CBSE Class 9 Social Science Syllabus 2026-27 - Download PDF Here

Themes

Concepts

Understanding Social Science

• Meaning, scope and relevance of Social Science

• Understanding Social Science from an Indian perspective

Shaping of the Earth’s Surface

• Theory of plate tectonics

• Interior of the Earth

• Role of weathering and erosion; agents of gradation — river, waves and currents, wind, glaciers, and underground water

• Landforms and disasters: earthquakes, landslides, avalanches, Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) and duststorms

Atmosphere and Climate

• Structure and composition; elements of weather and climate

• Seasons of India and monsoons

• Climate change

• Floods Carbon footprint

Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation

• Cultural development from 2 million years ago

• Early human history, periodisation: Archaeological ages

• Who are human ancestors?

• Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers and use of stone tools

• Mesolithic transition to food production: Mesolithic sites and tools

• Neolithic and the beginning of farming: Neolithic revolution, domestication of plants and animals

• Harappan and contemporary cultures

• Mesopotamian, Egyptian, and Chinese civilisation

State and Society

• Vedic Age — geography; texts; rituals; political institutions, and social order

• Administrative structure of early empires

• Quest for knowledge — educational heritage, institutions, knowledge traditions, and cultural practices

• Traders and trade routes, guilds and merchants, crafts and industries

Democracy

• Meaning, features and types of democracy

• Roots of democracy in India

• Challenges to democracy in India

• Democratic systems in the world

Elections

• Factors of importance of elections

• Electoral systems

• Delimitation Commission

• Election Commission of India and its role

• Constituency, electoral rolls, enumerators

• Party system in India

Building Blocks in Economics

• Scarcity of resources, opportunity cost and the need for making choices. What do economists do?

• What to produce, how to produce, and for whom to produce?

• Difference between market, centrally planned, and mixed economic systems

• Welfare economy

The Price Puzzle: What Drives the Market

• Laws of demand and supply

• Real-world deviations from textbook theory, such as in the case of necessities, luxury goods, perishable items, and expectations

• Some related concepts — price ceilings and market failures (externalities, information asymmetry, public goods)

Themes

Concepts

Oceans and Life

• Introduction to ocean relief, movement of ocean water- waves, tides and currents

• Marine resources and their significance; open seas, navigation, fishing, and livelihood concerns and challenges

• Cyclones and Tsunamis — early warning systems

• International maritime rules and regulations

Life on Earth

• Biomes: Distribution and characteristics; biosphere reserves in India

• Forest and ecotourism; forest dwellers, their livelihoods, and challenges

• Forest and wildlife conservation

• Government efforts to support forest dwellers

Resistance and Resilience (1000 CE– 1700 CE)

• Safeguarding sovereignty: resistance, alliances and confederacies

• Development of art and architecture, languages and literature

• The Bhakti tradition

• Forts and fortifications

• Expansion of Indian economy and state

India and the World-I (1900 BCE1200 CE)

• Trade and commerce — trade with Mesopotamia, Greece, Roman Empire, China and Southeast Asia

• Cultural Connections — Interactions with Greece and Rome, Central Asia, China, and Influence on Southeast Asia

• Indian Knowledge Systems — Medicine, Mathematics and Astronomy, Religion

Authority

• The Roots of Authority: in Kautilya and Shukraniti- danda and relationship with nyaya and bala; the types of nyaya and bala

• Constitutional status of justice and security since ancient times

• Links the role of citizens with the elections and the democratic institutions

• Types of authority — functional, sensitive, and welfare-oriented

From Ideas to Startups

• What is entrepreneurship, and explain the resources required to start a business

• Case studies of successful entrepreneurs

• Creative destruction with examples

• Start-up ecosystem in India

• Make in India initiative, role of MSMEs and the unorganised sector in India’s economic growth

• Stages of starting and executing a business idea through a business plan

• Some basic accounting concepts

Smart Ways to Manage Your Finances

• Relevance of personal financial management in daily life

• Inflation and its impact on purchasing power

• Simple vs. compound interest rate

• Budgeting

• Various savings and investment options like fixed deposit, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc.

• Risk and insurance

• Personal income tax

Name of the book

Publisher

Social Science-Part 1

NCERT

Social Science-Part 2

NCERT