This fully-resourced lesson has been designed to cover the specification points about sex-linked characteristics as detailed in the supplement section of topic 17 (inheritance) of the CIE IGCSE Biology specification This resource consists of an engaging and detailed PowerPoint and an accompanying worksheet, which has been differentiated two ways so students who find the tasks difficult are given assistance to result in good outcomes. The lesson builds on the knowledge from earlier in the topic on monohybrid crosses and sex determination to show students how to draw genetic diagrams to calculate offspring outcomes when the gene is carried on the sex chromosomes. Step by step guides are used to demonstrate how to write the genotypes and gametes in these disorders by including the sex chromosomes to show gender. The lesson focuses on red-green colour blindness and haemophilia and builds up to questions on a pedigree tree to challenge the students to apply their new knowledge. This lesson has been designed for GCSE-aged students who are studying the CIE IGCSE Biology course but is suitable for A-level students who are looking at these types of genetic disorders.

This engaging and detailed lesson has been written to cover the content of points 7.6 & 7.7 (The hormonal and barrier methods of contraception) as detailed in the Edexcel GCSE Biology & Combined Science specifications. This is a topic which can be difficult to teach due to the awkwardness of a class or students believing that they already know all of the information without really knowing the detail which is laid out in the specification. With this in mind, a wide range of activities have been included in the lesson to maintain motivation whilst ensuring that this important detail is covered. Students will learn about a range of hormonal methods including oral contraceptives and progesterone patches and how these methods influence the menstrual cycle. Barrier methods are also discussed and their effectiveness considered. Time is taken to look at alternative methods such as abstaining from sexual intercourse before and after ovulation and sterilisation. Due to the clear link to the topic of the menstrual cycle, previous knowledge checks are written into the lesson and challenge the students on their knowledge of FSH, LH, oestrogen and progesterone. There are also mathematical skills check so that students are prepared for the added mathematical element in this course. This lesson has been written for GCSE-aged students who are studying on the Edexcel GCSE Biology or Combined Science courses but is suitable for younger students who are looking at contraception in their Science lessons

This resource has been designed to cover the higher tier content of specification point 7.8 as detailed in the Edexcel GCSE Biology & Combined Science specifications. The lesson takes the format of a day at a fertility clinic and students will see how three couples, who are at different stages of their currently unsuccessful journey to getting pregnant, are advised and the treatments that could be on offer to them. Discussion points are included throughout the lesson to encourage the students to talk about the Biology and to allow any misconceptions to be addressed if and when they arise. In addition, previous knowledge checks are regular so that the links between this topic and earlier ones such as the hormones in the menstrual cycle and contraception can be made. Students will be introduced to the abbreviation ART before learning how clomifene is used to treat infertility in women do not ovulate. Time is taken to explore alternative fertility drugs and students are challenged to explain why FSH and LH would be the reproductive hormones contained in these substances. The main focus of the lesson is IVF treatment and the main task culminates with students gaining a number of key points in the for and against argument before being challenged to continue this as a set homework in the form of an evaluation. Quiz competitions are used to introduce key terms in a fun and memorable way and the final task is a mathematical skills check where students will be able to compare the high number of multiple births that are associated with this treatment as compared to the number from natural births. This lesson has been designed for students studying the Edexcel GCSE Biology or Combined Science course but is also suitable for older students who are looking at this topic

This fully-resourced lesson explores how glucose as well as the other respiratory substrates, such as lipids and proteins, can enter the respiratory pathway and therefore can be respired to produce molecules of ATP. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points 12.1 (f) and (g) of the CIE International A-level Biology specification which states that students should be able to explain the relative energy values of carbohydrates, lipids and proteins and be able to determine respiratory quotients from equations. This lesson has been written to challenge current understanding as well as introduce details of glycolysis, the link reaction and Krebs cycle as these stages have yet to be covered fully. Students will learn that lipids and proteins can be used as respiratory substrates and will recognise the different ways that they enter the respiratory pathway. A quick quiz competition is used to introduce the relative energy value for carbohydrates and students are challenged to predict how the values for lipids and proteins will compare. As a result, students will recognise that a greater number of hydrogen atoms results in a greater availability of protons to form the proton gradient to fuel the production of ATP. The rest of the lesson focuses on the calculation of the respiratory quotient and time is taken to look at how the result can be interpreted to determine which substrates were respired.

This fully-resourced lesson explores how the structure of arteries, veins and capillaries relates to their functions. The engaging and detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 1.3 of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A (Salters Nuffield) specification. This lesson has been written to build on any prior knowledge from GCSE or earlier in this topic to enable students to fully understand why a particular type of blood vessel has particular features. Students will be able to make the connection between the narrow lumen and elastic tissue in the walls of arteries and the need to maintain the high pressure of the blood. A quick version of the GUESS WHO game is used to introduce smooth muscle and collagen in the tunica media and externa and again the reason for their presence is explored and explained. Moving forwards, the lesson considers the structure of the veins and students are challenged to explain how the differences to those observed in arteries is due to the lower blood pressure found in these vessels. The final part of the lesson looks at the role of the capillaries in exchange. Links are made to diffusion to ensure that students can explain how the red blood cells pressing against the endothelium results in a short diffusion distance. It is estimated that it will take about 2 hours of allocated A-level Biology teaching time to cover the detail included in this lesson

This fully-resourced lesson describes the movement of molecules by active transport, endocytosis and exocytosis and explains the need for ATP. The PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets have been designed to cover the second part of point 2.4 of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology specification. The first part of 2.4, concerning simple and facilitated diffusion, was covered in the previous lesson. The start of the lesson challenges the students to use their prior knowledge of biological molecules to come up with the abbreviation ATP and they will learn that this is a phosphorylated nucleotide that contains adenine, ribose and three phosphate groups. Students may not have known this as the energy currency from GCSE so time is taken to explain that this molecule must be broken down to release energy and students are challenged to recall which type of reaction will be involved and to predict the products of such a reaction. This hydrolysis of ATP can be coupled to energy-requiring reactions within the cell and the rest of the lesson focuses on the use of this energy for active transport, endocytosis and exocytosis. Students are challenged to answer a series of questions which compare active transport against the forms of passive transport and to use data from a bar chart to support this form of transport. In answering these questions they will discover that carrier proteins are specific to certain molecules and time is taken to look at the exact mechanism of these transmembrane proteins. A quick quiz round introduces endocytosis and the students will see how vesicles are involved along with the enery source of ATP to move large substances in or out of the cell. The lesson concludes with a link to a future topic as the students are shown how exocytosis is involved in a synapse.

This detailed lesson describes the process of translation and the roles of the mRNA, tRNA, rRNA and amino acids during this second stage of protein synthesis. Both the PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the second part of points 2.5 (i) & (ii) of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A specification and contains constant links to the previous lessons in this topic on transcription and the structure of DNA and RNA. Translation is a topic which is often poorly understood and so this lesson has been written to support the students in answering the different types of questions by knowing and including the details of the key structures involved. The lesson begins by challenging the students to consider why it is so important that the amino acids are assembled in the correct order during the formation of the chain. Moving forwards, a quick quiz round called “LOST IN TRANSLATION” is used to check on their prior knowledge of the mRNA strand, the tRNA molecules and the ribosomes. The next task involves a very detailed description of translation that has been divided into 14 statements which the students have to put into the correct order. By giving them a passage that consists of this considerable detail, they can pick out the important parts to use in the next task where they have to answer shorter questions worth between 3 and 4 marks. These types of questions are common in the assessments and by building up through the lesson, their confidence to answer this type should increase. The final two tasks of the lesson involve another quiz, where the teams compete to transcribe and translate in the quickest time before using all that they have absorbed to answer some questions which involve the genetic code and the mRNA codon table

This fully-resourced lesson describes how respiration in the absence of oxygen produces a limited yield of ATP and results in lactate or ethanol formation. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying differentiated resources have been designed to cover all of the specification points under point 5.5 of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification and explains how pyruvate must be converted to lactate or ethanol using the hydrogen atoms released from reduced NAD to reoxidise this coenzyme to allow glycolysis to continue. The lesson begins with a focus on the coenzyme, NAD, and students are challenged to recall details of its role in the oxidation of glycerate-3-phosphate. Students will recall that oxidative phosphorylation in aerobic respiration allows these coenzymes to be reoxidised and therefore recognise that another metabolic pathway has to operate when there is no oxygen available. Time is taken to go through the details of the lactate and ethanol fermentation pathways and students are encouraged to discuss the conversions before applying their knowledge to complete diagrams and passages about the pathways. Understanding checks in a range of forms are used to enable the students to assess their progress whilst prior knowledge checks allow them to recognise the links to earlier topics. This lesson has been written to tie in with the other uploaded lessons on glycolysis and the stages of aerobic respiration as detailed in points 5.1 - 5.5.

This detailed lesson describes the the structure and function of the motor neurones that form the autonomic nervous system and is responsible for automatic responses. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been designed to cover point 9.4 (v) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification and describes the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions and how they act antagonistically. The lesson begins with a focus on the types of effectors that will be connected to the CNS by autonomic motor neurones. Students will learn that effectors which are not under voluntary control such as cardiac muscle, smooth muscle and glands will be innervated by these neurones. Moving forwards, a quick quiz competition is used to introduced ganglia as a structure which connects the two or more neurones involved in the cell signalling between the CNS and the effector. This leads into the discovery of the two divisions and students will begin to recognise the differences between the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems based on function but also structure. The remainder of the lesson looks at the differing effects of these two systems. This lesson has been written to tie in with the lesson on the organisation of the mammalian nervous system which was covered earlier in this topic

This detailed lesson describes how an endotherm regulates its temperature through behaviour and also physiologically. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover specification point 9.9 (vii) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification and includes descriptions of the roles of the autonomic nervous system, thermoreceptors, hypothalamus and skin. A wide range of activities have been written into this lesson so that students remain motivated throughout and take a genuine interest in the content. Understanding checks allow the students to assess their progress whilst the prior knowledge checks on topics such as enzymes and denaturation demonstrate the importance of being able to make connections and links between topics from across the specification. In addition to these checks, quiz competitions like HAVE an EFFECT which is shown in the cover image are used to introduce key terms and values in a fun and memorable way. The lesson begins by introducing the key term, endotherm, and challenging students to use their prior knowledge and understanding of terminology to suggest what this reveals about an organism. Moving forwards, students will learn how the heat generated by metabolic reactions is used as a source of internal heat. The main part of the lesson focuses on thermoregulation in humans (mammals) and time is taken to focus on the key components, namely the sensory receptors, the thermoregulatory centre in the hypothalamus and the responses brought about by the skin. The important details of why the transfer of heat energy between the body and the environment actually leads to a decrease in temperature are explored and discussed at length to ensure understanding is complete. Students are challenged to write a detailed description of how the body detects and responds to a fall in body temperature and this task is differentiated for those students who need some extra assistance. The peripheral thermoreceptors are introduced and this leads into the final section of the lesson that considers behavioural responses in humans and other animals.

This lesson describes how the mechanisms involved in the selective reabsorption of solutes in the proximal convoluted tubule. The PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been designed to cover the first part of specification point 9.9 (iii) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification and builds on the knowledge gained in the previous lessons on the structure of the nephron and ultrafiltration. The lesson begins by challenging the students to recall the substances that are found in the glomerular filtrate so that each of them can be considered over the course of the rest of the lesson. Moving forwards, the first of the numerous discussion points which are included in the lesson is used to get students to predict the component of the filtrate which won’t be found in the urine when they are presented with pie charts from each of these situations. Upon learning that glucose is 100% reabsorbed, along with most of the ions and some of the water, the rest of the lesson focuses on describing the relationship between the structure of the PCT and the function of selective reabsorption. Again, this section begins by encouraging the students to discuss and to predict which structures they would expect to find in a section of the kidney if the function is to reabsorb. They are given the chance to see the structure (as shown in the cover image) before each feature is broken down to explain its importance. Time is taken to look at the role of the cotransporter proteins to explain how this allows glucose, along with sodium ions, to be reabsorbed from the lumen of the PCT into the epithelial cells. The final part of the lesson focuses on urea and how the concentration of this substance increases along the tubule as a result of the reabsorption of some of the water.

This detailed lesson describes the gross and microscopic structure of the mammalian kidney. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been designed to cover point 9.9 (i) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification. The lesson was designed to tie in with the other lessons in topic 9.9 on ultrafiltration, selective reabsorption and the control of mammalian plasma concentration and a common theme runs throughout to allow students to build their knowledge gradually and develop a deep understanding of this organ. Students will come to recognise the renal cortex and renal medulla as the two regions of the kidney and learn the parts of the nephron which are found in each of these regions. Time is taken to look at the vascular supply of this organ and specifically to explain how the renal artery divides into the afferent arterioles which carry blood towards the glomerulus and the efferent arterioles which carry the blood away. The main task of the lesson challenges the students to relate structure to function. Having been introduced to the names of each of the parts of the nephron, they have to use the details of the structures found at these parts to match the function. For example, they have to make the connection between the microvilli in the PCT as a sign that this part is involved in selective reabsorption.

This detailed lesson describes the gross and microscopic structure of the mammalian kidney. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been designed to cover point 7.18 of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification. The lesson was designed to tie in with the upcoming kidney lessons (7.19 - 7.21) on ultrafiltration, selective reabsorption and the control of mammalian plasma concentration and a common theme runs throughout to allow students to build their knowledge gradually and develop a deep understanding of this organ. Students will come to recognise the renal cortex and renal medulla as the two regions of the kidney and learn the parts of the nephron which are found in each of these regions. Time is taken to look at the vascular supply of this organ and specifically to explain how the renal artery divides into the afferent arterioles which carry blood towards the glomerulus and the efferent arterioles which carry the blood away. The main task of the lesson challenges the students to relate structure to function. Having been introduced to the names of each of the parts of the nephron, they have to use the details of the structures found at these parts to match the function. For example, they have to make the connection between the microvilli in the PCT as a sign that this part is involved in selective reabsorption.

This detailed lesson describes how urea is produced from excess amino acids and then removed from the bloodstream by ultrafiltration. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 7.19 of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification. The first part of the lesson describes how deamination and the ornithine cycle forms urea. Although the students are not required to know the details of the cycle, it is important that they are aware of how the product of deamination, ammonia, is converted into urea (and why). Moving forwards, the rest of the lesson has been written to allow the students to discover ultrafiltration as a particular function of the nehron and to be able to explain how the mechanisms found in the glomerulus and the Bowman’s capsule control the movement of small molecules out of the blood plasma. Key terminology is used throughout and students will learn how the combination of the capillary endothelium and the podocytes creates filtration slits that allow glucose, water, urea and ions through into the Bowman’s capsule but ensure that blood cells and plasma proteins remain in the bloodstream. A number of quiz competitions are used to introduce key terms and values in a fun and memorable way whilst understanding and prior knowledge checks allow the students to assess their understanding of the current topic and to challenge themselves to make links to earlier topics. The final task of the lesson challenges the students to apply their knowledge by recognising substances found in a urine sample that shouldn’t be present and to explain why this would cause a problem

This lesson describes the principles of hormone production by endocrine glands and the two modes of action on target cells. The detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been primarily designed to cover points 9.2 (i) & (ii) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification but can also be used as a revision tool to check on their knowledge of topics like biological molecules and transcription factors Students should have a base knowledge of the endocrine system from GCSE so this lesson has been planned to build on that knowledge and to add the detail needed at this level. The lesson begins by challenging this knowledge to check that they understand that endocrine glands secrete these hormones directly into the blood. Students will learn that most of the secreted hormones are peptide (or protein) hormones and a series of exam-style questions are used to challenge them on their recall of the structure of insulin as well as to apply their knowledge to questions about glucagon. Moving forwards, the students are reminded that hormones have target cells that have specific receptor sites on their membrane. The relationship between a peptide hormone as a first messenger and a second messenger on the inside of the cell is described to allow students to understand how the activation of cyclic AMP triggers a cascade of events on the inside of the cell. The rest of the lesson focuses on steroid hormones and specifically their ability to pass through the membrane of a cell and to bind to transcription factors, as exemplified by oestrogen.

This lesson introduces the three-domain system and describes some of the biochemical methods used in classification to overcome the problems of morphological convergence. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points [c] and [e] in AS unit 2, topic 1 of the WJEC A-level Biology specification The lesson begins with an introduction of Carl Woese and goes on to describe how he is most famous for his definition of the Archaea as a new domain of life. Students were introduced to domains and the other classification taxa in a previous lesson, so their recall of this knowledge is continually tested and built upon as details are added. Students will discover the key differences between Archaea and Bacteria that led to the splitting of the prokaryotae kingdom and the addition of this higher classification rank. Moving forwards, the rest of the lesson considers other molecules that can be compared between species for classification purposes and the primary structure of cytochrome is described and discussed. At this point in the lesson, the students are also tested on their knowledge of the nature of the genetic code and have to explain how mutations to DNA can also be used for comparative purposes. The use of DNA genetic fingerprinting is briefly introduced and this is described in greater detail in a future lesson about assessing biodiversity at a molecular level

This lesson describes how the standard deviation and the t-test are used to analyse data. The detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources are part of the first lesson in a series of 2 lessons that have been designed to cover point 10.1 (vi) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification. The next lesson, which uses skills covered in this lesson and has also been uploaded, describes how to analyse data using the Spearman rank correlation coefficient A step by step guide walks the students through each stage of the calculation of the standard deviation and gets them to complete a worked example with the class before applying their knowledge to another set of data. This data looks at the birth weights of humans on one day in the UK and this is used again later in the lesson to compare against the birth weights of babies in South Asia when using the student’s t-test. The null hypothesis is re-introduced, as it will encountered when considering the chi squared test in topic 8, and students will learn to accept or reject this based upon a comparison of their value against one taken from the table based on the degrees of freedom.

This detailed lesson describes the absorption of water, the movement through the root and the role of the endodermis. Both the PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been designed to cover specification points (j, k & l) in topic 3 of AS unit 2 of the WJEC A-level Biology specification and includes descriptions of the apoplast, symplast and vacuolar pathways and the Casparian strip. The lesson begins by looking at the specialised features of the root hair cell so that students can understand how these epidermal cells absorb water and mineral ions from the soil. Moving forwards, students are introduced to key terminology such as epidermis and root cortex before time is taken to look at the different pathways that water and minerals use to transverse across the cortex. Discussion points are included throughout the lesson to encourage the students to think about each topic in depth and challenges them to think about important questions such as why the apoplast pathway is needed for the water carrying the ions. The main part of the lesson focuses on the role of the endodermis in the transport of the water and ions into the xylem. Students will be introduced to the Casparian strip and will learn how this layer of cells blocks the apoplast pathway. A step by step method using class questions and considered answers is used to guide them through the different steps and to support them when writing the detailed description. This lesson has been written to tie in with the next lesson on the pathways and mechanisms by which water and mineral ions are transported to the leaves.

The engaging Powerpoint and accompanying worksheet which come as part of this lesson resource have been designed to cover specification point 5.2.4 (Control of body temperature) as detailed in the AQA GCSE Biology specification. A wide range of activities which include Biology and Maths tasks and quiz competitions are interspersed with understanding and prior knowledge checks so that students are engaged and motivated whilst learning the key content in a memorable way and checking their progress. Students will learn that the body temperature is maintained at 37 degrees celsuis by a homeostatic control system called thermoregulation and will be challenged to recall the topic of enzymes to explain why this is so important. Time is taken to look at the responses brought about the effectors such as vasodilation and shivering and students will recognise how these lead a decrease or increase in body temperature back to the set point. Links are also made between the Sciences so that there is a deeper understanding of exactly why sweating cools the body down. This lesson has been designed for students studying the AQA GCSE Biology course but is suitable for older students who are studying Biology at A-level and need to recall the key details of thermoregulation.

This resource contains an engaging PowerPoint and an accompanying worksheet which together cover the content of specification point 5.3.7 (Negative feedback) as found on the AQA GCSE Biology & Combined Science higher tier specifications. Over the course of the lesson, students will learn about the effects of the release of adrenaline and thyroxine and will understand how the latter is controlled by negative feedback. Due to the obvious connection to the previously learned endocrine system topic, regular opportunities are taken to check on this prior knowledge and these work well with the understanding checks which allow the students to assess their progress. Quiz competitions which include SAY WHAT YOU SEE and FROM NUMBERS 2 LETTERS are used to introduce key terms and abbreviations in a fun and memorable way, whilst the key details of the content is always at the forefront of the design of the lesson. This lesson has been written for students studying the higher tier of the AQA GCSE Biology or Combined Science courses but it is also suitable for use with A-level students who need to recall the key details of these two hormones