Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Full Name:
Instructions to Students:
1. Only Scientific Calculators are allowed during the contest.
2. The duration of this contest is 1 hour 30 minutes. You may not leave the contest venue within
the first hour of the paper.
3. This examination paper contains 25 questions and comprises of 13 printed pages.
4. Each question has only 4 possible answers: a, b, c and d. Shade your correct option on the Answer
Entry Sheet provided.
5. The total marks for this paper is 77 points:
a. Section A:
Question 1 to 10: +2 points for correct answer, 0 points for no answer and −1 point for wrong
answer.
b. Section B:
Question 11 to 20: +3 points for correct answer, 0 points for no answer or wrong answer.
Application Question
Question 21, 22 and 23: +3 points for correct answer, 0 points for wrong and no answer.
Question 24 and 25: +4 points for correct answer, 0 points for wrong and no answer.
6. You are not allowed to bring the question paper and answer script out of the contest venue.
Note:
1) You may assume that there is no air resistance throughout the contest unless stated.
2) All temperatures are in Degrees Celsius.
3) Room Temperature is 25°C at 1 atmospheric pressure.
4) Gravitational Acceleration is taken to be 9.8 𝑚/𝑠 2
Vanda 2019, Primary 5 / Grade 5
Rough Working
Vanda 2019, Primary 5 / Grade 5
Section A (Question 1 to 10: +2 points for correct answer, 0 point for no answer and
−1 point for wrong answer)
1. Jane notices that when she sneezes, thick liquid also comes out of her nose and
throat.
I. The thick liquid helps to dissolve oxygen for the body to absorb.
II. The thick liquid helps to trap dust particles.
III. The thick liquid breaks down the dust particles and absorb them.
a) II only
b) I and II only
c) II and III only
d) all of the above
a) cervix
b) ovary
c) uterus
d) urethra
Vanda 2019, Primary 5 / Grade 5
4. The fruit of plant X is often harvested when it is young. The young fruit is pod-like,
soft and contains a lot of seeds inside. If left on plant X for a longer period of
time, the skin of the fruit becomes tough and fibrous, and no longer becomes
palatable for cooking.
a) animals
b) explosion
c) water
d) wind
“The object is made up of smaller particles packed close together. There is little
space in between these smaller particles. These particles are in constant motion
and roll over each other. The particles are held together tightly.”
a) gas
b) liquid
c) solid
d) not enough information
6. When wet iron powder comes in contact with oxygen, rust is formed.
Ivan placed some wet iron powder into a clean 100 cm3 container and sealed it
up so no air could enter or leave the container. After a few days, the iron powder
turned into rust. What is the volume of the remaining air inside the container?
a) 1 cm3
b) 21 cm3
c) 22 cm3
d) 79 cm3
Vanda 2019, Primary 5 / Grade 5
7. The diagram below contains four closed switches and five light bulbs.
What is the maximum number of light bulbs that will remain lit if Marcus is to open
any one of the switches?
a) two
b) three
c) four
d) five
8. Which of the following light bulbs in the 4 circuit set ups will have the same
brightness?
a) A and B
b) B and C
c) B and D
d) C and D
Vanda 2019, Primary 5 / Grade 5
9. Daniel wants to pull a screw out of a plank using a hammer. At which position
and direction should he apply the force to make it as easy as possible?
A
C
B
D
10. In mammals, the circulatory and respiratory systems work together to send blood
and its components to and from all parts of the body. The blood coming from all
parts of the body combine into a main vessel called the vena cava (vein) and
goes into the heart. This blood is then pumped to the lungs through the
pulmonary artery. The carbon dioxide in the blood is removed and expelled from
the lungs. Oxygen diffuses into the blood stream and the blood passes through
the pulmonary vein into the heart before it is pumped to all parts of the body
through the main artery.
Section B (Question 11 to 20: +3 points for correct answer, 0 points for no answer or wrong
answer)
11. Kelvin wanted to find out if different parts of a tree trunk carried different
substances. He looked for a tree stump from a freshly cut down tree. Using a
dropper, he dropped a few drops of iodine on different parts of the tree stump. He
observed the parts of the trunk where the iodine turned blue black due to the
presence of starch. He noticed that iodine turned blue black closer to the
surrounding edges of the tree stump, whereas iodine closer to the centre of the
tree trunk did not turn blue black.
a) The food-carrying tubes are found in the inner ring of the tree trunk and are
made up of living cells.
b) The water-carrying tubes are found in the inner ring of the tree trunk and are
not made up of living cells.
c) The food-carrying tubes grow in size as the tree gets older.
d) The water-carrying tubes grow in size as the tree gets older.
12. On a hot day in Singapore, some plants wilt and become limp. Once the rain
comes, these plants seem to spring back to life and become upright again. Which
of the following structures in the cell allow these plants to function as such?
a) cell membrane
b) chloroplasts
c) cytoplasm
d) vacuole
Vanda 2019, Primary 5 / Grade 5
13. When cooking spaghetti, some cookbook recipes recommend adding some oil
into a pot of boiling water before putting the noodles in. Some cookbook recipes
may also recommend adding a handful of salt into a pot of boiling water to
improve its taste.
Which of the following is the best reasoning for this?
14. Denise had one litre of pure water in a tank. She took out 50 millilitres of water
and placed it into a clean container, and then left it in the freezer. After two hours,
she took out the ice from the freezer and placed it back into the tank of water.
She noticed that the ice floated on the water instead of sinking to the bottom.
a) Water contracts then expands, hence the volume of the ice increased and it
became less dense.
b) Water contracts, hence the volume of the ice decreased and it became more
dense.
c) The amount of matter in the ice increased.
d) The amount of matter in the ice decreased.
15. For a car to speed up, it needs to accelerate, which is for there to be an increase
in its speed. For a smooth journey while riding a car, to prevent any sudden
jerking when stopping the car, the driver should not step on the accelerator and
allow the car to slow down before applying the brakes.
Which of the following happens to the speed of the car during a decrease in
acceleration?
A B C D
Option 1 only Option 1 and 3 Option 2 and 4 All of the above
only only
16. A person standing at his current position is still unable to look at the object behind
the wall with the help of the mirror nearby.
mirror
person object
wall
How should he move in order to be able to look at the object with the help of the
mirror?
18. Julia knocks a rubber ball off a table. The ball falls from a height of 2 metres and
bounces off the floor. The Law of Conservation states that energy cannot be
created or destroyed it can only be converted from one form to another.
Which of the following energy forms are involved in this energy conversion?
a) light energy
b) kinetic energy
c) electrical energy
d) elastic potential energy
19. Ali wants to push a box across the floor of his room with as little effort as
possible.
Which of the following will help him move the box across the floor of the room
with more ease?
20. On July 1969, two people went to space and landed on the Moon. Throughout
their journey, their spaceship experienced a decrease in planet Earth’s gravity
pull and an increase of the Moon’s gravity pull.
The amount of gravity is determined by the following formula:
where F is the force, m1 and m2 are the masses of the objects interacting, r is the
distance between the centres of the masses and G is the gravitational constant.
Which of the following affects the amount of gravitational force pulling on the
spaceship?
Application Question (Question 21, 22 and 23: 3 points for correct answer, 0 points for
wrong or no answer. Question 24 and 25: 4 points for correct answer, 0 points for wrong or
no answer.)
21. Convection is one form of heat transfer where heat is transferred by the
movement of the medium (gas or liquid) due to the rising of the hotter gas/liquid
and sinking of the colder gas/liquid. Examples of appliances that use convection
are the electric kettle and air-conditioner.
Where should the heating element (the heat source) be placed in an electric
kettle? Where should an air-conditioner be placed in a room?
22. An experiment was set up where four different substances were placed into
identical beakers filled with water labelled E, F, G and H. After stirring the
contents of the beaker, the results of the experiment are as described below.
E F G H
a) air oil salt flour
b) air oil flour salt
c) flour oil air salt
d) salt flour air oil
Vanda 2019, Primary 5 / Grade 5
23. A value is given to all substances based on experiments. The substance with a
smaller density value will float on top of another substance with a higher density
value.
The diagram below shows the final result when 3 of the substances were placed
in two liquids.
P
petrol (density: 0.66 g/cm3)
Q
water (density: 1.01 g/cm3)
R
24. Saliva in the mouth contains an enzyme that breaks down starch into sugar. An
experiment was set up where saliva was placed on three different types of food,
S, T and U. The sugar content was measured before and after the saliva had
been left on the food for some time. The table below shows the results of the
experiment.
S T U
a) rice apple chicken
b) apple rice chicken
c) rice chicken apple
d) apple chicken rice
Vanda 2019, Primary 5 / Grade 5
25. Indicators are chemical substances that change colour depending on the acidity
or alkalinity of the other substance it is added into. Indicators are used to test for
the acidity of alkalinity of a substance.
grey
purple green
pH
1 3.2 4.2 14
substance pH
pure water 7
oven cleaner 13
lemon juice 2
tomato juice 4
What would the colour of screened methyl orange be when added to each of the
substances in the table?
Rough Working
SOLUTION for VANDA 2019 GRADE 5
1. Jane notices that when she sneezes, thick liquid also comes out of her nose and
throat.
I. The thick liquid helps to dissolve oxygen for the body to absorb.
II. The thick liquid helps to trap dust particles.
III. The thick liquid breaks down the dust particles and absorb them.
a) II only
b) I and II only
c) II and III only
d) all of the above
Answer: B. Purpose of mucus is to help dissolve oxygen and carbon dioxide for gas
exchange within the body through the air sacs (alveoli). Dust particles cannot be
broken down, just trapped and expelled.
Answer: C. Seeds that dispersed by water have husks made up of fibres that trap air
within them, which enables the see to float. String is also made from similar material,
fibres.
1
3. Menstruation occurs in matured female humans every 28 days on average.
Which part of the reproductive system does the discharge come from?
Topic: Human Reproductive system
a) cervix
b) ovary
c) uterus
d) urethra
4. The fruit of plant X is often harvested when it is young. The young fruit is pod-like,
soft and contains a lot of seeds inside. If left on plant X for a longer period of
time, the skin of the fruit becomes tough and fibrous, and no longer becomes
palatable for cooking.
a) animals
b) explosion
c) water
d) wind
Answer: B. For plants that disperse by explosion, the fruit at first is soft while the
seeds inside are developing. When the fruit is matured, the fruit dries up and shrivels
to produce tension and explode when the seeds are fully developed.
“The object is made up of smaller particles packed close together. There is little
space in between these smaller particles. These particles are in constant motion
and roll over each other. The particles are held together tightly.”
a) gas
b) liquid
c) solid
d) not enough information
Answer: B. Kinetic particle theory of liquids. Description contains the arrangement,
movement and attraction of the particles in a liquid
2
6. When wet iron powder comes in contact with oxygen, rust is formed.
Ivan placed some wet iron powder into a clean 100 cm3 container and sealed it
up so no air could enter or leave the container. After a few days, the iron powder
turned into rust. What is the volume of the remaining air inside the container?
Topic: Matter
a) 1 cm3
b) 21 cm3
c) 22 cm3
d) 79 cm3
Answer: D. In 100 cm3 of air, 21cm3 of air is oxygen. When all of the oxygen is used up, the
amount of remaining air is 100 – 21 = 79 cm3
7. The diagram below contains four closed switches and five light bulbs.
What is the maximum number of light bulbs that will remain lit if Marcus is to open
any one of the switches?
Topic: Electricity and circuits
a) two
b) three
c) four
d) five
Answer: C.
3
8. Which of the following light bulbs in the 4 circuit set ups will have the same
brightness?
Topic: Electricity and circuits
a) A and B
b) B and C
c) B and D
d) C and D
Answer: D. The batteries in circuit D are arranged in series since the positive end of
one battery is linked to the other.
4
9. Daniel wants to pull a screw out of a plank using a hammer. At which position
and direction should he apply the force to make it as easy as possible?
Topic: Force, Momentum
A
C
B
D
Answer: C. For least amount of force/effort, force applied should be furthest away
from the nail. For the hammer to work like a lever, the force must move right.
10. In mammals, the circulatory and respiratory systems work together to send blood
and its components to and from all parts of the body. The blood coming from all
parts of the body combine into a main vessel called the vena cava (vein) and
goes into the heart. This blood is then pumped to the lungs through the
pulmonary artery. The carbon dioxide in the blood is removed and expelled from
the lungs. Oxygen diffuses into the blood stream and the blood passes through
the pulmonary vein into the heart before it is pumped to all parts of the body
through the main artery.
5
11. Kelvin wanted to find out if different parts of a tree trunk carried different
substances. He looked for a tree stump from a freshly cut down tree. Using a
dropper, he dropped a few drops of iodine on different parts of the tree stump. He
observed the parts of the trunk where the iodine turned blue black due to the
presence of starch. He noticed that iodine turned blue black closer to the
surrounding edges of the tree stump, whereas iodine closer to the centre of the
tree trunk did not turn blue black.
a) The food-carrying tubes are found in the inner ring of the tree trunk and are
made up of living cells.
b) The water-carrying tubes are found in the inner ring of the tree trunk and are
not made up of living cells.
c) The food-carrying tubes grow in size as the tree gets older.
d) The water-carrying tubes grow in size as the tree gets older.
Answer: B. Xylem (water-carrying tubes) are made up of dead cells, while phloem (food-
carrying tubes) are made up living cells. Living cells contains starch (food) which will cause
iodine to change colour
12. On a hot day in Singapore, some plants wilt and become limp. Once the rain
comes, these plants seem to spring back to life and become upright again. Which
of the following structures in the cell allow these plants to function as such?
Topic: Cells
a) cell membrane
b) chloroplasts
c) cytoplasm
d) vacuole
Answer: D. Vacuole contains mostly water and will grow and shrink depending on how much
water the plant cell receives
13. When cooking spaghetti, some cookbook recipes recommend adding some oil
into a pot of boiling water before putting the noodles in. Some cookbook recipes
may also recommend adding a handful of salt into a pot of boiling water to
improve its taste.
Which of the following is the best reasoning for this?
Topic: Boiling points
6
14. Denise had one litre of pure water in a tank. She took out 50 millilitres of water
and placed it into a clean container, and then left it in the freezer. After two hours,
she took out the ice from the freezer and placed it back into the tank of water.
She noticed that the ice floated on the water instead of sinking to the bottom.
a) Water contracts then expands, hence the volume of the ice increased and it
became less dense.
b) Water contracts, hence the volume of the ice decreased and it became more
dense.
c) The amount of matter in the ice increased.
d) The amount of matter in the ice decreased.
Answer: A. Anomaly property of water. When water cools to 4°C, water contracts. From 4°C
to 0°C, water expands. Water at this state becomes less dense and floats on the rest of the
water
15. For a car to speed up, it needs to accelerate, which is for there to be an increase
in its speed. For a smooth journey while riding a car, to prevent any sudden
jerking when stopping the car, the driver should not step on the accelerator and
allow the car to slow down before applying the brakes.
Which of the following happens to the speed of the car during a decrease in
acceleration?
Topic: Acceleration
7
Section B (Question 16 to 20: +2 points for correct answer, 0 points for no answer or -1 point wrong answer.)
Each question has 4 numbered options. Response is based on the following table:
A B C D
Option 1 only Option 1 and 3 only Option 2 and 4 only All of the above
16. A person standing at his current position is still unable to look at the object behind
the wall with the help of the mirror nearby.
mirror
person object
wall
How should he move in order to be able to look at the object with the help of the mirror?
Topic: Light and Shadows
answer: B.
mirror
person object
wall
Person should move himself such that he is in the path of the dotted line.
8
17. Study the food web below.
Which of the following energy forms are involved in this energy conversion?
Topic: Energy Forms and conversion
1. light energy
2. kinetic energy
3. electrical energy
4. elastic potential energy
answer: C. Presence of rubber will contribute to elastic potential energy
19. Ali wants to push a box across the floor of his room with as little effort as
possible.
Which of the following will help him move the box across the floor of the room
with more ease?
Topic: Forces
9
20. On July 1969, two people went to space and landed on the Moon. Throughout
their journey, their spaceship experienced a decrease in planet Earth’s gravity
pull and an increase of the Moon’s gravity pull.
The amount of gravity is determined by the following formula:
where F is the force, m1 and m2 are the masses of the objects interacting, r is the
distance between the centres of the masses and G is the gravitational constant.
Which of the following affects the amount of gravitational force pulling on the
spaceship?
Topic: Forces
Section C: (Question 21 to 25: +3 points for correct answer, 0 points for wrong and -1 point for wrong answer.)
21. Convection is one form of heat transfer where heat is transferred by the
movement of the medium (gas or liquid) due to the rising of the hotter gas/liquid
and sinking of the colder gas/liquid. Examples of appliances that use convection
are the electric kettle and air-conditioner.
Where should the heating element (the heat source) be placed in an electric
kettle? Where should an air-conditioner be placed in a room?
Topic: Heat Transfer
Answer: C. The hot liquid in the kettle will rise and pushes the cool liquid down to be heated.
For an air-conditioner, the cool air expelled from the air conditioner sinks down and
circulates the room as the hot air rises to the top of the room
10
22. An experiment was set up where four different substances were placed into
identical beakers filled with water labelled E, F, G and H. After stirring the
contents of the beaker, the results of the experiment are as described below.
E F G H
a) air oil salt flour
b) air oil flour salt
c) flour oil air salt
d) salt flour air oil
Answer: A. A little bit of air dissolves. Salt can dissolve in water. Oil cannot mix with water
and forms another layer. Flour cannot dissolve in water and turns water cloudy
11
23. A value is given to all substances based on experiments. The substance with a
smaller density value will float on top of another substance with a higher density
value.
The diagram below shows the final result when 3 of the substances were placed
in two liquids.
P
petrol (density: 0.66 g/cm3)
Q
water (density: 1.01 g/cm3)
R
P Q R
a) gold cork ice
b) gold iron cork
c) ice cork gold
d) cork ice iron
Answer: D. The lower the density value, the further on top the object will be
12
24. Saliva in the mouth contains an enzyme that breaks down starch into sugar. An
experiment was set up where saliva was placed on three different types of food,
S, T and U. The sugar content was measured before and after the saliva had
been left on the food for some time. The table below shows the results of the
experiment.
S T U
a) rice apple chicken
b) apple rice chicken
c) rice chicken apple
d) apple chicken rice
Answer: A. Starch is made up of many units of simple sugars. Rice contains the most
amount of starch which will be broken down into sugar when digested. Apples already
contain high amounts of simple sugars. Chicken is high in protein and has trace amounts of
sugar or starch
13
25. Indicators are chemical substances that change colour depending on the acidity
or alkalinity of the other substance it is added into. Indicators are used to test for
the acidity of alkalinity of a substance.
grey
purple green
pH
1 3.2 4.2 14
substance pH
pure water 7
oven cleaner 13
lemon juice 2
tomato juice 4
What would the colour of screened methyl orange be when added to each of the
substances in the table?
Topic: Acids and Alkalis
Answer: D. Lemon juice (pH 2) is in between 1 and 3.2, therefore indicator turns purple.
Tomato juice (pH 4) is in between 3.2 and 4.2, therefore indicator turns grey. Pure water and
oven cleaner are in between 3.2 and 14, therefore indicator turns green.
14