Tackling CBSE Question Paper

You prepared well, wrote your CBSE Question Paper satisfactorily and accordingly calculated your score to lie somewhere between 75-80%.  But your final results leave you feeling shocked! For no apparent reasons, you seemed to have scored far less than your expectations. Does this not sound familiar too many of you students who are reading this?

Let us try and understand what might have happened. Though you attempted the CBSE Question Paper to the best of your best ability, you might have overlooked some important points while writing the answers to the CBSE Question Paper. Let me spell out a few tips that you can use the next time you write/prepare for your CBSE Question Paper:

1. Read all the instructions carefully and use the 15 minutes allotted for reading the question paper judiciously. While glancing at the CBSE Question Paper, pay attention to key words like ‘elaborate’, ‘classify’, ‘comment’ etc and tailor your answer accordingly.
2. Strictly adhere to the word limit prescribed for the CBSE Question Paper. Many students may not know that marks are deducted for exceeding the word limit. Therefore, the next time you answer a short answer question carrying two marks weightage, there is no point writing unending paragraphs for the same. Try to restrict your answer to 2-3 lines.
3. It is advisable to attempt all the questions in a section at a single go (like section A, B, C) while writing your CBSE Question Paper. Irrespective of the order of the sections, attempt first the section that you are most comfortable with. Doing so will boost your confidence as you smoothly tackle section after section and will set the pace for writing the answers to those tricky questions, as you attempt the CBSE Question Paper.
4. Start by attempting those questions within a section the answers to which you are 100% confident about. A terrific start makes a positive impression on the examiner and there are chances that he/she might just overlook some of your minor mistakes.
5. Students make the common mistake of not marking the question number clearly in their answer sheets while attempting their CBSE Question Paper. An answer like this may go unnoticed by the examiner while checking the CBSE Questions Paper and thereby you may lose precious marks. To avoid such a situation the next time you attempt the CBSE Question Paper highlight the question number in the answer sheet.
6. While answering the comprehension type of questions, especially in the language papers read the whole paragraph first and understand it in totality before attempting to answer. Doing so will help you score better.
7. While attempting your CBSE Question Paper, base your answers on your NCERT text books. For an enhanced conceptual understanding of some topics, you may refer to other books but you will earn more marks if your answers are aligned as per the content in the NCERT books.
8. To avoid skipping a question in the CBSE, ICSE, SSLC question paper, each time you are done with a question, tick off the corresponding question number on the CBSE Question Paper so as to avoid any confusion.
9. Pay special attention to correct spellings, a neat and legible handwriting, a tidy and organized paper etc. as these can fetch you that additional mark or two, that can give you the much needed edge!.

Hope these tips will help you identify and take care of these small but significant details the next time you attempt your CBSE Question Paper.

Assure good marks in CBSE exams with NCERT solutions

The key to performing well in CBSE exams include studying hard, grasping important & relevant points mentioned in the chapter and retaining these. The candidates appearing for the exams should study in a smart and streamlined manner, so that they are able to translate their efforts into performance.

Most of the questions in CBSE exams are based on end-of-chapter questions from NCERT textbook with slight changes in language or numerical values.  Majority of the students believe that solving NCERT questions is uninteresting and time consuming. But, this is definitely the simplest way to outshine in CBSE examinations. 

How to prepare ideal NCERT Solutions?

Before framing the answers to the questions listed in NCERT textbook, the students should read the chapter attentively and thoroughly. They can underline or note down the important points covered under each topic.  A comprehensive study of the entire chapter would not only help in getting good marks but enhance the conceptual understanding of the students.

Before writing ideal answers, the students should carefully read, analyze and understand the subject of the questions. They should know the difference between ‘Explain’, ‘Illustrate’ and ‘Brief description’ and should answer the question accordingly.  The students should tailor their answers depending on the type of questions i.e. one word, multiple choice, short answers or long answers. Keeping in mind the type of question and marks allotted for each, they should set word limits for every type that would help them in customization of their answers. 

In addition to the above factors, the answers should be simple in language and crisp with no grammatical and spelling errors. 

Proper revision to reassure high scores in CBSE exams

The NCERT solutions should be arranged in an organized manner with the chapter number and page numbers to avoid confusion. Organized solutions would require less time to go through during revision. Further, it would also promote in understanding, grasping, memorizing and retaining the notes effectively. 

Less time? Go for NCERT Online Solutions

When CBSE exams are round the corner, students don’t want to devote much time in forming NCERT solutions. In that case, they can simply find the solutions to their question in various websites offering online NCERT solutions. These solutions are properly illustrated with graphics, videos and animations & apt for preparation in CBSE exams. 

A few points to remember before referring to online NCERT solutions

Before referring to online NCERT solutions, students must cross-check the answers for any kind of inaccuracies. They should ensure that each answer is written as per the demand of the question. While referring to online NCERT solutions, students should also make certain that these solutions are accurate with respect to language and grammar.

By following the above mentioned tips while framing, studying and revising NCERT solutions would definitely assist the students in getting excellent marks in CBSE examinations.

Quality NCERT Solutions for an excellent performance

Studying from the right kind of NCERT book solutions and rigorous practice sessions can guarantee students a great performance in their final examinations. Students often commit a common mistake of referring to poorly drafted solutions to NCERT book questions that usually results in their poor performance in school exams. Therefore, students who wish to do well in their school exams and want to be sure of complete conceptual clarity should only refer to good quality NCERT book solutions. These end-of-chapter solutions to NCERT book questions not only test students understanding of important concepts in the chapter but also help them build on techniques related to answering different types of questions. 

How to write solutions to NCERT book questions?

While planning to attempt end-of-chapter NCERT questions it is of utter importance for students to first give the chapter a thorough read. After getting acquainted with the concepts that have been covered in the chapter, students should then tackle all the concepts one-by-one. While going through the concepts, students can then choose to highlight important information and/ or make their own notes for quick revision. After doing so, now comes the time to tackle end-of-chapter NCERT questions. While arriving at NCERT book solutions, students should make a mental note of all the important instructions that have been mentioned. Instructions related to word limit for the answers and marks allotted are important instructions that need to be kept in mind while writing the answers. Students should customize their answer as per the requirements of the question. While writing a solution for NCERT book question, students should make sure that all important points related to the question have been covered in the answer. 

This will not only help students arrive at a complete answer but will also help them fetch good marks. Students should support their NCERT book solutions with explanatory diagrams wherever required.

Free solutions for NCERT book questions!

If students choose not to invest so much time and effort in preparing solutions to NCERT book questions and want to seek help from readymade solutions, the following information might cheer them up. There are a few websites that offer NCERT solutions to end-of-chapter questions absolutely free of cost! These websites offer solutions for Maths, Science, English, Hindi, Social Sciences and Sanskrit. These detailed end-of-chapter solutions are accompanied by explanatory videos that use audio and visual cues to help students understand the concept easily. Apart from the quality NCERT solutions, students can also seek help from other learning and assessment resources available at such websites. The learning and assessment solutions available at such website include study material, interactive puzzles, chapter-wise tests, full-course tests, revision notes and lots more. 

After reading this article, I hope that arriving at good quality NCERT book solutions will not be very difficult. Take cues from the article and try your hand at end-of-chapter questions.

Good luck!

How can CBSE class X students improve their reading skills?

Huge quantum of syllabus and poor reading skills are the two main reasons that usually force students studying under the CBSE class X to seek resort from cramming. Right from the start, students studying at various levels are discouraged to practice ‘mindless’ cramming and are advised to understand the study material before they actually start learning the key concepts. However, apart from advisory annotations very less is done to actually help students of CBSE class X to improve their reading skills and not indulge in cramming. Ideally, the attempt to improve the reading skills should begin right from the early years of schooling. However, it is never too late for students of CBSE class X to improve their reading skills and score great marks in their board examinations.

Improved reading skills helps students to comprehend and appreciate the text better. It also helps students to effectively churn out the key points from the said text and write answers that can fetch them their dream score, 

Now that all you CBSE class X students out there know the importance of good reading skills, here are a few tips that will help you improve your existing reading skills.

• Keep your reading goals clear! Before starting to read, students should clearly set their reading goals. Pre-assessing the reading needs will not only help CBSE class X students to be more focused while reading but will also help students effectively utilize the available time. While reading a novel, the idea is to read the book from start till end in order to understand the entire story where as in case of a newspaper report the purpose could be to obtain a brief gist of the event. Therefore, the CBSE class X students should understand their reading goals and study accordingly.
• Choose the reading material carefully! While preparing for CBSE class X board papers, students should practice caution while choosing the book for studying. To improve reading skills students should first give the prescribed NCERT books a thorough read. After going through the NCERT book, CBSE class X students should follow it up with other curriculum aligned books by other prescribed publishers only.
• Study as per the desired reading technique! There are basically two key reading techniques, scanning and skimming. Scanning is a process wherein a student scans through the available study material for the CBSE class X board papers and selects portions to study. Whereas, skimming is a process of speedy reading. Under this process the CBSE class X student is required to quickly glance through the available study material so as to grabs an overview of the topic. In order to improve reading skills, students should choose the reading technique according to available time and proficiency level that one intends to achieve from the reading session.
• Take notes!  CBSE class X students who wish to improve their reading skills, should ideally follow up a thorough read of the chapter with preparation of study notes. Self-made study notes will not only help CBSE class X students to improve their understanding of the topic but will also help them learn the art of expressing their thoughts in their own words.  Students can prepare their own revision notes and compare their notes with the one’s available online by a variety of websites for any inaccuracies.

Now that all you CBSE class X students know how to improve your reading skill, take a go at these tips for a great score in exams.

How can CBSE class X students improve their reading skills?

A vast syllabus and poor reading skills are two main reasons that make CBSE class X students take to cramming while they prepare for their final exams. Right from the start, students are discouraged both by parents and school teachers from ‘mindless’ cramming and are advised to understand the meaning of the text before they actually try to memorize it. The intention is to improve their reading skills. Good ‘reading skills’ can help students read quickly and grasp the meaning from the written text. Good reading skills also helps develop a good command over the language which makes it easy for students to re-write in their own words. However, very little is actually done to improve the reading skills of students in school. Essentially, a focus towards developing sound reading skills should be maintained from the early years of primary schooling. However, it is never too late for students of CBSE class X to build on their reading skills and score great marks in final examinations.

Now that all you CBSE class X students out there understand the importance of good reading skills, here are a few tips that will help you improve your reading skills.

• Have clear reading goals! Before starting to read, students should set their reading goals clearly. CBSE class X students should first assess their reading objective/s and then should start reading the text. For example, while reading a novel, one is expected to read the entire sentence carefully so as to understand the story as a whole and ensure that he/she is not missing out on any important link. Where as in case of a newspaper report the objective usually is to gather a gist of the event. Likewise, the CBSE class 10 students should keep in mind the objective of the reading exercise and accordingly set their reading goals. The reading goals for a student could possibly range from quickly completing the syllabus to trying to understand the various aspects of a given topic or problem in detail.
• Choose the reading text carefully! While preparing for your CBSE class X board papers, students should practice caution while choosing the book that they are planning to study from. To improve reading skills students should first give the prescribed NCERT book a thorough read. Since the concepts in NCERT books are explained in a very simplified manner, it can be of immense help to students with relatively weak reading skills to make a framework for the concepts. After going through the NCERT book, CBSE class X students may then follow it up with books by publishers on the topic to gain further understanding of the topic.
• Choose your reading technique! While giving the chapter a read, student can choose the reading technique as per their reading goals. If a student needs to pick up details from the text then he/she may read through the entire text using scanning -a process wherein a student scans through the text in detail and then selects the information to study. Skimming, on the other hand is technique that can be employed when one has to read through quickly and efficiently. Under this technique, the CBSE class X student glances through all the text and obtains a quick overview of the topic. In order to improve reading skills, students should choose the reading technique according to the available time and proficiency level that he/she intends to achieve.
• Take notes!  CBSE class X students, who wish to improve their reading skills, should follow up a thorough read of the chapter with preparing personalized notes of the chapter in their own words. Preparing notebook in own words will not only help the student improve his/her understanding of the topic but will also help them learn how to express their thoughts in their own words.  Students can prepare their own revision notes and compare their notes for any inaccuracies with those made available online by a variety of websites.

Now that all you CBSE class X students know how to improve your reading skills, take a go at these tips for a great score.

How to study effectively from free NCERT Solutions?

The one thing that can help students score great marks in the final CBSE examinations is quality NCERT solutions. Students usually find the exercise of writing end-of-chapter NCERT solutions mundane and often try to keep away from it. Writing NCERT solutions with low interest levels can not only hamper the quality of NCERT answers but can also have an adverse effect on the marks obtained by the student in the final CBSE examinations. Therefore, it is very important for the students studying under the CBSE board to practice caution while attempting their NCERT solutions.  To make their NCERT solutions apt for the final examinations, students can also seek help from the free NCERT solutions available online by a variety of websites. These free NCERT solutions will not only help students frame complete and correct answers, but will also help them score great marks in the final CBSE examinations.

However, while referring to these free NCERT solutions it is very important for students to check their NCERT solutions against the ideal NCERT solutions for any inaccuracies. Students should also make sure that their free NCERT solutions have all these essential features to help make their solutions perfectly apt for the final CBSE examinations.

Here is a checklist of the essential features that all you students out there can refer to and ensure that your free NCERT solutions are complete and comprehensive.

• To make the activity of referring to free NCERT solutions quick and smooth, it is very important to first organize the solution sheets chapter-wise and within that page number-wise. To save time and effort, students should only seek help from those websites that provide free NCERT solutions in an organized and systematic manner. This will not only speed-up the process of referring to these NCERT solutions but will also make learning effective.
• While referring to free NCERT solutions available online, students should make sure that each answer is tailored as per the requirements of the question. Studying from NCERT solutions that are not customized as per the instructions in the question can not only hamper students learning process but often can have an adverse impact on their final marks. Therefore, it is very important for students to look out for ‘quality’ NCERT solutions that will make scoring great marks in exams easy.
• For your NCERT solutions to be ‘ideal’ it is very important that the solutions are supported with explanatory videos and value-adding graphics and illustrations, wherever necessary. Neatly drawn and appropriately labeled illustrations and graphics can further promote effective understanding that will enable students write quality answers to score great marks in final examinations.
• Grammatical and language accuracy is a pre-requisite for these solutions to be ideal. While referring to the free NCERT solutions, students should make it a point to check these solutions with respect to the grammar and language used. If students come across any error with respect to the above mentioned fields, it is advisable that students should suspect the accuracy of the solutions in general.

Having listed all the essential points to be kept in mind while referring to the free NCERT solutions, it is advisable that the next time students seek help from any free NCERT solution available online they look for these features and ensure a great score in the final examinations.

NCERT Science Books- Stressing on Sequential Growth

The driving philosophy of NCERT while drafting the NCERT Science curriculum and books has always been to provide students with education material that is ‘true to life, true to child and true to science’. The NCERT has been publishing NCERT Science text books with content that reflects this philosophy.

To make the process of conceptual understanding and learning systematic, NCERT has divided the entire NCERT Science curriculum from grade 1 to XII into various levels. These levels focus on the progressively incremental nature of the knowledge acquiring process that emphasizes a sequential building of concepts. A learning process that is sequential in nature helps students  understand the concepts easily and also leads to a better retention of the studied material as it fits into the knowledge schema that already exists with the child. This helps  students to efficiently master all important concepts particularly in the in sciences and maths.

At the first level, that is the primary level, the focus is on ‘exploration’. Here the students are encouraged to explore the world. Through the various activities and practical exercises in the NCERT Science books, the students are encouraged to gain knowledge through hands-on experience. For example in the primary classes while teaching about trees, the students are asked to collect different type of leaves and prepare a scrap book with the names of each of the leaves.

Once a student passes through the first level the next is the upper primary level. Here the stress is on learning by involving the students in group discussions with peers, performing simple experiments etc. Under the ‘Extended Learning’ activities in NCERT Science books, the students are guided to explore more information about the topics already studied. Once the required information is gathered a classroom discussion following it helps to concretizing the learning and fills the gaps. A group discussion facilitates easy exchange of information. For example, in the NCERT Science book for Class VII an activity in the Chapter ‘Nutrition in Plants’, asks students to visit a greenhouse and observe how plants are raised. They are also asked to collect additional information on the regulation of light, water and CO2 and discuss the same with the classmates.

The next level is the secondary level. Under this level the onus is on learning through advanced modules of learning in NCERT Science books. Various initiatives such as the National Talent Search Exam, National Science Exhibitions etc are also organized to assess the grasp of theoretical principles and their practical applications. For competitions like these, the entire syllabus is based on the NCERT Science curriculum.

Fourth and the last level is the higher secondary level. In this level, Science is promoted and taught as a discipline. Under this last level, Science as a composite subject is bifurcated into three to four different subjects like Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Biotechnology. Students studying NCERT Science take up their respective streams and combinations. The NCERT Science Books for these classes focuses on helping students master each subject individually so that students pursue higher studies in Science and may even take up the field of Science professionally.

NCERT Revision Notes

With NCERT revision notes in place, scoring great marks in final CBSE exams will not be that difficult! Preparing NCERT revision notes that are in sync with the ideal revision notes can not only make the act of revising easy but can also help in speeding up the pace of revision. However, it is very important for students to be cautious while preparing NCERT revision notes. Students should not only make sure that their NCERT revision notes are in the desired pattern but also ensure that are only referred to after the completion of the entire course.

Here are a few tips for all you students out there to help you arrive at NCERT revision notes that can be considered ‘ideal’.

• Keep it crisp! While preparing the NCERT revision notes, students should make sure that they are crisp and brief. The NCERT revision notes should include all the important points in the chapter in a very crisp manner. While preparing NCERT revision notes, students usually commit a common mistake of preparing lengthy and elaborate notes. NCERT revision notes like these won’t suffice the purpose for which these notes are actually made.  Essentially, these revision notes are prepared for a quick glance before the final examination. Preparing notes that are lengthy won’t help students with a quick look at the entire chapter. Therefore, while preparing the NCERT revision notes students should make sure that are brief highlights of the chapter only.
• Bulleted format works! NCERT revision notes that are in bulleted format will any day score over the revision notes in paragraph format. Students should practice enough care to make sure that these NCERT revision notes facilitate an easy read for quick understanding. The NCERT revision notes in bulleted format essentially lends an ‘any-time read’ feel to this written document, as a result one can glance through all the important points in the chapter even while on they are on a move.
• Keep it organized! Students should prepare NCERT revision notes on loose sheets rather than hard-bound thick note books. It will not only help make the activity of managing and organizing the NCERT revision notes easy for the students but will also enable them to refer to these notes quite often. Instead of carrying the entire notebook of NCERT revision notes, students can choose the chapters they wish to revise and only carry notes for the same.
• Seek help from online curriculum aligned notes! For students who have a lot of other academic activities to perform and are facing dearth of time can refer to the NCERT revision notes available online. There are a variety of websites that provide curriculum aligned NCERT revision notes. These NCERT revision notes are supported by videos and illustrations that can be easily downloaded as they are available in PDF format. Apart from these notes, these websites also provide CBSE aligned study material, practice tests, model tests, formative assessments, puzzles etc.

Ideally, students should only refer these NCERT revision notes once they are through with their studies. Students should seek help from these notes solely for revision purposes.

NCERT Questions

A study guide can give answers to the NCERT questions but seldom can it do justice to the length and breadth of the syllabus for a given subject! Students often consider writing the solutions to the NCERT questions as wasteful time-consuming and futile activity. However, a thorough understanding of the various aspects of the NCERT questions and its utility can change their existing notions.

NCERT questions are typically the questions printed at the end of the chapters in the NCERT text books. Sometimes, questions by other private publishers based on the content in the NCERT text books may also be referred to as the NCERT questions. The end-of-chapter NCERT questions are made available in array of formats with the purpose to accelerate students’ pace of conceptual understanding. Therefore, while writing answers to the NCERT questions students should try to attempt all the questions since doing so will help them gain a thorough understanding of all the concepts present in the NCERT textbooks and give them the opportunity to assess their understanding of the said topics.

Apart from the overall understanding of concepts in the chapter, most of the problems that are asked in the CBSE board papers too are either from these end-of-chapter NCERT questions or are based on the topics addressed in them. For subjects such as Social Sciences and for some topics in Science these NCERT questions are hot favourites for the examination paper setters. It has been further observed that for application oriented subjects such as Maths and Physics the questions posed in the CBSE board papers may be loosely based on the NCERT questions–often the core concept being tested remaining the same, with variations in the values therein.. Therefore, all the students out there who are preparing for their class X and class XII CBSE board papers better take these NCERT questions seriously!

Students should essentially start tackling these NCERT questions once they are through with the entire chapter. A thorough understanding of the concepts in the chapter will help students frame conceptually correct and complete answers. If possible students should try to support their answers to these NCERT questions with neat and well labeled illustrations. While writing answers to the NCERT questions, students should also stick to the prescribed word limit.

While attempting these questions, students can seek help from the readymade NCERT solutions booklet. However, students should be cautioned to use the solution booklet as a reference book only. Complete dependence on such readymade material could be detrimental for students learning as it could hinder the ability of students to comprehend text and write answers in their own words. While seeking help from these readymade solutions booklets for NCERT questions, students should look for the following factors: clarity in language, , relevance to the chapter, word limit etc. There are various websites that provide free NCERT solutions to the NCERT questions for classes VI- XII.

So go ahead and use these free NCERT solutions to improve your grades.

Wishing you all the very best for exams!

NCERT Online

NCERT goes online! The NCERT textbooks can now be viewed online. Even a decade back something like this would have been difficult to imagine.

The NCERT was set up way back in 1961 by the Government of India as an autonomous organization to assist and advise the centre and state on policies related to education and help in the implementation of the same. Over the years, the council has increasingly taken on the role of the introducing innovations in the field of education in areas of reforms and curriculum framework.

The NCERT online textbooks have made life easier for a lot of students. The availability of online NCERT textbooks has taken the student-focussed educational initiatives of NCERT to new heights. The NCERT as an organization is not new to initiatives in the area of educational technology.  The Central Institute of Educational Technology set up in 1984 is a constituent organization under NCERT that undertakes several technology-based educational initiatives. The knowledge explosion of the last decade has enabled a situation where the knowledge-base doubles every 2-3 years (source: UNESCO “ICT in Teacher Education”). The Council’s decision to introduce NCERT online textbooks can also be rightfully viewed as a first step towards weaving knowledge in a multi-disciplinary fashion.

With the introduction of online NCERT textbooks the Council has made an effort to make the source of learning more flexible than the traditional ones. The driving force behind a move like this may well be the increasing awareness that knowledge does not come from a central source, but that it actually emanates from all around us. The move to make available online NCERT textbooks is a step that recognizes the huge potential of the internet.

As expected, the NCERT online textbooks are a huge hit with both students and teachers. The students can now easily access the textbooks for all classes from class I to class XII. They are free to read these NCERT textbooks online or download them for free, as they are available in PDF format. Each chapter is available as a separate PDF file and can be opened by clicking on the chapter title in the table of contents. With the textbooks going online, students who were previously likely to use ‘non-availability of textbooks’ as an excuse for their poor performance in schools, now had no one to blame but themselves! So, it was time to dig in their heels and study. That is a good job done by NCERT online textbooks!

Cheers!

NCERT Maths Solution

If calculating and arriving at the NCERT Maths solutions is an uphill task for you then this article could make your life easy!  Students studying under the CBSE or for that matter any other board usually find practicing Maths problems a strenuous and challenging exercise. They may even often try to keep away from practicing Maths and calculating NCERT Maths solutions for the end-of-chapter questions for as long as they can. 

Here are a few tips for all you students out there on how to enjoy doing NCERT Maths by learning some fun and innovative ways that can help make the process of obtaining NCERT Maths solutions easy.

• Short-cuts can make your life easy! Students who have still not been introduced to the world of mathematical short-cuts have no idea what they are missing out on. These mathematical short-cuts are nothing less than magic that can do wonders with your ability of doing mental calculations. Within seconds you can perform complex divisional and multiplication calculations and leave your class and teachers awestruck. These short-cuts use some basic and not much popular principles that help in speedy and accurate calculation of questions to arrive at NCERT Maths solution. 
• Vedic mathematics can also help! Vedic mathematics is actually an ancient system of mathematical calculations, where functions are performed on the basis of sutras as propagated in this ancient system. While arriving at the NCERT Maths solutions, students can make use of the short-cuts available in this Vedic system of calculations. Once through with understanding the system of sutras students are also equipped to start inventing and devising their own new ways of simplifying complex calculations. This activity of learning and experimenting with simpler ways of performing complex calculations and arriving at NCERT Maths solution can make understanding and learning activity extremely fun. Apart from simplifying calculations, the interest level of students for a subject like Maths is likely to go increase manifolds.
• Music can make a difference for some! While tackling the Maths problems and arriving at the NCERT Maths solutions, some students choose to play some soft music in the background. Researches have suggested that listening to music before or while studying can considerably improve the pace of processing of information in the brain. Listening to music without lyrics i.e. ambience music while studying helps soothe and relax the mind and thereby enhancing learning. However, be warned! While listening to music works for some, it may not work for others. So do exercise your own honest judgement. 
• Surf for free NCERT Maths solutions! Students studying under the CBSE board can refer to a few websites that provide free NCERT Maths solutions. These free NCERT Maths solutions tackle all the end-of-chapter problems. The free NCERT Maths solutions by these websites not only explain the answer in textual format but are also occasionally accompanied with videos explaining the various steps involved in detail.

Now that all you students out there know how to make arriving at the NCERT Maths solution fun, go ahead and try out these interesting ways.

All the best for your exams!

A Closer Look at NCERT Delhi

CBSE students everyday come across NCERT books for almost all subjects. The last thing that occurs to anyone while flipping through the pages of these text books is ‘to think about NCERT Delhi- as the organization behind the books’! In this article I attempt to take you through a ride that will introduce the various aspects of the organization and try to showcase the vastness of its services.

NCERT Delhi has been working for over for over 48 years in line with its endeavour to provide students with quality educational material. NCERT Delhi was set up by Government of India as an autonomous organization for advising and assisting Central and State Governments on policies and programme related matters in the field of school education.

At present the NCERT Delhi has a host of departments and units, each of which perform their specialized functions. There is a department each for areas such as Elementary Education, Teacher Education, Arts and Aesthetic, Science & Maths, Social Studies & Humanities. The department of Educational Psychology and Foundations of Education under NCERT Delhi conducts an international level counselor training course in addition to undertaking psychological testing and other activities.  Interestingly, the NCERT Delhi also has specialized departments that are dedicated to the Special Needs group and to Women’s Studies! As you can guess, the department responsible for your school textbooks—the Publication department—is only one of the several departments housed within the NCERT!

From the time that it was set up to the present, a period of over four decades, has witnessed NCERT Delhi diversifying into various areas within the field of education. Apart from formulating policies and publishing NCERT Text Books, NCERT Delhi also publishes other material like journals, recreational books for children and non-curriculum based educational books. The National Talent Search Exam conducted by NCERT Delhi is very popular amongst school students. NCERT Delhi also prepares the curriculum for CBSE schools across the world, conducts periodic educational surveys and teacher training workshops. So you see, NCERT really does a lot more than just publishing your text books!

As per the recommendations of the National Curriculum Framework 2005, NCERT Delhi has taken a paradigm shift from a ‘teacher-centric’ design to a ‘learner-centric’ flexible process. Under this shift, efforts are also made by NCERT Delhi to take learning beyond the four walls of the classroom into a wider social context. As a result a host of innovative changes have been introduced in the NCERT text books. Features like ‘Activity and Project’, ‘Did you knows’, quizzes etc are some initiatives in that direction. Changes like these have given a fresh lease of life to the previously ‘not so interesting’ NCERT text books.

So the next time you open your NCERT text books, it will probably be easier for you to appreciate the team effort by the various departments in the organization towards making your school years fruitful. 

Fun-to-learn NCERT Books

I still remember the times in school when I used to line up before the Book Shop to buy a copy of an NCERT textbook. Even in those days a lot of reference and other books were available, but the NCERT Book was a ‘must have’.  And it amuses me to see that the scenario has still not changed much! Even today students queue up before the book shops at the start of each session to be among the privileged early birds to own a copy of the NCERT (prescribed) Books.

A little background about the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is in place. The NCERT provides academic and technical support to Central and State Governments for all matters related to school and education. Each year NCERT comes out with NCERT Text Books for classes I to XII, Educational CD’s, Non-Text Books, a multitude of Journals and Childrens’ Books on a range of topics. NCERT through its host of books, attempts to cover all the essential topics and subjects for students studying under CBSE. 

Time and again efforts are made by NCERT to introduce innovative features in its books that make learning fun and schooling a happy experience. Its recent initiative to make the NCERT (text) books available online is one such endeavour. The latest editions of the NCERT Books for all grades are based on the National Curriculum Framework, 2005. These NCERT Books introduce fun and interactive ways of learning. Many features like ‘Boojho and Paheli’, ‘Extensive Learning-Activities and Projects’, ‘What You Can Do?’, ‘Talk About It’ etc in these NCERT books are some of things that catch my attention as I glance through these textbooks .  Simple practical activities suggested in these textbooks help to weave the concepts into the learners’ everyday experiences and makes learning integral to the entire process. Such an approach makes learning trouble-free and goes a long way to infuse a fresh dose of fervour in the entire teaching-learning process. This is a good attempt is to do away with the practice of tedious bookish learning.  

Additionally, I would also like to point out that the language in the latest NCERT Books is simple to understand and the concepts are presented in a manner that makes for effortless comprehension. The text in the NCERT Books is supported by colourful photographs, cartoons, illustrations, and interesting blurbs that do not necessitate the rote method of learning.

This is not all! Students have yet another very important reason to study from these exciting and fun-to-learn NCERT books—apart from the attractive features in NCERT Books, all the questions in the CBSE board exams are based on NCERT Books, or are built around the concepts in NCERT Books!

Wishing happy studying to all!

How to Write Good NCERT Answers

While writing the NCERT answers, students sometimes adopt a casual approach to this important end-of-chapter exercise. Many also consider it a futile activity. Through their laid-back attitude students, thus undermine the advantages of writing quality NCERT answers.

Many students may not have realized, but their approach to the NCERT answers can make a lot of difference in their final scores. These days, most of the questions in CBSE board exams are either a part of these NCERT questions list at the end of the chapter and/or are based on the concepts covered in these questions. This fact further reiterates the importance of quality NCERT answers.  Apart from the quality, it is important that while writing NCERT answers students learn to modify their answers keeping in mind the specific key words in the questions such as ‘Explain’,’ Classify’, ‘Differentiate’ etc. Certain subject-specific points should also be kept in mind as the student goes about writing the NCERT answers. Here are certain points that need to be kept in mind while drafting the answers for different subjects.

• Maths:- While working on any mathematical problems, accuracy is of utter importance. The answers calculated by the student during the practice sessions should be immediately checked with the available NCERT answer list at the end of all the chapters. Also as you work your way through the questions, your NCERT answers should incorporate all the necessary steps that are essential to arrive at the solution. Usually students miss out on writing the ‘in-between’ steps. This may sometimes result in the deduction of marks. Apart from the questions that are available in the exercises at the back of the NCERT textbooks, students should not miss out on the solved examples at the start of each chapter. An interesting observation is that these solved examples top in some of the examiners ‘must ask’ question list!
• English:- Readymade NCERT answers for end-of-chapter English questions are available by a lot of publishers. Publishers usually write these NCERT answers keeping in mind the learning outcomes a student is expected to achieve in a certain grade. However, it must be pointed out that by simply reproducing these NCERT answers verbatim on your answer sheets won’t fetch you great marks. Examiners look for original use of words and expressions and favour the attempt to explore new ideas. Therefore, while writing NCERT answers in the final examinations, try to be original. Read the chapter thoroughly and write the answers to the questions in your own words. Self-composed, grammatically correct answers will help a student obtain more marks than merely reproducing the readymade NCERT answers from the solution booklet.
• Science:- Before working on the NCERT answers for any of the subjects in Science, achieving a thorough conceptual understanding of the topic in question is very important. Students should lay emphasis on understanding the concept and only then move on to drafting the answers. The NCERT answers to the questions should be accompanied by correctly labeled and neatly drawn diagrams wherever necessary. This will fetch additional marks in comparison to an answer that is not accompanied by any supporting diagrams and illustrations. Sticking to the prescribed word limit while writing NCERT answers is another important point that needs to be kept in mind.
• Social Sciences:- While writing NCERT answers for a subject like History, students usually think that a lengthy and verbose answer is what the examiner is looking for.  However, this is not the case. Precise and complete answers within the prescribed word limits, that cover all relevant points is considered an ideal NCERT answer.

So the next time you write NCERT answers, keep in mind these points. I am positive that these tips will guide you to write better NCERT answers and will result in an improved overall performance in exams.

How to frame quality NCERT answers?

Students studying under the CBSE board often unable to frame quality NCERT answers to the end-of-chapter NCERT questions. They consider the exercise of framing NCERT answers as tedious, tiring and time consuming. A very thought like this, undermines the importance of this chapter-end exercise. It is imperative for students to understand that a majority of questions asked in the final CBSE examinations are in accordance to the question pattern prescribed in these NCERT books. Therefore, in order to score great marks in the final examination students should give the required emphasis while framing NCERT answers to the end-of-chapter exercise.

Here are a few tips for all the students who face difficulty in framing NCERT answers. These tips will help students frame quality answers and that too with ease.

• Before starting to write the NCERT answers, students should first thoroughly go through the chapter and highlight the important points under each topic. An exercise like this will help students get a hang of the chapter and will also equip them with key points that could make the task of writing NCERT answers easy!
• Once through with reading the chapter thoroughly and highlighting the key points, the next important step is to understand the question and accordingly write the answer. In order to write NCERT answers that can fetch students their dream score, students should first analyze various aspects in the question closely. Writing NCERT answers as per the requirements of the question can help students arrive at solutions that can make scoring in the final examinations very easy. To help students learn how to analyze a question here are a few pointers
• Before starting to write the NCERT answer, students should carefully read the instruction in the question and accordingly tailor their answer. The approach towards attempting to answers should ideally vary on the basis of the key word in the question such as ‘classify’, ‘compare and contrast’, ‘elucidate’ etc.
• While framing NCERT answers students should lay maximum emphasis on the main subject in the question. For example in a question like- ‘Enumerate the measures taken by the Ministry of Women and Child Development to curb the problem of female infanticide in Rajasthan?’ The main subject is ‘the problem of female infanticide’. Therefore, while answering, students should build the introduction to their answers and the main content around this subject.
• Students should also not miss out on the other significant information in the question. In the above example, all relevant measures taken should be pointed only in the context of Rajasthan and not any other state. Doing so will help them score good marks
• If students choose not to invest so much s NCERT answers, they can seek help from the free NCERT solutions available by a variety of websites. The free NCERT answers provided in these websites follow the guidelines prescribed by the NCERT and the CBSE. These NCERT answers are further supported by relevant illustrations that can make understanding easy.

So what are you waiting for! Go ahead with framing your NCERT answers and score top marks in your exams.

How to use NCERT Maths Solutions effectively

If you had ever thought that Maths is a tough nut to crack, it’s time that you think again because the innovative and fun ways suggested in this article can help you arrive at NCERT Maths solutions without any difficulty. Students studying under any educational board in India can use these tips to solve the complex mathematical problems with ease and make their learning effortless. After going through these tips students will no more keep themselves away from trying their hands at end-of-chapter NCERT Maths questions.

Try shortcuts for quick calculation

While arriving at NCERT Maths solutions, students usually find the in-between calculations tedious and complicated. A small mistake committed at any step can be very frustrating as it can result in a wrong answer. Therefore, students should be very cautious while performing every calculation so as to ensure 100% accuracy of their solution for the NCERT Maths questions. To further reduce the chances of errors and to make complex calculations simple, students should try doing it the Vedic way. Vedic Mathematics is the ancient system of mathematical calculations devised by Swami Bharati Krishna Tirtha during the early years of 20th century. Vedic Mathematics is based on the system of sutras that help simplifying complex mathematical calculations. Here is an example of one of the numerous shortcuts suggested in Vedic mathematics.-

While calculating the square root for any number above 10, the following shortcut can be followed. The square root of 12 is 144. One way of calculating it is 12x12, where as the Vedic way of calculating the same is

122 = (12+2) X 10 + 22

= 14 X 10 + 4

= 140 + 4

= 144

With the same method, let’s try to find out the square root of 13.

132 = (13+3) X 10 + 32

= 16 X 10 + 9

= 160 + 9

= 169

Students can learn many more such easy and quick shortcuts for various mathematical functions and be sure of arriving at accurate solutions for NCERT Maths questions.

Learn with Music

Students who find calculating Maths sums boring and dull can try the same with their favorite music playing in the background and experience the difference. Researches in the past have validated the fact that music can make a valuable difference in the pace with which the brain processes information. Listening to non-lyrical / instrumental music while practicing Maths problems can enhance learning by soothing and relaxing the anxious mind. However, while practicing mathematical problems, a few visual and tactile learners might find such background music distracting. Therefore, students are advised to use their own discretion.

Students studying under the CBSE board can also seek help from various websites that provide free NCERT Maths solutions for classes VI-XII. The free end-of-chapter NCERT solutions available at such websites not only provide answers in textual format, but also support it with relevant videos, animations and graphics for a quick understanding. The objective is to explain the answer and the underlying concept in detail so as to make learning thorough and concrete.

Now that all you students studying under CBSE board know how to make arriving at the NCERT Maths solution fun, go ahead and try out these innovative and interesting ways.

All the best!

How to tackle NCERT Questions

Quality NCERT solutions are a sure-shot way to score great marks in the final CBSE examinations. Quality NCERT solutions not only ensure a brilliant score, but also a complete conceptual understanding of all important topics that will benefit a student not only in this academic year but the next academic year as well. Therefore, it is important for all students studying under CBSE board to take their end-of-chapter NCERT exercises seriously and aim for complete and comprehensive NCERT solutions.

Students can achieve their dream score by following these essential steps and arrive at NCERT solutions that are completely in sync with the ideal NCERT solutions.

• Before starting to write NCERT solutions, students should first go through the entire syllabus and get an idea of the topics that need to be covered in this academic year. Students should also glance through the entire NCERT books prescribed for various subjects. This will help them get an idea all that is covered in the NCERT chapters in the various subjects. Undertaking an activity like this will help students gauge the effort and time required to efficiently complete the syllabus.
• To write quality solutions, a logical step is to give the NCERT chapter a thorough read. While reading the NCERT chapter, students should highlight all the important points in the chapter and appropriately mark other minor but relevant details in the chapter for framing complete and accurate answers. At this stage students are also expected to understand all the concepts and learn all relevant details that will help them frame quality NCERT answers.
• While planning to attempt end-of-chapter NCERT questions, students should first try to analyze the question and then go about answering it. Any NCERT question should be analyzed on two criterions.
• The question type i.e. is it a multiple choice, long answer, short answer or one word answer question? The student should accordingly set the word limit for their answers. This will help students customize their answer as per the requirements of the NCERT questions and frame complete answers that can help score great marks in the exams.
• Understanding the ‘key’ word in the question-The next important aspect that a student must keep in mind while attempting NCERT questions is to understand the requirements of the questions and accordingly tailor their NCERT solutions. While planning to tackle a NCERT question, students should give the question a thorough read and try to answer as per the instructions in the question. For example while answering any questions the approach to the answer will vary with instructions like ‘elucidate’, ‘explain’, ‘classify’, ‘differentiate’ etc. Therefore, while writing answers to any NCERT questions students must keep in mind these points so as to fetch their dream score.

After preparing the solution sheet for end-of-chapter NCERT questions, students can refer to the free NCERT solutions available online by a few websites. These websites will help you assess your answers against the NCERT solutions that can considered ideal thereby allowing you to be sure of a great performance in the final exam.

All the best!

Free NCERT Solutions

For any student studying under CBSE who time and again has to face the challenging task of framing the answers to the end-of-chapter NCERT exercise, free NCERT solutions are a ‘must have’. Keeping in mind the importance of this end-of-chapter exercise, students can seek help from these NCERT solutions anytime and that too at no additional cost. Since most of the questions asked in the CBSE board exams are either from these NCERT exercises or are based on concepts tested in them, therefore it is important that while referring to these free NCERT solutions utmost caution is practiced. Students should check their free NCERT solutions against the ideal NCERT solutions and only then start relying on them completely.

To help all you students out there, here is a checklist of the essential features that your free NCERT solutions must have in order to be complete.

• Make sure your free NCERT solutions are made available in a systematic and organized manner wherein, answers are organized both chapter-wise and within that they are listed page number-wise. An organized solution sheet like this will help in faster looking up of answers during revision and further promote effective understanding, thereby making the entire process of referring and studying from these free NCERT solutions smooth and less chaotic.
• Your free NCERT solutions should be tailored to suit each and every answer according to the requirements of the question. Often it has been observed that various free NCERT solution providers do not customize their answers as per the question and just put down everything related to the topic as an answer to the question. It is therefore left upon the students to filter out the information and frame the exact answer as per the requirement of the question. Therefore, in order to save precious time and score good marks in your final examinations only refer to free NCERT solutions that fulfill all these pre-requisites.
• For speedy understanding of concepts before the exams and to score well in the final examinations, it is important that you support the NCERT solutions with neatly drawn and well labeled illustrations. Your free NCERT solutions for subjects like Maths and Science can be called ideal only if they are well supported by graphs and illustrations. Free NCERT solutions like these will help students stay a notch ahead of their peers and it will surely help fetch them those extra marks.
• There are various websites that provide free NCERT solutions supported by videos, graphics and animations that promote effective understanding of concepts. These videos not only provide answers to the questions but also explain the concept as a whole. Such a complete understanding can indeed be very helpful for understanding related concepts. Hence, students should always be on the lookout for such websites that provide free NCERT solutions as these can make the process of learning entertaining and smooth.
• While seeking help from the free NCERT solutions, students should check the answers for grammatical accuracy. Sometimes the structure and presentation of the answers in the free NCERT solutions may be exceptionally good but the language used may not be appropriate. In such a case, students should make sure that they either switch to some other free NCERT solution provider or exercise their own judgement while referring from them.
• Students should refer to only those NCERT solution providers who offer free solutions not only for the main course book but also the supplementary book/s. Free NCERT solutions such as these will save time of the students in having to look elsewhere and help them understand and learn a subject holistically.

Now that all you students out there have your checklist in place, start surfing for free NCERT solutions online that have all these essential characteristics.