What Grade 6 assessments are
Grade 6 assessments are the competency-based tests and tasks used to check what a Grade 6 learner has mastered in each learning area, describing performance against clear levels rather than reducing it to a single mark. They cover the continuous assessment that runs through the term as well as the topic and end-of-term tests that check a longer stretch of learning.
Grade 6 is the final year of upper primary and the bridge into Junior School. Assessment at this stage does two jobs: it checks the upper-primary learning areas in their own right, and it shows how ready a learner is for the deeper, more distinct subjects ahead. This page brings together the Grade 6 assessments for every learning area in one place, in editable format.
What a Grade 6 learner is assessed on
Under the CBC upper-primary timetable, a Grade 6 learner takes eight learning areas alongside the Pastoral or Religious Instruction Programme:
- English – listening and speaking, reading, grammar in use, and writing.
- Kiswahili or Kenya Sign Language – kusikiliza na kuzungumza, kusoma, kuandika na sarufi, following the school's programme.
- Mathematics – numbers, measurement, geometry and data handling.
- Religious Education – offered as Christian Religious Education (CRE) or Islamic Religious Education (IRE).
- Science and Technology – the physical and living environment, scientific investigation, and everyday technology.
- Agriculture and Nutrition – the current merged area combining agriculture with nutrition and food.
- Social Studies – the current merged area covering people, places, citizenship and the environment.
- Creative Arts – the current merged area covering art and craft, music and movement.
Because assessment is continuous rather than only end-of-term, these work as regular check-ins across the year — useful for keeping a class on track, and for a learner revising one area before a test.
What the assessments actually cover, by learning area
An assessment only makes sense against what the year is meant to teach. Two Grade 6 learning areas are set out below as they appear in the curriculum design. KICD notes that the suggested number of lessons per sub-strand may run shorter or longer depending on context, so read these as the shape of the year rather than a fixed timetable.
Mathematics
Roughly 150 lessons across four strands:
- Numbers – whole numbers, multiplication, division, fractions, decimals, and inequalities. This is the largest strand and the one most Grade 6 assessments draw on most heavily.
- Measurement – length, area, capacity, mass, time and money.
- Geometry – lines, angles, and three-dimensional objects.
- Data Handling – bar graphs.
The move into inequalities and formal work with decimals is what most clearly separates Grade 6 from earlier upper-primary years, and it is worth checking carefully before Junior School.
English
Roughly 150 lessons across four strands:
- Listening and Speaking – pronunciation and vocabulary.
- Reading – extensive reading, intensive reading, and fluency.
- Language Use – word classes and tenses.
- Writing – creative writing, functional writing, mechanics of writing, and guided compositions.
Assessment here spans both oral and written work, so a complete picture of a learner needs more than a written test alone.
The remaining learning areas follow the same principle, each built from the strands in its own curriculum design.
What you get in the files
The Grade 6 assessments download in editable format, so you can adjust them to your class, your term dates and the ground you have actually covered. Alongside general CBC-aligned assessments, some Grade 6 material is developed against specific KICD-approved publisher coursebooks — both sit under the same catalogue link, so open it and check the file titles to see which you are getting.
Who these are for
- Teachers – ready-made competency-based assessment material for Grade 6, matching how upper-primary learning areas are assessed under the CBC, for continuous assessment and end-of-term tests.
- Learners and home users – practice tests and tasks to revise with across the Grade 6 learning areas.
- Parents, and anyone downloading on a learner's behalf (including from a cyber café or business centre) – these are specifically Grade 6, the final upper-primary year. Confirm the learner's grade first, then the learning area.
- Researchers and education-sector readers – these are the CBC competency-based assessments for the exit year of upper primary, structured by learning area.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do Grade 6 assessments include? Competency-based tests and continuous-assessment tasks tied to the CBC learning outcomes for Grade 6, describing a learner against performance levels rather than a single mark.
How many learning areas does a Grade 6 learner take? Eight learning areas, plus the Pastoral or Religious Instruction Programme.
How is Grade 6 different from Grade 7? Grade 6 is the last upper-primary year; Grade 7 begins Junior School. In Grade 7 the learning areas become more distinct and more numerous — Integrated Science and Pre-Technical Studies appear, for example — and are taught in greater depth.
Are these aligned to the CBC curriculum? Yes. The assessments follow the CBC learning areas and outcomes for Grade 6, so they match what learners are taught and assessed on.
Are the assessments tied to a particular coursebook? Some are. Alongside general CBC-aligned assessments, we publish material developed against specific KICD-approved publisher coursebooks. Open the catalogue link and check the file titles to see which a file follows.
I've been asked to download these for a learner – what do I check? The grade first, since assessments are grade-specific. Then the learning area the learner needs to practise.
Looking for another primary grade?
This page covers Grade 6. For every other primary level — Playgroup and pre-primary through to Grade 6 — start from our Primary Exams & Assessments hub, which links to each grade. If your learner is moving on to Junior School, see Grade 7 Assessments. For all levels at once, see the Exams & Assessments hub.
Download the Grade 6 assessments
The full set of Grade 6 assessments, for every learning area, is in our catalogue organised by learning area. Use the button below for the complete Grade 6 collection.