How to use NCERT textbooks well for board exams

For CBSE students, the NCERT textbook is the single most important study resource. Board papers are built around it, and many questions follow its language, examples and exercises closely. Yet many students skim it and rush to thick reference books. Here’s how to use NCERT properly.

Why NCERT comes first

• It defines the syllabus. If a concept is in NCERT, it can be asked. The textbook shows what the board expects students to know.
• Its language matters. Definitions and explanations in NCERT are often the clearest way to phrase an answer.
• It builds the foundation. Reference books are most useful once the basics from NCERT are solid.

Step 1: Read actively, not passively

Read each section with a pencil in hand.

• Underline definitions, laws and key terms.
• Write a one-line summary in the margin after each section.
• Mark anything confusing with a question mark to ask your tutor or teacher.

Step 2: Do every in-text question

The questions and activities inside the chapter are there for a reason — they check understanding at the right moment. Do them as you read, not at the end.

Step 3: Study the examples closely

Worked examples show how to set out an answer step by step. In Maths and Science especially, practise writing solutions in the same structured way.

Step 4: Finish every end-of-chapter exercise

Complete the exercises before moving to any other book.

• Start with the easier questions to build confidence.
• Mark questions you couldn’t solve and revisit them after a day or two.
• Bring unsolved questions to class instead of skipping them.

Step 5: Don’t skip the “extra” parts

Boxes, diagrams, tables, activity sections and footnotes often contain details that turn up in exams. Diagrams in Science and maps in Social Science are worth practising by hand.

Step 6: Make short revision notes

After finishing a chapter, create a one-page summary: key definitions, formulas, diagrams and common mistakes. These notes become your quick revision pack before exams.

Step 7: Then add practice papers

Once NCERT is done thoroughly, sample papers and previous years’ questions show how concepts are tested. Where you lose marks, go back to the relevant NCERT section — the gap is usually there.

A simple weekly rhythm

1. Weekdays: one NCERT section a day — read, in-text questions, examples.
2. Weekend: end-of-chapter exercises and a one-page summary.
3. Every few weeks: a timed practice paper covering finished chapters.

Used this way, NCERT stops being “the school book” and becomes your strongest revision tool.