Scoring 90% or more in Class 10 Maths and Science is very achievable for students who study steadily. It rarely depends on solving the hardest questions. It depends on not losing marks on the easy and medium ones, and on presenting answers the way examiners want to see them.
The textbook comes first
Board papers are built around the prescribed textbooks: the NCERT books for CBSE, and the board's own books for WBBSE and other state boards. Before you open any other book:
- Solve every exercise question and every in-text question in the Maths textbook.
- Read every Science chapter fully, including activities, diagrams and boxed text.
- Answer every end-of-chapter question in Science in writing, not just in your head.
Maths: where the marks are
- Algebra (polynomials, pairs of linear equations, quadratic equations, arithmetic progressions) carries a large share of the paper and is very scoreable with practice.
- Geometry and trigonometry: learn the theorems and their proofs. Practise the standard heights-and-distances questions.
- Coordinate geometry, mensuration and statistics: formula-based, so make a formula sheet and use it daily.
Show every step. In board Maths, method marks are given even when the final answer is wrong, and lost when steps are skipped even if the answer is right.
Science: three subjects in one paper
- Physics: light, electricity and magnetic effects. Practise ray diagrams and numericals with units.
- Chemistry: chemical reactions, acids, bases and salts, metals and non-metals, carbon compounds. Balance every equation and learn the reactions with conditions.
- Biology: life processes, control and coordination, reproduction, heredity. Learn the diagrams and their labels: the human heart, the nephron, the brain, the parts of a flower.
Competency-based questions
Board papers now include case-based and assertion–reason questions that test understanding rather than memory. The best preparation is to understand why things happen, not just what happens. When you read a process, ask yourself what would change if one step were different.
Sample papers: the final three months
- Start with the official sample papers and marking schemes from your board.
- Solve at least 8 to 10 full papers under timed conditions.
- Check each paper against the marking scheme, not just the answer key.
- Keep a list of repeated mistakes and read it before every paper.
Presentation that earns marks
- Write the question number clearly, and start long answers on a new part of the page.
- In numericals: given, formula, substitution, answer with units.
- Draw diagrams in pencil, label them clearly and give them a title.
- Keep answers to the point. Length does not earn extra marks; correct points do.
A month-by-month outline
- Until November: finish the syllabus with textbook exercises.
- December: first full revision, with chapter tests.
- January to February: sample papers, second revision, mistakes list.
- Final week: formula sheets, diagrams and the mistakes list only.
The habits you build now are also the first step towards JEE and NEET. Our Foundation course for Classes 8 to 10 combines board preparation with that longer goal. Get in touch.
