ICSE Class 8 Quarterly Tests Biology: Paper Guide

These ICSE Class 8 quarterly tests biology papers are the actual question papers set for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 quarterly examinations. This page has 2 papers you can download as PDFs, for students revising for their own school’s Class 8 Biology quarterly exam. Below the download table you will find the exact paper pattern, the topics that repeat across both years, and practice questions built on that same pattern.

Download ICSE Class 8 Biology Quarterly Tests PDF

These are the 2 quarterly tests PDFs hosted on icseboard.org for ICSE Class 8 Biology, organised by subject. Each section below explains what those papers cover before the download table.

This set holds two Class 8 Biology quarterly papers, from the 2017-18 and 2018-19 sessions. Use them to practise Section A timing and question style before your own school's quarterly test.

How the ICSE Class 8 Biology Quarterly Paper Is Structured

This is stated on the paper itself in both the 2018 and 2019 versions.

Section A is worth 40 marks and is compulsory in both years. The way Section A opens differs by year:

• The 2018 paper opens with an 8-mark naming question and an 8-mark true/false question, where you must rewrite the false statement correctly.
• The 2019 paper opens with a 5-mark multiple-choice question and a 5-mark fill-in-the-blanks question instead.

This means the objective part of Section A is not fixed in format from year to year. You should be ready for either style. The full syllabus these papers are drawn from is set by CISCE; you can check it directly on the CISCE website.

Topics That Repeat Across the 2018 and 2019 Quarterly Papers

Comparing both papers shows a few topics that come up in both years:

• Transport in plants is tested in both papers — the 2018 paper asks about xylem and phloem in leaf veins, and the 2019 paper asks directly about ascent of sap through xylem.
• Plant tissue and cell structure terms (sclerenchyma, chloroplast) appear in the 2018 naming and true/false questions.
• Reproduction is tested only in the 2019 paper so far, through fertilization, reproductive whorls of flowers, and vegetative propagation.
• Blood-related terms (the mineral needed for haemoglobin, cells that fight disease germs) appear in the 2018 paper’s naming question.

Transport in plants is the one topic confirmed across both the 2018 and 2019 papers, so it is worth revising carefully.

Chapters Behind the Quarterly Test Questions

The questions in these papers draw on the early chapters of the Class 8 Biology syllabus. Based on the textbook material for this class, the relevant chapters cover:

• Blood and the circulatory system — types of blood cells, blood groups, blood transfusion, and the functions of blood. This supports the 2018 paper’s questions on haemoglobin and disease-fighting cells.
• Life processes: transport of food and minerals — the human circulatory system, the heart, lymph, and blood vessels, plus how pulse is measured.
• Transport in plants — absorption, conduction and rise of sap — how roots absorb water, how it moves up through the stem, and transpiration. This is the chapter behind the ascent-of-sap questions in both papers.
• Growth, development and reproduction — reproduction in plants, animals and humans, seed germination, and the characteristics of adolescence. This supports the 2019 paper’s reproduction questions.

Editions and page numbers for these chapters can differ by school, so check your own booklist. You can see other Class 8 study material on the ICSE Class 8 resources page.

Practice Questions Matching the Quarterly Format

These are original questions, written in the same style as the recurring topics above. They are not copied from either paper.

1. Naming question, 1 mark, matching the 2018 style: Name the plant tissue responsible for carrying water upward from the roots.
   Answer: Xylem.
2. Fill-in-the-blank, matching the 2019 style: The upward pull created by water loss from leaves is called ______.
   Answer: Transpiration pull (this drives the ascent of sap).
3. Structured question, 3 marks, matching the 2019 vegetative propagation style: State one advantage and one disadvantage of vegetative propagation, and name one plant part used for it.
   Answer: Advantage — a new plant grows faster than from seed. Disadvantage — it does not create genetic variation. Example part — a potato tuber.

For marking guidance: a question tagged [1] or [2] wants only the correct term or a short definition — no explanation is expected. A question tagged [3] or higher, like the vegetative propagation question in the 2019 paper, needs each point stated separately and clearly, not merged into one line.

Using These Papers to Prepare for Your Own Quarterly Test

Follow these steps to get real value from the two papers on this page:

1. Attempt Section A of one paper under the stated time limit first, without looking at your notes.
2. Check your naming and true/false or MCQ answers against the chapters listed above, not by guessing.
3. Note which topic you got wrong, then re-read that specific chapter section before moving on.
4. Repeat with the second paper a few days later to see if the same topic still trips you up.

If you also need the textbook chapters themselves, browse the Class 8 books page for editions commonly used for this syllabus.

Mistakes Students Make in Section A

• Rewriting the whole sentence wrong in true/false questions. You must underline only the corrected word, as the 2018 paper’s instruction states.
• Mixing up xylem and phloem. Xylem carries water upward; phloem carries food. This confusion shows up whenever ascent of sap is asked.
• Answering MCQs by elimination instead of by knowing the term. The 2019 paper’s questions on rhizomes and fertilization need the exact definition, not a guess.
• Skipping short naming questions to save time. These are 1 mark each but numerous, and skipping several costs more marks than one long structured answer.

Common Questions About These Biology Quarterly Papers

How many Class 8 Biology quarterly papers are on this page?
Two papers, from the 2017-18 and 2018-19 quarterly examinations, both available as direct PDF downloads.

Do these papers come with solutions?
No. This page provides the original question papers only, along with guidance on pattern and topics — it does not include worked solutions.

Is the Section A format the same every year?
No. The 2018 paper used naming and true/false questions in Section A, while the 2019 paper used MCQs and fill-in-the-blanks instead. Be ready for either style.

Will my school’s quarterly paper look exactly like these?
It may not. Question papers and even syllabus emphasis can differ by school and edition, so use these papers to practise the topics and timing, not as a certain match to your own test.

More ICSE study material on this site

• Class 8
• Class 8 Books
• ICSE Books PDF Free
• ICSE Books

Reference: CISCE-aligned ICSE Class 8 textbook material.