Primary 6 PSLE English Weighted Assessment 2 (Term 3) Paper 1

TuitionGoWhere Practice Paper - English Primary 6 PSLE

Answer Key & Marking Scheme

Subject: English Language Level: Primary 6 Paper: WA2 (Grammar Focus) - Version 1 of 5 Total Marks: 20

---

Section A: Grammar MCQ (10 marks)

1. C

• Reasoning: Subject-Verb Agreement with "Neither... nor". The verb agrees with the subject closest to it. Here, "the coach" is singular, so the verb must be singular ("was").
• Common Mistake: Choosing "are" or "were" because "players" is plural and appears first.

2. A

• Reasoning: Past Perfect Continuous Tense. The action (wandering) started in the past and continued up to another point in the past (arrival of the rescue team). "Had been + -ing" is required.
• Common Mistake: Choosing "have been wandering" (Present Perfect) which connects to the present, not a past event.

3. C

• Reasoning: Subjunctive Mood. After verbs like insist, suggest, recommend, demand, we use the base form of the verb (bare infinitive) regardless of the subject. "That every student wear..."
• Common Mistake: Choosing "wears" (indicative) or "wore" (past).

4. B

• Reasoning: Inversion with "Hardly... when". This structure requires the Past Perfect tense in the inverted clause. "Hardly had the bell rung..." Note: The question says "ring" which is a typo in the prompt structure if strictly following "had rung", but in MCQ context, "had" is the only auxiliary that fits the "Hardly... when" past narrative structure. Correction for student understanding: The standard phrase is "Hardly had the bell rung". Given the options, "had" is the correct auxiliary for the past perfect inversion.
• Common Mistake: Choosing "did" (Simple Past) which is used with "No sooner... than" sometimes, but "Hardly" strictly takes Past Perfect.

5. C

• Reasoning: Second Conditional (Unreal Present). "If I were you..." is the standard fixed phrase for giving advice in hypothetical situations.
• Common Mistake: Choosing "was". While "was" is heard in informal speech, "were" is the grammatically correct form for the subjunctive in exams.

6. A

• Reasoning: Non-defining Relative Clause. The clause adds extra information about the vase and is separated by commas. We use "which" for things in non-defining clauses. "That" cannot be used after a comma.
• Common Mistake: Choosing "that".

7. B

• Reasoning: Inversion with "Not only... but also". When a sentence starts with a negative adverbial like "Not only", the subject and auxiliary verb are inverted. "Not only was he late..."
• Common Mistake: Choosing "he was" (no inversion).

8. B

• Reasoning: Collective Noun "Committee". When the members are acting individually or have divided opinions ("divided in their opinions"), the noun is treated as plural. Therefore, "are" is correct.
• Common Mistake: Choosing "is" (treating it as a single unit).

9. C

• Reasoning: Third Conditional / Wish about the Past. To express regret about something that happened (or didn't happen) in the past, we use the Past Perfect tense after "wish". "I wish I had studied..."
• Common Mistake: Choosing "studied" (which refers to present/future wishes) or "have studied".

10. C

• Reasoning: Preposition "Despite". "Despite" is a preposition and must be followed by a noun, pronoun, or gerund (-ing form). It is NOT followed by "of" or a full clause (subject + verb) unless "the fact that" is added. "Despite being tired..."
• Common Mistake: Choosing "of being" (confusing with "in spite of") or "she was" (needs "the fact that").

---

Section B: Synthesis and Transformation (5 marks)

11. Mother asked if/whether I had finished my homework before I went out to play.

• Marks: 1
• Key Points:
  • Change question to statement order (Subject + Verb).
  • Change tense from Past Simple ("did finish") to Past Perfect ("had finished") because the reporting verb "asked" is in the past.
  • Use "if" or "whether" for Yes/No questions.
  • Change pronouns: "you" -> "I", "your" -> "my".

12. It was such a severe storm that all flights were cancelled.

• Marks: 1
• Key Points:
  • Structure: "so + adjective + noun" becomes "such a/an + adjective + noun".
  • "So severe" -> "Such a severe storm".
  • Alternative correct answer: "It was a storm so severe that all flights were cancelled."

13. In spite of his wealth, he lives a very simple life.

• Marks: 1
• Key Points:
  • "Although" + Clause becomes "In spite of" / "Despite" + Noun Phrase/Gerund.
  • "He is very wealthy" (Clause) -> "his wealth" (Noun Phrase) or "being very wealthy" (Gerund Phrase).
  • Answer: "In spite of his wealth..." or "In spite of being very wealthy..."

14. The flowers in the park must not be picked.

• Marks: 1
• Key Points:
  • Active to Passive Voice.
  • Object "The flowers" becomes Subject.
  • Modal "must not" + be + Past Participle ("picked").
  • Agent "by you" is omitted as it is obvious/general.

15. He has been working here since 2018.

• Marks: 1
• Key Points:
  • Present Perfect Continuous for an action starting in the past and continuing to now.
  • Use "since" for a specific point in time (2018).
  • Alternative: "He has worked here since 2018." (Also acceptable, but Continuous emphasizes duration).

---

Section C: Error Correction (5 marks)

16. Error: have | Correction: has

• Reasoning: "The number of" is always singular. "A number of" is plural. Here, it is "The number", so the verb must be singular ("has").

17. Error: has | Correction: have

• Reasoning: Relative Clause Agreement. The relative pronoun "who" refers to "students" (plural), not "one". Therefore, the verb must be plural ("have achieved").
• Note: This is a common trap. "One of the [plural noun] who [plural verb]..."

18. Error: is | Correction: are

• Reasoning: "Police" is a collective noun that is always treated as plural in English grammar. "The police are investigating..."

19. Error: were | Correction: was

• Reasoning: "Each" is always singular. "Each of the boys was given..."

20. Error: hear | Correction: hearing

• Reasoning: "Look forward to" is a phrasal verb where "to" is a preposition, not part of an infinitive. Prepositions are followed by gerunds (-ing). "Look forward to hearing..."