NSO Syllabus 2026-27: Class-wise Topics for Classes 1 to 12
The NSO syllabus is published class by class by the Science Olympiad Foundation (SOF), and it follows the school curriculum of CBSE, ICSE and state boards. If you study the right chapters of your own class and revise the previous class, you have covered the NSO syllabus. This page lists the topics for every class from 1 to 12, along with the rules that decide how the questions are drawn from them.
SOF's syllabus pages are organised under the International Science Olympiad (ISO) name, and the same pages are known as the NSO syllabus in search results. The topic lists below follow SOF's class-wise pages as seen on 27 October 2026. SOF can revise a list between sessions, so check your class page on the official website before you finalise your plan.
Table of Contents
NSO syllabus at a glance
Rules that shape the syllabus
Syllabus for Classes 1 to 4
Syllabus for Classes 5 to 10
Syllabus for Classes 11 and 12
What overlaps between Level 1 and Level 2
How to cover the syllabus
Official syllabus links
NSO syllabus at a glance
Classes | Subject sections | Questions and marks (Level 1) |
|---|---|---|
1 to 4 | Logical Reasoning, Science, Achievers Section | 35 questions, 40 marks |
5 to 10 | Logical Reasoning, Science, Achievers Section | 50 questions, 60 marks |
11 and 12 | Physics and Chemistry, Mathematics or Biology, Achievers Section | 50 questions, 60 marks |
Rules that shape the syllabus
60:40 in Level 1: About 60 percent of the questions come from the current class syllabus and 40 percent from the previous class. A Class 7 student should therefore revise Class 6 as well.
Current class only in Level 2: Level 2 questions come only from the current class syllabus.
Achievers Section: These higher-order thinking questions are drawn from the current class syllabus in both levels. For Classes 1 to 10 they are based on the Science section topics. For Classes 11 and 12 they are based on the Physics and Chemistry topics.
Reasoning is part of the paper: In Classes 1 to 10 the first section tests reasoning, which is not a school chapter. It needs separate practice.
Language: The paper is in English, so learn the English terms for science concepts if you study in another medium.
Syllabus for Classes 1 to 4
In these classes the science topics are simple and everyday. The reasoning topics are the same type of puzzle in every class, with the difficulty increasing each year. Class 1 and Class 2 students take only Level 1.
Class 1
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Patterns, odd one out, measuring units, geometrical shapes, spatial understanding, grouping of figures, analogy, ranking test, problems based on figures |
Science | Living and non-living things, plants, animals, human beings and their needs, good habits and safety rules, air and water, weather and the sky |
Class 2
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Patterns, odd one out, measuring units, geometrical shapes, analogy, ranking test, grouping of figures, embedded figures, coding-decoding |
Science | Plants, animals, human body, food, housing and clothing, family and festivals, good habits and safety rules, transport and communication, air, water and rocks, earth and universe |
Class 3
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Patterns, analogy and classification, alphabet test, coding-decoding, ranking test, grouping of figures and figure matrix, mirror images, geometrical shapes, embedded figures, possible combinations, clock and calendar |
Science | Plants and animals, birds, food, housing, clothing and occupation, transport, communication and safety rules, human body, earth and universe, matter and materials, light, sound and force, our environment |
Class 4
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Patterns, alphabet test, coding-decoding, ranking test, mirror images, geometrical shapes and solids, embedded figures, direction sense test, possible combinations, analogy and classification, clock and calendar |
Science | Plants, animals, food and digestion, human needs, matter and materials, force, work and energy, our environment, earth and universe |
In all four classes the Achievers Section asks higher-order questions based on the Science topics above.
Syllabus for Classes 5 to 10
From Class 6 onwards SOF lists the reasoning section simply as verbal and non-verbal reasoning, and the science section follows the chapters of the school science textbook. Class 5 still has a detailed reasoning list.
Class 5
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Patterns, analogy and classification, geometrical shapes, mirror and water images, direction sense test, ranking test, alphabet test, logical sequence of words, puzzle test, coding-decoding, clock and calendar |
Science | Animals, human body and health, plants, natural resources and Indian heritage, pollution and calamities, earth and universe, matter and materials, force and energy |
Class 6
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Verbal and non-verbal reasoning |
Science | The wonderful world of science, food and its components, materials around us, a journey through states of water, methods of separation, the living world and its diversity, exploring magnets, measurement of length and motion, temperature and its measurement, beyond earth, natural resources |
Class 7
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Verbal and non-verbal reasoning |
Science | The ever-evolving world of science, life processes in plants, life processes in animals, acidic, basic and neutral substances, the world of metals and non-metals, adolescence: a stage of growth and change, heat transfer in nature, changes around us (physical and chemical), measurement of time and motion, electricity: circuits and their components, light: shadows and reflections, earth, moon and the sun |
Class 8
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Verbal and non-verbal reasoning |
Science | Exploring the investigative world of science, the invisible living world beyond our naked eyes, health: the ultimate treasure, particulate nature of matter, elements, compounds and mixtures, how nature works in harmony, exploring forces, solute, solvent and solutions, electricity: magnetic and heating effects, light: mirrors and lenses, our home: Earth, a unique life-sustaining planet, pressure, winds, storms and cyclones, keeping time with the skies |
Class 9
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Verbal and non-verbal reasoning |
Science | Motion, force and laws of motion, gravitation, work and energy, sound, matter in our surroundings, is matter around us pure, atoms and molecules, structure of the atom, the cell as the fundamental unit of life, tissues, diversity in living organisms, human health and diseases, improvement in food resources |
Class 10
Section | Topics |
|---|---|
Logical Reasoning | Verbal and non-verbal reasoning |
Science | Chemical reactions and equations, acids, bases and salts, metals and non-metals, carbon and its compounds, life processes, control and coordination, reproduction in organisms, heredity, light: reflection and refraction, the human eye and the colourful world, electricity, magnetic effects of electric current, our environment |
Class 6 to 8 chapter names follow the newer school textbooks, so a student using an older book should match topics rather than titles.
Syllabus for Classes 11 and 12
The senior paper has three parts. Physics and Chemistry together have 25 questions, Mathematics or Biology has 20 questions and the Achievers Section has 5. A student chooses either Mathematics or Biology according to their stream.
Class 11
Subject | Topics |
|---|---|
Physics | Units and measurements, mechanics, properties of matter, heat and thermodynamics, oscillations, waves |
Chemistry | Some basic concepts of chemistry, structure of atom, classification of elements and periodicity in properties, chemical bonding and molecular structure, thermodynamics, equilibrium, redox reactions, organic chemistry (some basic principles and techniques), hydrocarbons |
Mathematics | Sets, relations and functions, logarithms, principle of mathematical induction, complex numbers and quadratic equations, linear inequalities, sequences and series, trigonometry, straight lines, conic sections, permutations and combinations, binomial theorem, statistics, limits and derivatives, probability, introduction to 3-D geometry |
Biology | Diversity in the living world, structural organisation in plants and animals, cell: structure and functions, plant physiology, human physiology |
Class 12
Subject | Topics |
|---|---|
Physics | Electricity and magnetism, electromagnetic induction, alternating current, electromagnetic waves, optics, modern physics, semiconductor electronics |
Chemistry | Solutions, electrochemistry, chemical kinetics, the d- and f-block elements, coordination compounds, haloalkanes and haloarenes, alcohols, phenols and ethers, aldehydes, ketones and carboxylic acids, amines, biomolecules |
Mathematics | Relations and functions, inverse trigonometric functions, matrices, determinants, continuity and differentiability, application of derivatives, integrals, application of integrals, differential equations, vector algebra, three-dimensional geometry, linear programming, probability |
Biology | Reproduction, genetics and evolution, biology in human welfare, biotechnology, ecology |
Because Level 1 draws about 40 percent of questions from the previous class, a Class 12 student should also keep the Class 11 lists above in revision.
What overlaps between Level 1 and Level 2
Area | Level 1 | Level 2 | How to plan |
|---|---|---|---|
Current class science | About 60 percent of questions | All science questions | Learn once, deeply. This pays off in both levels. |
Previous class science | About 40 percent of questions | Not asked | Revise lightly before Level 1 and drop it for Level 2. |
Logical reasoning | Separate section | Not a separate section for Classes 5 to 10 | Practise for speed in Level 1; carry the habit into Achievers questions. |
Achievers Section | Current class only | Current class only | Treat it as the main scoring edge in both levels. |
How to cover the syllabus
A syllabus this wide is easiest to handle in short phases. The plan below suits a student who has three to four months before Level 1. Shorten the phases if your date is closer.
Weeks 1 to 4, current class concepts: Read the textbook chapters listed for your class and write two-line notes for each. Do not move on if a chapter feels unclear.
Weeks 3 to 6, previous class revision: Skim the previous class chapters and note only formulas, definitions and diagrams.
Weeks 5 to 8, reasoning practice: Spend 15 minutes a day on patterns, series, coding and direction problems for Classes 1 to 10.
Weeks 8 to 10, chapter-wise tests: Attempt short tests on each chapter and keep an error log of wrong answers.
Final weeks, full papers: Solve official sample papers and timed mocks, then revise only from the error log.
Official syllabus links
Always confirm the final list for your class on SOF's site. Official website: https://sofworld.org/. The general syllabus page is https://sofworld.org/sof-nso-syllabus.
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