Primary 6 Science exam paper analysis: 2023
PaperLah has 30 Primary 6 Science exam papers from 2023, set by 17 Singapore primary schools, with 1,474 questions worth 1,954 marks. The topics carrying the most marks were Energy (10%), Forces (8.9%) and Electricity (7.5%); together the top 7 topics account for half of all marks. Energy appears in 93% of the papers. Multiple-choice questions make up 49% of marks, and 0.1% of questions are worth 3 marks or more, which usually means showing working. A typical paper has about 49 questions and 65 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 10% of marks in 2023 (all years: 8.2%); Forces took 8.9% of marks in 2023 (all years: 9%); Electricity took 7.5% of marks in 2023 (all years: 6.9%).
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 | 10.4 | in 28 of 30 papers |
| Forces | 8.9 | in 25 of 30 papers |
| Electricity | 7.5 | in 24 of 30 papers |
| Heat | 6.9 | in 25 of 30 papers |
| Environment and ecosystems | 6.8 | in 22 of 30 papers |
| Photosynthesis | 6.1 | in 23 of 30 papers |
| Matter | 4.8 | in 21 of 30 papers |
| Scientific investigation | 4.4 | in 26 of 30 papers |
| Food chains and webs | 4.4 | in 19 of 30 papers |
| Plant reproduction | 4.3 | in 19 of 30 papers |
| Changes of state and water cycle | 4.3 | in 21 of 30 papers |
| Plant parts and transport | 4.1 | in 23 of 30 papers |
| Light | 3.8 | in 19 of 30 papers |
| Adaptations | 3.7 | in 19 of 30 papers |
| Respiratory and circulatory systems | 3.6 | in 20 of 30 papers |
| Magnets | 3.2 | in 21 of 30 papers |
| Life cycles | 2.3 | in 18 of 30 papers |
| Materials | 2 | in 16 of 30 papers |
| Cells | 1.7 | in 19 of 30 papers |
| Classification | 1.7 | in 13 of 30 papers |
| Digestive system | 1.6 | in 15 of 30 papers |
| Reproduction in humans and animals | 1.5 | in 14 of 30 papers |
| Human body systems | 0.7 | in 10 of 30 papers |
| Fungi and bacteria | 0.7 | in 7 of 30 papers |
| Living and non-living things | 0.2 | in 2 of 30 papers |
| Symbiosis | 0.1 | in 1 of 30 papers |
| Effects of salt on ice | 0.1 | in 1 of 30 papers |
What a paper is made of
How children answer, as a share of marks.
- Multiple choice 49%
- Open-ended (show working) 37%
- Short answer 9%
- Drawing or labelling 3%
- Other 3%
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| Format | % of marks |
|---|---|
| Multiple choice | 49 |
| Open-ended (show working) | 36.7 |
| Short answer | 8.6 |
| Drawing or labelling | 2.6 |
| Fill in the blank | 2.2 |
| Word bank | 0.3 |
| Other | 0.3 |
| Number answer | 0.3 |
Marks per question
Share of questions worth 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5+ marks. 12% have no marks printed. Higher-mark questions usually need working.
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| Marks | % of questions |
|---|---|
| 1 | 42.1 |
| 2 | 45.5 |
| 3 | 0.1 |
| 4 | 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 |
|---|---|
| Energy | 93.3 |
| Scientific investigation | 86.7 |
| Forces | 83.3 |
| Heat | 83.3 |
| Electricity | 80 |
| Photosynthesis | 76.7 |
| Plant parts and transport | 76.7 |
| Environment and ecosystems | 73.3 |
| Matter | 70 |
| Changes of state and water cycle | 70 |
| Magnets | 70 |
| Respiratory and circulatory systems | 66.7 |
| Adaptations | 63.3 |
| Plant reproduction | 63.3 |
| Food chains and webs | 63.3 |
| Light | 63.3 |
| Cells | 63.3 |
| Life cycles | 60 |
| Materials | 53.3 |
| Digestive system | 50 |
| Reproduction in humans and animals | 46.7 |
| Classification | 43.3 |
| Human body systems | 33.3 |
| Fungi and bacteria | 23.3 |
| Living and non-living things | 6.7 |
| Effects of salt on ice | 3.3 |
| Symbiosis | 3.3 |
Exam types
Which school exams these papers come from.
Key facts
- 30 papers, 1,474 questions, 1,954 marks, from 17 schools.
- 7 topics carry half of all marks.
- Most-tested topic: Energy, 10% of marks.
- Most common topic across papers: Energy, in 93% of papers.
- 0.1% of questions are worth 3 marks or more.
- Exam types: Prelim (P6) and Weighted Assessment / CA.
Questions parents ask
What topics come up most in Primary 6 Science exam papers in 2023?
By share of marks, the most-tested topics were Energy (10%), Forces (8.9%), Electricity (7.5%), Heat (6.9%) and Environment and ecosystems (6.8%).
How many questions and marks are in a Primary 6 Science paper?
A typical paper in this set has about 49 questions and 65 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?
30 papers from 17 schools, from these exam types: Prelim (P6) 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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