Primary 3 Science Semestral Assessment 2 (End of Year) Paper 5

TuitionGoWhere Exam Practice (AI) — Science Primary 3

SA2 Practice Paper Version 5 — Answer Key

Total Marks: 40

Section A (10 marks)

1. B (1 mark)
Teaching note: A rose plant is living because it grows, needs water/air/food, and reproduces. Toy car, chair, cup are non-living made by humans.

2. B (1 mark)
Teaching note: Growth is a characteristic of living things. Softness, colour, size are not proof of life.

3. B (1 mark)
Teaching note: Birds have feathers and lay eggs. Fish have scales, mammals have fur and usually live birth, reptiles have dry scales.

4. C (1 mark)
Teaching note: Mushroom is fungus, not plant. Fungi do not make food like plants.

5. B (1 mark)
Teaching note: Cotton is natural from cotton plant. Plastic, glass, nylon are man-made.

6. B (1 mark)
Teaching note: Clear glass is transparent (most light passes). Wood, metal, rubber are not.

7. C (1 mark)
Teaching note: Goldfish breathes with gills underwater. Dog/sparrow use lungs; frog on land uses lungs/skin.

8. C (1 mark)
Teaching note: Rock is non-living. Mould, yeast, bacteria are living microorganisms.

9. A (1 mark)
Teaching note: Waterproof means water cannot pass through. Flexible = bend, transparent = light passes, strong = hard to break.

10. B (1 mark)
Teaching note: Fish have scales and live in water. Birds have feathers, insects have wings, mammals have fur.

Section B (10 marks)

11. (2 marks: 1 for each group correct)
Living: cow, mushroom, fern
Non-living: table, bicycle
Teaching note: Living need food/air/water, grow, reproduce. Mushroom is fungus (living). Table/bicycle are made, do not grow.

12. (2 marks: ½ mark per cell)
Plastic bag: Transparent (or not, acceptable if clear bag), Flexible
Wooden ruler: Not transparent, Not flexible
Teaching note: Plastic bag bends and may be see-through; wood is rigid and opaque.

13. (2 marks: 1 mark each characteristic+example)
(a) Grow — example: child grows taller
(b) Reproduce — example: hen lays eggs
Teaching note: Other accepted: respond to change (plant bends to light), need food/air/water (dog eats). Must give real example.

14. (2 marks: 1 for property, 1 for link to use)
Plastic is waterproof (1). So rain cannot pass through to wet the boy (1).
Teaching note: Property must match purpose. Common mistake: says "strong" but raincoat needs waterproof.

15. (2 marks: ½ each correct)
Fur: cat
Feathers: sparrow
Scales: snake, fish
Teaching note: Body covering helps classify animals.

Section C (10 marks)

16. (2 marks: 1 living list, 1 reason)
Living: sunflower, snail (1)
Reason: They grow and need air/food/water (1)
Teaching note: From image, toy robot and bread are non-living though bread was once from living wheat. Snail moves and grows.

17. (2 marks: 1 answer, 1 explain)
No, not all bacteria are harmful (1). Some help like yeast in bread or good bacteria in yoghurt (1).
Teaching note: Bacteria can be useful; misconception all are bad.

18. (2 marks: 1 shared, 1 use)
Shared: break easily / not flexible (1)
Use of glass: window so we see through (1)
Teaching note: Transparency lets light pass; both are brittle.

19. (2 marks: 1 each group)
Natural: wool, leather
Man-made: steel (processed), polyester
Teaching note: Wool from sheep, leather from animal skin; polyester synthetic, steel from iron ore processed (accepted man-made).

20. (2 marks: 1 group, 1 special)
Group: amphibian (1)
Special: changes from tadpole with tail to frog with legs (metamorphosis) (1)
Teaching note: Frog is amphibian; life cycle shows big change, not just growing bigger.