ICAS Year 6 test


Understand your students’ skill levels
ICAS provides you with rich insights into your students’ skills and knowledge, giving you the data you need to help plan your lessons.
The competition is primarily run as a way to recognise and reward academic achievement – a potent motivator for students. And the insights provided to you help to paint a clear picture of their strengths and weaknesses, allowing you to anticipate and meet their needs in an inclusive way.
Every test is created by experienced teachers, psychometricians and education measurement experts.
What you’ll be able to do with the Year 6 test results from ICAS
Identify your students’ strengths and weaknesses, marked with “S” and “W” for each skill area.
Determine if you need to create new gifted and talented classes or support classes.
Learn which direction your students’ performance is trending, and make adjustments.
Know whether your students’ skill level is below grade, on track, or above grade.
See how your students compare against the nation, the school, and their classmates.
Pinpoint which students may need a little extra help from yourself of your aide.
Year 6 test subjects
The Year 6 test for ICAS English requires students to read a variety of texts and then complete a number of tasks, such as identifying, explaining, analysing, and evaluating the information.
These tasks cover four broader skills: text comprehension, writer’s craft, vocabulary, and syntax.
Mathematics for Year 6 ICAS covers five unique skill areas:
- Number & arithmetic
- Chance & data
- Algebra & patterns
- Measures & units
- Space & geometry
Students may be tested with questions on round numbers, long multiplication, fraction, calculating areas of shapes, and more.
ICAS Science for Year 6 tests the following skills:
- Observing/measuring
- Predicting/concluding
- Interpreting
- Investigating
- Reasoning/problem solving
Students may need to complete tasks such as observing weather erosion, examining voltages, reading weather maps, distinguishing physical and chemical changes, and lots more.
The Year 6 test for ICAS Digital Technologies aims to assess students’ knowledge around graphics & multimedia, internet & email, spreadsheet & databases, programming, word processing, as well as their general skills.
They may need to find and replace text in a document, use an online thesaurus, identify the conventions of web design, and more.
The Year 6 test for ICAS Writing revolves around two key areas:
- Persuasive writing
- Narrative writing
Students may need to write persuasive pieces such as reviews, council letters, advertisements, or opinion pieces, or narrative pieces like story complications, character descriptions, or story conclusions.
Spelling Bee for Year 6 tests the following types of knowledge, each related to spelling:
- Visual
- Phonological
- Morphological
- Etymological
Students will be assessed on a variety of words that tap into their knowledge, from easier words such as “believe” to tougher words like “synchronise.”
Get your Year 6 students prepared for ICAS with past papers
Want to help your students ace the ICAS exam? Past papers are one of the most authentic ways to do so.