New NCERT Maths and Science Books for Classes 6–8: A Guide
In 2026-27, CBSE schools teaching from NCERT use a new set of books in Classes 6, 7 and 8: Ganita Prakash for mathematics and Curiosity for science (Hindi edition: Jigyasa). Class 7 and Class 8 maths each come in two parts. The chapters have new names, many topics have moved between classes, and the books are built around activities and questions rather than long worked exercises. This guide gives the chapter map for each class, straight from NCERT's own contents pages, and explains what it means for homework, tests and tuition.
If your child is in Class 6, 7 or 8 at a CBSE school in Gurugram and the old guidebook from an older sibling no longer matches, this is why.
Which NCERT books CBSE Classes 6, 7 and 8 use in 2026-27
NCERT's textbook site lists these books, and each of the PDFs we checked is marked "Reprint 2026-27":
| Class | Mathematics | Science |
|---|---|---|
| Class 6 | Ganita Prakash (10 chapters) | Curiosity (12 chapters) |
| Class 7 | Ganita Prakash (8 chapters) and Ganita Prakash-II (7 chapters) | Curiosity (12 chapters) |
| Class 8 | Ganita Prakash Part-I (7 chapters) and Part-II (7 chapters) | Curiosity (13 chapters) |
NCERT says both series were written in line with NEP 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) 2023. The science book describes a shift from content-based to competency-based learning, with biology, chemistry, physics and earth science taught together in the middle years rather than as separate subjects.
The books are recent. The Class 6 books first appeared in 2024, the Class 7 Part 1 maths book and the Class 7 science book in April 2025, and the Class 8 books between June and July 2025. The second maths parts are the newest: Ganita Prakash-II for Class 7 first came out in October 2025 and Part-II for Class 8 in December 2025. That is why second-hand guides and many online notes do not yet match what your child sees in class.
Class 6 maths and science: chapter map and what is new
Ganita Prakash, Class 6: Patterns in Mathematics; Lines and Angles; Number Play; Data Handling and Presentation; Prime Time; Perimeter and Area; Fractions; Playing with Constructions; Symmetry; The Other Side of Zero. Learning Material Sheets at the back can be photocopied for activities.
Curiosity, Class 6: The Wonderful World of Science; Diversity in the Living World; Mindful Eating: A Path to a Healthy Body; Exploring Magnets; Measurement of Length and Motion; Materials Around Us; Temperature and its Measurement; A Journey through States of Water; Methods of Separation in Everyday Life; Living Creatures: Exploring their Characteristics; Nature's Treasures; Beyond Earth.
What stands out in Class 6 is the tone. The maths book opens with patterns, not with a list of number rules, and "The Other Side of Zero" brings negative numbers in as a story. Prime Time asks children to reason about factors and primes, not just list them. In science, the first chapter has no assessment exercises at all; NCERT calls it non-evaluative and uses it to show science as a way of asking questions. Children used to copying answers from a guide often find these books strange at first because many questions have more than one sensible answer.
More on this year: Class 6 maths tutors and Class 6 science tutors in Gurgaon.
Class 7: chapter map and the topics children find hardest
Ganita Prakash, Class 7 (Part 1): Large Numbers Around Us; Arithmetic Expressions; A Peek Beyond the Point; Expressions using Letter-Numbers; Parallel and Intersecting Lines; Number Play; A Tale of Three Intersecting Lines; Working with Fractions.
Ganita Prakash-II, Class 7: Geometric Twins; Operations with Integers; Finding Common Ground; Another Peek Beyond the Point; Connecting the Dots...; Constructions and Tilings; Finding the Unknown.
Curiosity, Class 7: The Ever-Evolving World of Science; Exploring Substances: Acidic, Basic, and Neutral; Electricity: Circuits and their Components; The World of Metals and Non-metals; Changes Around Us: Physical and Chemical; Adolescence: A Stage of Growth and Change; Heat Transfer in Nature; Measurement of Time and Motion; Life Processes in Animals; Life Processes in Plants; Light: Shadows and Reflections; Earth, Moon, and the Sun.
Class 7 is where algebra starts in earnest. "Expressions using Letter-Numbers" introduces letters standing for numbers, and "Finding the Unknown" in Part II moves towards solving for them. The two decimal chapters ("A Peek Beyond the Point" and "Another Peek Beyond the Point") are a common sticking point, because children who are shaky on place value make the same mistake in both. "Geometric Twins" is about congruent shapes, and it is the first place where a child must give reasons, not just measure.
A typical slip in Class 7 algebra: a child writes 3a + 2a = 5a² because "you multiply letters". A tutor fixes this by going back to meaning: 3 apples plus 2 apples is 5 apples, so 3a + 2a = 5a. Another: in 2 × (x + 4), children multiply only the first term and write 2x + 4 instead of 2x + 8.
In science, electricity (circuits and components) and acids, bases and neutral substances are new and practical. Children who can draw a correct circuit diagram and explain why a bulb does not glow are well set up for later classes.
More on this year: Class 7 maths tutors and Class 7 science tutors in Gurgaon.
Class 8: chapter map and what Class 9 will assume
Ganita Prakash Part-I, Class 8: A Square and A Cube; Power Play; A Story of Numbers; Quadrilaterals; Number Play; We Distribute, Yet Things Multiply; Proportional Reasoning-1.
Ganita Prakash Part-II, Class 8: Fractions in Disguise; The Baudhayana-Pythagoras Theorem; Proportional Reasoning-2; Exploring Some Geometric Themes; Tales by Dots and Lines; Algebra Play; Area.
Curiosity, Class 8: Exploring the Investigative World of Science; The Invisible Living World: Beyond Our Naked Eye; Health: The Ultimate Treasure; Electricity: Magnetic and Heating Effects; Exploring Forces; Pressure, Winds, Storms, and Cyclones; Particulate Nature of Matter; Nature of Matter: Elements, Compounds, and Mixtures; The Amazing World of Solutes, Solvents, and Solutions; Light: Mirrors and Lenses; Keeping Time with the Skies; How Nature Works in Harmony; Our Home: Earth, a Unique Life Sustaining Planet.
Class 8 matters because CBSE's Class 9 is also new from 2026-27. The Class 9 maths books are Ganita Manjari (Part I and Part II), and the 2026-27 Class 9 syllabus includes Introduction to Polynomials, Exploring Algebraic Identities, Linear Equations in Two Variables, Coordinate Geometry and Triangles – Congruence Theorems. The Class 8 chapters that feed these most directly are "We Distribute, Yet Things Multiply" (expanding brackets and identities), "Power Play" (exponents), "Algebra Play" and "The Baudhayana-Pythagoras Theorem".
A quick check of Class 8 readiness: can your child expand (x + 3)(x + 5) to get x² + 8x + 15, and say why the middle term is 8x? Can they find the third side of a right triangle with sides 5 and 12 (it is 13, since 25 + 144 = 169)? If either takes a long struggle, that is the place to work before Class 9.
In science, "Particulate Nature of Matter" and "Elements, Compounds, and Mixtures" lead straight into the Class 9 unit Matter – Its Nature and Behaviour, which carries 25 of the 80 marks in CBSE's 2026-27 Class 9 Science paper. "Exploring Forces" leads into Motion, Force, Work and Sound, which carries 23. More on this year: Class 8 maths tutors and Class 8 science tutors in Gurgaon.
How the activity-based style changes homework and tests
The books themselves explain how they are meant to be used. In Ganita Prakash, questions are gathered under the heading "Figure it Out", and some are marked "Math Talk" for class discussion. NCERT tells teachers that trying to "cover" all the problems must not come at the cost of time spent playing with them and discussing them. In Curiosity, boxes such as "Do you know?", "More to know!", "Think it over!", "More to do!" and "Know a scientist" are non-evaluative, which means they are there for interest and are not meant to be tested. Each science chapter ends with Keywords and a Summary.
For families, this changes a few things:
- Homework takes thinking, not copying. Many questions ask "why" or "what would happen if", and there is no single line in the book to copy.
- School tests vary more between schools. Each school sets its own Class 6–8 tests, and some lean on activity-style questions while others still ask for definitions. Look at a returned test paper to see which style your school uses.
- Activities need materials. Some science activities need simple things at home: a magnet, a torch, a thermometer. Doing a few properly helps more than reading about many.
- Writing reasons matters. A correct answer with no reason often gets part marks in the new style. Children need practice writing two or three clear sentences.
What this means for ICSE and Haryana Board families
The books above are NCERT's, and CBSE schools that follow NCERT use them. If your child is at an ICSE school, ask the school which books and topics it uses in Classes 6 to 8; the CISCE syllabus that parents usually see is the one for the ICSE examination at the end of Class 10, and our Class 6–8 home tutor page explains how a tutor adapts to that. Haryana Board families should check the book list the school gives out and the notices on bseh.org.in. We do not repeat claims about either board's middle-school books that the boards themselves have not published.
For families near Sector 4, Sector 49 or Sector 54, the question comes up because schools there, such as Blue Bells Model School, DAV Public School and Suncity School, follow CBSE.
How a tutor should use the new books
The fastest way to undo the point of these books is to teach from a guide that gives one answer per question to memorise. A good tutor for Classes 6–8 in 2026-27 should:
- Teach from the NCERT chapter itself, doing the "Figure it Out" questions with the child and talking through the "Math Talk" ones.
- Build the core skills underneath: place value and decimals, fractions, negative numbers, and simple algebra. The chapter names change; these skills do not.
- Do the science activities, or at least the ones that are safe at home, and have the child write what they saw and why.
- Use the Keywords and Summary at the end of each Curiosity chapter as a quick revision check before school tests.
- Look ahead to Class 9 in Class 8, especially algebraic identities, exponents and the matter chapters, without rushing into the Class 9 books.
For how a tutor spreads this over the school year, see our term-by-term maths and science plan. For the board view of the same subjects, see CBSE maths tutors and CBSE science tutors in Gurgaon.
How NXTutors can help
NXTutors is based in Sector 66, Gurugram, and arranges home tutoring across Gurugram and online tutoring across India. Tell us your child's class, board, subjects and area, and we suggest two or three matched tutors who teach the current books. You see each tutor's fee before the demo, the first class is a free demo, and switching tutor later is free.
Start with Class 6–8 home tutors in Gurgaon, or browse all local options on our page of home tutors in Gurgaon.
Frequently asked questions
What is the new NCERT maths book for Class 6?
The new NCERT maths book for Class 6 is Ganita Prakash, with ten chapters running from Patterns in Mathematics to The Other Side of Zero. Class 7 uses Ganita Prakash and Ganita Prakash-II, and Class 8 uses Ganita Prakash Part-I and Part-II. NCERT's PDFs for these books are marked Reprint 2026-27.
What is the NCERT science book for Classes 6 to 8?
The NCERT science book for Classes 6 to 8 is called Curiosity, with a Hindi edition named Jigyasa, and each class has its own volume. Class 6 and Class 7 have twelve chapters each and Class 8 has thirteen. Biology, chemistry, physics and earth science are taught together in these years rather than as separate subjects.
Are old NCERT guides still useful for Classes 6 to 8?
Old NCERT guides are only partly useful for Classes 6 to 8, because the chapter names, order and question style have all changed. An older sibling's guide will not match your child's book, and the newest maths parts appeared only in late 2025. Basic skills such as fractions, decimals and simple equations are still worth practising from any source.
Are the "Do you know?" boxes in NCERT Curiosity tested?
The "Do you know?" boxes in NCERT Curiosity are not meant to be tested; NCERT describes them, along with "Know a scientist", as non-evaluative. They are there for interest and exploration. Your child's school sets its own Class 6–8 tests, so check a recent returned paper to see what it actually asks.
Does my child need a tutor for the new Class 6–8 NCERT books?
Your child does not always need a tutor for the new Class 6–8 NCERT books, but one helps when a specific skill is slipping. That is usually when a child is losing confidence in fractions, decimals or early algebra, or when homework turns into copying answers. A free demo class is a low-risk way to see whether it helps.
Do ICSE schools in Gurugram use Ganita Prakash and Curiosity?
ICSE schools in Gurugram may not use Ganita Prakash and Curiosity, since these are NCERT books written for the NCERT curriculum that CBSE schools follow. We have not seen a CISCE book list for Classes 6 to 8. Ask your child's ICSE school which books and topics it uses in these classes before buying anything.
Which Class 8 maths chapters matter most before CBSE Class 9?
The Class 8 maths chapters that matter most before CBSE Class 9 are We Distribute, Yet Things Multiply, Power Play, Algebra Play and The Baudhayana-Pythagoras Theorem. They feed the new Class 9 chapters on polynomials, algebraic identities and triangles. A quick check: can your child expand (x + 3)(x + 5) and explain why the middle term is 8x?
