HBBVS Syllabus 2026-27 for Class 9: Chapter-wise Guide

The HBBVS syllabus for Class 9 is not a separate topic list. The Greater Bombay Science Teachers' Association (GBSTA), which conducts the Dr. Homi Bhabha Balvaidnyanik Competition, states that most written-test questions come from Maharashtra State Board science textbooks of Std 7, 8 and 9, along with related content from CBSE, ICSE and IB books, plus general knowledge in science.

GBSTA publishes the share of questions from each textbook but not a chapter-wise syllabus. The chapter lists below are taken from the current Maharashtra State Board (Balbharati) science textbooks and grouped by subject so you can plan revision. Use them as a working checklist, not as an official list. The page also covers the practical round, the interviews and a plan for the weeks left before the 28 November 2026 written round.

Table of Contents

• HBBVS Class 9 Syllabus at a Glance

• Key Points for 2026-27

• Std 9 Syllabus (About 60 Percent)

• Std 8 Syllabus (About 20 Percent)

• Std 7 Syllabus (About 10 Percent)

• General Knowledge in Science (About 10 Percent)

• Topics That Run Through Std 7, 8 and 9

• What Previous Papers Show

• For CBSE, ICSE and Other Board Students

• Syllabus for the Practical and Interview Rounds

• Common Syllabus Mistakes to Avoid

• How to Cover the Syllabus

HBBVS Class 9 Syllabus

The written test has 100 multiple choice questions for 100 marks in 90 minutes. For the full stage-wise structure.

What this means for you

• Std 9 is where the marks are: About 60 questions come from 18 chapters, an average of more than three questions per chapter. No Std 9 chapter can be skipped.

• Std 8 is roughly one question per chapter: Focus on the concepts that lead into Std 9 rather than every detail.

• Std 7 is spread thin: About 10 questions over 20 chapters. Revise core ideas and diagrams, not full chapters.

• GK can decide your rank: With cut-offs often in the 40s and 50s, the 10 general knowledge questions matter.

Key Points for 2026-27

• Textbooks are unchanged this year: According to Balbharati's May 2026 announcement, new textbooks came in for Std 2, 3, 4 and 6 in 2026-27. The Std 7, 8 and 9 science books used for HBBVS Class 9 remain the same.

• Change coming in 2027-28: 2026-27 is the last year for the current Std 7 and Std 9 textbooks. Students and teachers preparing for future cycles should watch for a revised syllabus base.

• Application over recall: GBSTA says there will be less emphasis on knowledge-based questions and more on understanding, reasoning, correlation and application, including science in day-to-day life.

• No official chapter list: Pages that present a fixed subject-wise marks split are not quoting GBSTA. The only official breakdown is by textbook.

Std 9 Syllabus (About 60 Percent)

The Maharashtra State Board Std 9 Science and Technology textbook has 18 chapters. Grouped by subject, they look like this.

The "start with" chapters are suggestions, not official priorities. They are chosen because they carry numericals, laws or concepts that later chapters and the practical round build on. Physics numericals on motion, work, energy and electricity are worth practising until you can solve them quickly, since a 90-minute paper leaves little time for long calculations.

Std 8 Syllabus (About 20 Percent)

Inside the Atom, Cell and Cell Organelles, and Force and Pressure are the most useful Std 8 chapters because Std 9 topics depend on them directly. Heat appears in Std 8 but not as a separate Std 9 chapter, so revise it here.

Std 7 Syllabus (About 10 Percent)

For Std 7, a quick read of chapter summaries, diagrams and key terms is usually enough. Magnetism and static electricity are worth a closer look, since they are not repeated in detail later.

General Knowledge in Science (About 10 Percent)

GBSTA describes this part as general knowledge in science and science around day-to-day life. There is no fixed list, so prepare broadly.

• Indian space and science missions: Recent ISRO missions, satellites and human spaceflight plans.

• Recent discoveries and technology: Developments in health, genetics, energy and communication that are reported in the news.

• Scientists and institutions: Major Indian and world scientists, their contributions and key national research institutions.

• Everyday science: Why common things happen, from cooking and cleaning to weather and household devices.

Spend 15 to 20 minutes a day on science news and keep short monthly notes. Questions in this section often connect a current development to a textbook concept.

Topics That Run Through Std 7, 8 and 9

Many HBBVS topics are built across three textbooks. Studying them as one chain saves time and covers all three weightage buckets together.

A practical way to use this table: revise one row at a time, starting with the Std 7 chapter and finishing with the Std 9 chapter, then solve questions on the whole chain.

What Previous Papers Show

GBSTA publishes previous theory papers and answer keys on its website. The Std 9 English paper from the 2024-25 cycle had 100 questions of 1 mark each, with a time limit of one hour thirty minutes. No negative marking is printed in its instructions.

Questions in that paper were spread across physics, chemistry and biology, with a smaller share on environment, space, technology and current science. Examples include questions on distance and displacement, image formation by mirrors, chemical bonding, cell biology, gene editing, Indian satellites and the Gaganyaan mission. Many questions tested reasoning or application rather than a straight definition.

Solving two or three official papers early tells you more about the level than any topic list. Check your answers against the revised answer keys, not the first versions.

For CBSE, ICSE and Other Board Students

Students from all boards can take part, and other-board students are ranked in a separate category. Even so, the paper is built mainly on State Board textbooks, so a few chapters may be new to you.

• Map your book to the State Board list: Tick off the Std 9 chapters above that your own textbook covers, then read the State Board version of the rest.

• CBSE students in 2026-27: CBSE Class 9 students now use NCERT's new science textbook, Exploration. Its chapter names differ from the State Board book, so match by concept rather than by title.

• Watch for State Board-specific chapters: Chapters such as Information Communication Technology, Observing Space: Telescopes and Substances in Common Use may have no direct match in other books.

Syllabus for the Practical and Interview Rounds

Stage 2: Practical round

The Class 9 practical has one physics experiment, one chemistry experiment and 10 biology questions based on 10 specimens, with 10 minutes and 10 marks for each section. GBSTA does not announce the experiments in advance. Its practical sample questions show the style: measurement, observation, simple tests and identification.

• Physics: Measuring length, mass, time and temperature; reading scales correctly; simple experiments on light, sound, electricity and motion.

• Chemistry: Indicator tests for acids and bases, identifying common substances and recording observations neatly.

• Biology: Identifying specimens such as plants, plant parts, microbes and animal groups, and stating a key feature of each.

Stages 3 and 4: Interviews

The general interview has no syllabus. It tests general awareness in science and how clearly you explain ideas. The action research interview is based on your own project, built on standard-wise topics that GBSTA publishes on its website. In 2025-26, these topic lists appeared in January.

Common Syllabus Mistakes to Avoid

• Studying only the Std 9 book: That leaves about 30 questions from Std 7, Std 8 and general knowledge unprepared.

• Learning definitions without reasons: The paper favours "why" and "what happens if" questions, so practise explaining each concept in a sentence of your own.

• Skipping diagrams and tables: Many textbook diagrams, such as ray diagrams, cell structures and classification charts, turn into direct questions.

• Ignoring the practical round until January: The practical is only eight weeks after the written round. Handling basic apparatus during school practicals now saves time later.

• Relying on unofficial topic splits: Plan from the official textbook weightage and real previous papers, not from marks splits that GBSTA has not published.

How to Cover the Syllabus

With about seven weeks to the written round on 28 November 2026, plan the syllabus in three phases.

1. Weeks 1 to 3: Complete all 18 Std 9 chapters. Make short notes of laws, formulas, definitions and diagrams for each one.

2. Weeks 3 to 5: Revise Std 8 and Std 7 using the topic chains above. Start daily science GK reading.

3. Weeks 5 to 7: Take full-length timed tests and official previous papers. Keep an error log and revise weak chapters from it.

Always confirm updates on the official website, msta.in.