory systems | 3.5 | in 21 of 24 papers |
| Plant parts and transport | 2.7 | in 17 of 24 papers |
| Cells | 2.7 | in 19 of 24 papers |
| Life cycles | 2.6 | in 17 of 24 papers |
| Classification | 2.5 | in 19 of 24 papers |
| Reproduction in humans and animals | 2.4 | in 17 of 24 papers |
| Materials | 2.3 | in 17 of 24 papers |
| Digestive system | 1.3 | in 13 of 24 papers |
| Fungi and bacteria | 1.3 | in 11 of 24 papers |
| Human body systems | 0.4 | in 5 of 24 papers |
| Living and non-living things | 0.2 | in 3 of 24 papers |
| Water clarity | 0.1 | in 1 of 24 papers |
| Food tests - starch | 0.1 | in 1 of 24 papers |
What a paper is made of
How children answer, as a share of marks.
- Multiple choice 52%
- Open-ended (show working) 34%
- Short answer 8%
- Drawing or labelling 3%
- Other 3%
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| Format | % of marks |
|---|---|
| Multiple choice | 52.2 |
| Open-ended (show working) | 34.1 |
| Short answer | 7.9 |
| Drawing or labelling | 3.3 |
| Fill in the blank | 2 |
| Number answer | 0.3 |
| Other | 0.2 |
| Word bank | 0.1 |
Marks per question
Share of questions worth 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5+ marks. 13% have no marks printed. Higher-mark questions usually need working.
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| Marks | % of questions |
|---|---|
| 1 | 45.9 |
| 2 | 41.1 |
| 3 | 0.1 |
How likely a topic comes up
The share of papers with at least one question on the topic.
Show as table
| Topic | % of papers |
|---|---|
| Forces | 100 |
| Energy | 100 |
| Heat | 95.8 |
| Scientific investigation | 95.8 |
| Magnets | 95.8 |
| Light | 91.7 |
| Matter | 91.7 |
| Electricity | 87.5 |
| Plant reproduction | 87.5 |
| Photosynthesis | 87.5 |
| Changes of state and water cycle | 87.5 |
| Respiratory and circulatory systems | 87.5 |
| Environment and ecosystems | 83.3 |
| Cells | 79.2 |
| Classification | 79.2 |
| Food chains and webs | 70.8 |
| Reproduction in humans and animals | 70.8 |
| Plant parts and transport | 70.8 |
| Materials | 70.8 |
| Life cycles | 70.8 |
| Adaptations | 66.7 |
| Digestive system | 54.2 |
| Fungi and bacteria | 45.8 |
| Human body systems | 20.8 |
| Living and non-living things | 12.5 |
| Food tests - starch | 4.2 |
| Water clarity | 4.2 |
Exam types
Which school exams these papers come from.
Key facts
- 24 papers, 1,548 questions, 1,959 marks, from 14 schools.
- 8 topics carry half of all marks.
- Most-tested topic: Energy, 8.7% of marks.
- Most common topic across papers: Forces, in 100% of papers.
- 0.1% 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 6 Science exam papers in 2015?
By share of marks, the most-tested topics were Energy (8.7%), Forces (8.6%), Heat (7.1%), Environment and ecosystems (6.5%) and Electricity (6.4%).
How many questions and marks are in a Primary 6 Science paper?
A typical paper in this set has about 65 questions and 82 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?
24 papers from 14 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 · Christian Brothers · Henry Park · Maha Bodhi · Maris Stella High · Methodist Girls' · Nan Hua · Nanyang · Paya Lebar Methodist Girls' · Pei Chun · Pei Hwa · Raffles Girls' · Red Swastika · River Valley · Rosyth · Singapore Chinese Girls' · Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan · St Hilda's · Tao Nan · Temasek
Schools with Primary 6 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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