What Grade 10 notes are
Grade 10 notes are study and revision material for Senior School subjects – organised by topic and derived from KICD's Senior School curriculum design, so they follow what a learner is actually taught in each subject. They set out the content of a subject in a form a learner can read, study and revise from, and a teacher can use to prepare lessons. This page gathers the Grade 10 notes for every subject in one place, in editable format.
Grade 10 is the first year of Senior School, the fourth and final level of the Competency Based Curriculum, after Pre-Primary, Primary and Junior School. Because Senior School is where learners specialise, the notes a given learner needs depend on the subjects they are taking – so this page is organised to let you go straight to the subject you want.
How Grade 10 is structured
Senior School works differently from the grades below it. Rather than a single fixed set of learning areas that every learner studies, a Grade 10 learner takes seven learning areas: four compulsory, plus three chosen according to their pathway.
The four compulsory areas are English, Kiswahili (or Kenya Sign Language), Community Service Learning, and Physical Education. The remaining three are selected from one of three pathways – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM); Social Sciences; and Arts and Sports Science – based on the interests and strengths a learner has shown at earlier levels, with ICT skills offered across the board.
What this means in practice is that the notes a learner needs are specific to their chosen subjects. The browse section below follows exactly that structure – the compulsory areas first, then each pathway – so you can find the right notes without wading through subjects a learner isn't taking.
Browse Grade 10 notes by subject
Compulsory learning areas (every Grade 10 learner)
STEM pathway
- Mathematics
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Physics
- General Science
- Computer Science
- Agriculture
- Home Science
- Power Mechanics
The STEM pathway also includes several technical and engineering subjects – Building and Construction, Electrical Technology, Metal Technology, Wood Technology, Aviation Technology, Marine and Fisheries Technology and Media Technology among them. Open the all-subjects link at the foot of this page to reach any of these for Grade 10.
Social Sciences pathway
- Business Studies
- Geography
- History and Citizenship
- Christian Religious Education (CRE)
- Islamic Religious Education (IRE)
- Fasihi ya Kiswahili
The Social Sciences pathway also offers the foreign and additional languages – French, German – and Hindu Religious Education. Use the all-subjects link below to reach any of these for Grade 10.
Arts and Sports Science pathway
What you get in the files
The Grade 10 notes download in editable format, so a teacher can adapt them and a learner can study or revise from them. They are organised by topic, following the content set out in KICD's Senior School curriculum design for each subject. Alongside general CBC-aligned notes, some Grade 10 material is developed against specific KICD-approved publisher coursebooks – both sit under the same subject link, so open it and check the file titles to see which you are getting.
Who these are for
- Teachers – topic notes to prepare Senior School lessons from, matching the CBC curriculum design for each Grade 10 subject.
- Learners and home users – study and revision notes across your Grade 10 subjects, to read alongside your coursework or when preparing for a test.
- Parents, and anyone downloading on a learner's behalf (including from a cyber café or business centre) – Grade 10 is specialised, so a learner takes only some of the subjects listed. Confirm the exact subject the learner is taking, then download that subject's notes.
- Researchers and education-sector readers – these are the CBC study notes for the first year of Senior School, organised by the compulsory learning areas and the three subject pathways (STEM, Social Sciences, Arts and Sports Science).
Frequently Asked Questions
What do Grade 10 notes cover? Topic notes for Senior School subjects, following the content of KICD's curriculum design for each subject – written so a learner can study and revise from them and a teacher can prepare lessons.
How many subjects does a Grade 10 learner take? Seven learning areas: four compulsory (English, Kiswahili or Kenya Sign Language, Community Service Learning, and Physical Education) plus three chosen according to the learner's pathway.
What are the Senior School pathways? Three: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM); Social Sciences; and Arts and Sports Science. A learner picks their three optional subjects from a pathway based on the interest and ability they showed at earlier levels.
Are these aligned to the CBC Senior School curriculum? Yes. The notes follow the KICD Senior School curriculum design for each subject, so they match what learners are taught.
Are the notes tied to a particular coursebook? Some are. Alongside general CBC-aligned notes, we publish material developed against specific KICD-approved publisher coursebooks. Open a subject's link and check the file titles to see which a file follows.
I've been asked to download these for a learner – what do I check? The exact subject first, because Grade 10 is specialised and a learner takes only some of the subjects listed. Confirming the subject avoids fetching notes for a subject the learner isn't taking.
Looking for more Grade 10 material?
This page covers Grade 10 notes. For tests and revision papers, see our Grade 10 Exams & Assessments hub, which covers every Senior School subject. For notes at other levels, or for the wider notes collection, see the Notes hub. For everything at Senior School and other levels, start from our Exams & Assessments hub.
Download the Grade 10 notes
The Grade 10 notes, for every subject, are in our Senior School notes catalogue, organised by subject. Use the button below for the full Senior School notes collection, or the subject links above to go straight to the Grade 10 notes you need.