Download Grade 10 Physical Sciences past papers and memos
Newest first. The memo sits on the same row as the paper it belongs to, so you do not have to go looking for it. Last updated .
2024
- Paper 1North West
- Paper 2North West
- Question paperGauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 1North West
- Paper 2North West
Feb/March 2024Term 1
- Question paperKwaZulu-Natal
2023
November 2023Term 4
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2Gauteng
May/June 2023Term 2
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2Gauteng
2022
November 2022Term 4
- Paper 1Gauteng
May/June 2022Term 2
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2Gauteng
2021
November 2021Term 4
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2Gauteng
May/June 2021Term 2
- Question paperKwaZulu-Natal
2020
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
Feb/March 2020Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2019
- Paper 1National
- Paper 2National
September 2019Term 3
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
- Question paperNorth West
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
Feb/March 2019Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2018
- Paper 1National
- Paper 2National
September 2018Term 3
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Question paperNorth West
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2Gauteng
Feb/March 2018Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2017
- Paper 1National
- Paper 2National
September 2017Term 3
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
Feb/March 2017Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2016
- Paper 1National
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2National
- Paper 2Gauteng
September 2016Term 3
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
Feb/March 2016Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2015
- Paper 1National
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 2National
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What is in Grade 10 Physical Sciences Paper 1 and Paper 2
What each paper should cover, and what each topic is worth.
From the CAPS curriculum document for Physical Sciences. Grade 10 papers are set by your school or your province rather than nationally, and CAPS calls these a suggested weighting, so treat it as what a paper should look like rather than a promise about the one you downloaded.
A ± means it is the weighting the examiners work towards rather than a fixed part of the paper, so a sitting lands a few marks either side of it.
Paper 1: Physics
150 marks, 2 hours
- Mechanics
- ±75 marks
- Waves, sound and light
- ±40 marks
- Electricity and magnetism
- ±35 marks
Paper 2: Chemistry
150 marks, 2 hours
- Matter and materials
- ±70 marks
- Chemical change
- ±60 marks
- Chemical systems
- ±20 marks
What comes back in matric
The matric Physical Sciences paper tests the whole Grade 12 year, plus these Grade 10 topics. The Department's exam guidelines say so. It is worth learning them properly now, because you write them again in two years.
Chemistry
- Representing chemical change
Learn these well. They cost matrics marks.
Every year the Department checks what matrics got wrong. In Physical Sciences the same problem comes up: matrics lost marks on Grade 10 work. You are in Grade 10 now, so you still have time.
You learn this in Grade 10
What went wrong in matric
Electric circuits and emf
In matric: Matrics could not say what emf means. They could not read circuit diagrams.
A past paper shows you the topic. It cannot show you which part of it you are weak at. The app breaks each topic into small skills, shows you how well you know each one, and tells you which to fix first.
Topics from the Department of Basic Education's 2025 NSC Diagnostic Report, matched to the grade CAPS teaches them in.
Grade 10 Physical Sciences past paper questions
Where can I download Grade 10 Physical Sciences past papers and memos?
On this page. There are 65 Grade 10 Physical Sciences past papers here, from 2015 to 2024, and they come with their memos. Some people call them exam papers or previous question papers. They are the same thing. Every one is a free PDF and none of them ask you to sign up.
Do the papers come with memos?
Yes. The memo, which is the marking guideline the examiners use, sits on the same row as the paper it belongs to, so you download the two together rather than hunting for them separately.
Which provinces are these Physical Sciences papers from?
The Department of Basic Education, the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and North West. Every paper here was set by an education department. Some departments put their papers online, and we take those from the department. Others do not, so we find their papers elsewhere and check each one against its cover before we add it. If you cannot find your province, a national paper is set to the same CAPS curriculum and is just as good to practise on.
Which term are these Physical Sciences papers from?
Every term the department published one for. Term 4 is the November exams, Term 3 is the September exams, Term 2 is the May/June exams, Term 1 is the Feb/March exams. Each paper in the list is labelled both ways, so it does not matter whether your school talks in terms or in months.
What topics are in Grade 10 Physical Sciences Paper 1?
Paper 1 is out of 150 marks and you get 2 hours to write it. It covers 3 areas: Mechanics; Waves, sound and light; Electricity and magnetism. The marks for each one are set out above.
Are these IEB papers?
No. These are NSC papers, set by the Department of Basic Education and the provinces for the government curriculum, CAPS. If you are at an IEB school the content overlaps a great deal, but the papers are set separately and are not on this page.
Which paper should I start with?
The newest one. Start with 2024 and work backwards. The examiners who set the most recent papers are the ones setting yours, and how they word a question matters as much as what it is about.
Verified against DBE and provincial education department papers
Published · Updated by NavyBlue Editorial Team
Had enough for now? Try today's puzzle.
Today's puzzle pulls from Physical Sciences and everything else you have covered. Four tries, about two minutes, and one group is always a trick.
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