Chapter 7 of 7

100%

Rajasthan (RBSE)Class 9 English★ 5–7 marks · RBSE Class 9 English board (Beehive — Prose)

Reach for the Top

RBSE Class 9 English (Beehive) Chapter 7 — two true stories of women who reached the top against the odds. Part I follows Santosh Yadav, the first woman to climb Everest twice; Part II follows tennis champion Maria Sharapova's rise to world No. 1. Summary, themes, character notes and RBSE board-pattern questions with model answers. Paired poem: "On Killing a Tree" by Gieve Patel.

⏱ 22 min readEasy difficulty✓ Free · NCERT-aligned

Worksheet

Podcast

Listen as a conversation

A teacher & a student talk through the chapter — in your language.

Mind Map

The chapter at a glance

Every concept and exam-favourite branch — revisable in 5 minutes.

…

Study Guide

Night-before notes

Key points, glossary and the questions most likely to show up.

…

VocabularyBuild your vocabularyLexiGenome mines the key words and schedules them with spaced repetition.Mine words →

By the end of this chapter you'll be able to…

1Recount Santosh Yadav's journey from a Haryana village to climbing Everest twice
2Recount Maria Sharapova's rise from Siberia to World No. 1
3Compare the obstacles each woman overcame and how
4Identify the themes of determination, breaking barriers and sacrifice
5Answer board-pattern short and value-based questions with textual support

💡

Why this chapter matters

Two real-life success stories packed with value-based content (determination, breaking barriers, sacrifice). A reliable source for value-based long answers and short fact-recall questions, and a popular set for comprehension passages.

Reach for the Top — RBSE Class 9 English (Beehive)

Two girls, two very different worlds — a Haryana village and a Siberian town — and one shared refusal to accept limits. One conquered the highest mountain on Earth twice; the other conquered the tennis world. Both show what grit, sacrifice and self-belief can achieve.

RBSE note (2026-27). Class 9 English follows the NCERT Beehive reader; BSER (Ajmer) sets the exam.

Part I — Santosh Yadav

Santosh Yadav was born in a small village in Haryana, the only daughter after five sons, in a society that often did not welcome girls. She defied convention from the start — even choosing her own name ("Santosh" means contentment). She insisted on a proper education, leaving home to study and later joining Maharani College, Jaipur.

Drawn to mountaineering after watching climbers near her hostel, she trained at the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, Uttarkashi. In 1992 she climbed Mount Everest, becoming one of the youngest women to do so, and in 1993 she climbed it again — the first woman in the world to scale Everest twice. She is remembered for her courage (she once saved a fellow climber by sharing her oxygen), her concern for the environment (she brought back garbage from the slopes), and the Padma Shri awarded for her achievements.

Part II — Maria Sharapova

Maria Sharapova rose to World No. 1 in women's tennis at just eighteen (2005). Born in Siberia (Russia), she left home at the age of nine to train in the United States, enduring painful separation from her mother and loneliness and bullying by older girls at the academy. Rather than break her, this hardened her resolve. Disciplined and single-minded, she reached the very top — yet remains proud to be Russian and has varied interests beyond tennis. Her story is one of sacrifice and mental toughness.

Themes

Determination and hard work overcome any disadvantage.
Breaking gender and social barriers (especially Santosh's story).
Sacrifice — both left home young to chase a dream.
Self-belief and courage, plus (in Santosh) care for others and the environment.

Characters

Santosh Yadav — fearless mountaineer; first woman to climb Everest twice; Padma Shri.
Maria Sharapova — world No. 1 tennis player; resilient, disciplined.

Quick recap

Santosh Yadav: Haryana village → defied gender norms → Everest 1992 and 1993 (first woman twice); brave, eco-conscious; Padma Shri.
Maria Sharapova: Siberia → left home at 9 for the US → World No. 1 at 18; endured loneliness/bullying; mentally tough; proud Russian.
Themes: determination, breaking barriers, sacrifice, self-belief.
Paired poem "On Killing a Tree" (Gieve Patel): a tree cannot be killed by a simple cut — only by uprooting it — a study of resilience.

Key formulas & results

Everything you need to memorise, in one card. Screenshot this for revision.

Part I subject

Santosh Yadav (Haryana mountaineer)

First woman to climb Everest twice (1992 & 1993).

Part II subject

Maria Sharapova (Russian tennis player)

World No. 1 at eighteen (2005).

Santosh's barriers

Gender bias; only daughter after five sons

Chose her own name; insisted on education.

Maria's sacrifice

Left home for the US at age nine

Separation from mother; loneliness and bullying.

Theme

Determination; breaking barriers; sacrifice; self-belief

Grit overcomes disadvantage.

⚠️

Common mistakes & fixes

These are the exact errors that cost students marks in board exams. Read them once, save yourself the trouble.

WATCH OUT

✗ Saying Santosh climbed Everest once

✓ She climbed it TWICE — in 1992 and again in 1993 — the first woman in the world to do so.

WATCH OUT

✗ Confusing the two parts

✓ Part I is Santosh Yadav (mountaineering); Part II is Maria Sharapova (tennis). They are separate stories under one title.

WATCH OUT

✗ Saying Maria left home at eighteen

✓ She left home for training in the US at NINE; she became World No. 1 at eighteen.

WATCH OUT

✗ Forgetting Santosh's character traits

✓ Beyond courage, note her concern for the environment (brought back garbage) and for others (shared her oxygen to save a climber); she won the Padma Shri.

NCERT exercises (with solutions)

Every NCERT exercise from this chapter — what it covers and how many questions to expect.

Oral comprehension checks

In-text questions on both parts

Questions

Thinking about the Text

Obstacles, qualities and achievements of both women

Questions

Thinking about Language / Writing

Word study; a short paragraph on a role model / determination

Questions

Practice problems

Try each one yourself before tapping "Show solution". Active recall > rereading.

Q1EASY· Fact-recall

Who was the first woman to climb Mount Everest twice?

▶ Show solution

Santosh Yadav, in 1992 and 1993.

✦ Answer: Santosh Yadav.

Q2EASY· Fact-recall

At what age did Maria Sharapova become World No. 1?

▶ Show solution

At eighteen, in 2005.

✦ Answer: eighteen.

Q3EASY· Detail

Where was Santosh Yadav born?

▶ Show solution

In a small village in Haryana, the only daughter after five sons.

✦ Answer: a village in Haryana.

Q4MEDIUM· Comprehension

What obstacles did Santosh Yadav overcome to pursue her dreams?

▶ Show solution

Step 1 — Born into a conservative society that did not welcome girls, she had to fight gender prejudice from birth.

Step 2 — She insisted on a proper education, left home to study, and trained as a mountaineer against expectations.

✦ Answer: gender bias and social convention, which she defied through education and determination.

Q5MEDIUM· Comprehension

What hardships did Maria Sharapova face on her way to the top?

▶ Show solution

Step 1 — She left home for the US at nine, enduring painful separation from her mother.

Step 2 — At the academy she faced loneliness and was bullied by older girls — which only hardened her resolve.

✦ Answer: separation from her mother, loneliness and bullying — all of which strengthened her determination.

Q6MEDIUM· Character

Mention two qualities of Santosh Yadav besides courage.

▶ Show solution

Step 1 — Concern for the environment — she brought back garbage left on the slopes by climbers.

Step 2 — Concern for others — she once saved a fellow climber's life by sharing her oxygen.

✦ Answer: environmental awareness and selfless concern for others.

Q7HARD· Value-based

What common lesson do the two stories teach?

▶ Show solution

Step 1 — Both women began with serious disadvantages (gender bias; early separation and bullying).

Step 2 — Both refused to accept limits and worked with single-minded determination.

Step 3 — Both reached the very top, proving that grit and self-belief overcome circumstance.

✦ Answer: determination, sacrifice and self-belief can overcome any disadvantage.

Q8HARD· Long-answer

Compare the obstacles faced by Santosh Yadav and Maria Sharapova.

▶ Show solution

Step 1 — Santosh fought social and gender prejudice in a village that did not value girls.

Step 2 — Maria fought loneliness, separation from her mother and bullying after leaving home young.

Step 3 — Different obstacles, same response: discipline, hard work and refusal to give up.

✦ Answer: Santosh battled social/gender barriers, Maria battled isolation and hardship — but both triumphed through determination.

5-minute revision

The whole chapter, distilled. Read this the night before the exam.

•Part I — Santosh Yadav: Haryana village, only daughter after five sons; defied gender norms; chose her own name; insisted on education (Maharani College, Jaipur).
•Trained at Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, Uttarkashi; climbed Everest in 1992 and again in 1993 — first woman to do so twice.
•Brave and caring: shared oxygen to save a climber; brought back garbage from the slopes; awarded the Padma Shri.
•Part II — Maria Sharapova: born in Siberia; left home for the US at nine; endured separation, loneliness and bullying.
•Disciplined and single-minded; World No. 1 at eighteen (2005); proud to be Russian.
•Themes: determination, breaking gender/social barriers, sacrifice, self-belief.
•Paired poem 'On Killing a Tree' (Gieve Patel): a tree is hard to kill — it must be uprooted — a study of deep-rooted resilience.

Rajasthan (RBSE) marks blueprint

Where the marks come from in this chapter — so you can plan your prep.

Typical chapter weightage: 5–7 marks

Question type	Marks each	Typical count	What it tests
MCQ / extract-based	1	1–2	Facts about both women
Short answer	2	2	Obstacles and qualities of each
Long / value-based	3	1	Common lesson; comparison of the two

Prep strategy

Keep the two parts clearly separate (Santosh = mountaineering; Maria = tennis)
Memorise key facts: Everest 1992 & 1993; World No. 1 at 18; left home at 9
Prepare a value-based answer on determination and breaking barriers
List Santosh's extra qualities (environment, saving a climber, Padma Shri)

Where this shows up in the real world

This chapter isn't just an exam topic — it lives in the world around you.

Role models

Real-life examples for speeches, essays and value-education on perseverance.

Gender equality

Santosh's story is a ready example of breaking gender barriers.

Sports & goal-setting

Maria's discipline illustrates focus, sacrifice and long-term goals.

Exam strategy

Battle-tested tips from teachers and toppers for this chapter.

Always keep the two parts distinct in your answers.
Anchor value-based answers in concrete facts (Everest twice; left home at nine).
Spell names correctly (Santosh Yadav, Maria Sharapova, Uttarkashi).
Use Gieve Patel's 'On Killing a Tree' if the paired poem is asked.

Going beyond the textbook

For olympiad aspirants and curious learners — topics that build on this chapter.

Biographical sketch vs profile writing.
How parallel structure (two parts) reinforces a single theme.
Resilience as a literary motif — link the prose to 'On Killing a Tree'.

Where else this chapter is tested

CBSE board isn't the only one — other exams test this chapter too.

RBSE Class 9 Annual (BSER Ajmer)High — value-based and short-answer questions

NTSE / NMMSMedium — comprehension and GK overlap

CBSE / other boards (Beehive)High — same prescribed text

English Olympiad (IEO)Medium — inference and theme

AI helpers for this chapter

Generate more practice on the fly, or have the chapter explained at a different level.

⚡

Generate 5 more questions

Fresh MCQs + short-answer items based on this chapter, plus answer keys.

🧠

Explain at a different level

Re-explain the chapter at the level you actually want.

📝 My notes

Saved on this device — sign in to sync · how this works

0/600

Questions students ask

The real ones — pulled from the Q&A community and tutor sessions.

Yes — RBSE English-medium follows the NCERT Beehive reader. 'Reach for the Top' is Chapter 7, in two parts (Santosh Yadav and Maria Sharapova). BSER (Ajmer) sets the RBSE paper.

It pairs two true stories of women who reached the top against the odds — a mountaineer and a tennis champion — to reinforce one theme: determination overcomes disadvantage.

'On Killing a Tree' by Gieve Patel — it shows that a tree cannot be killed by a simple cut; it must be uprooted and dried out, a striking image of resilience and the strength of living things.

She was the first woman in the world to scale Everest twice (1992 and 1993), and she was known for her courage, her care for fellow climbers and her concern for the environment; she received the Padma Shri.

Practice more, ask doubts, find a tutor

Rajasthan (RBSE) Class 9 mock tests

Rajasthan (RBSE) Class 9 PYQs

Ask in Q&A

English flashcards

Related chapters

Students who read Reach for the Top usually read these next.

The Fun They Had

RBSE Class 9 English (Beehive) Chapter 1 — Isaac Asimov's science-fiction story set in 2157, where children are taught at home by mechanical teachers. Through Margie and Tommy's discovery of a real, printed book, it imagines a lonely future of learning and makes us value the human, social school of today. Summary, themes and RBSE board-pattern questions with answers.

The Sound of Music

RBSE Class 9 English (Beehive) Chapter 2 — two true stories of musical genius. Part I follows Evelyn Glennie, the profoundly deaf Scottish girl who became the world's greatest solo percussionist; Part II celebrates Ustad Bismillah Khan, who made the shehnai a concert instrument. Summary, themes, character notes and RBSE board-pattern questions with model answers. Paired poem: "Wind" by Subramania Bharati.

The Little Girl

RBSE Class 9 English (Beehive) Chapter 3 — Katherine Mansfield's tender story of Kezia, a girl who fears her stern father, until one frightening night reveals the love beneath his strictness. A study of parent–child relationships and changing perceptions, with summary, themes, character notes and RBSE board-pattern questions with model answers. Paired poem: "Rain on the Roof" by Coates Kinney.

A Truly Beautiful Mind

RBSE Class 9 English (Beehive) Chapter 4 — a biography of Albert Einstein, the boy once thought dull who grew into the greatest physicist of the age and a passionate campaigner for peace. From E = mc² to his letter warning of the atom bomb, summary, themes, character notes and RBSE board-pattern questions with model answers. Paired poem: "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" by W. B. Yeats.

🧑‍🏫