A Science teacher by trade, I've also been known to be found teaching Maths and PE! However, strange as it may seem, my real love is designing resources that can be used by other teachers to maximise the experience of the students. I am constantly thinking of new ways to engage a student with a topic and try to implement that in the design of the lessons.
A Science teacher by trade, I've also been known to be found teaching Maths and PE! However, strange as it may seem, my real love is designing resources that can be used by other teachers to maximise the experience of the students. I am constantly thinking of new ways to engage a student with a topic and try to implement that in the design of the lessons.
This is an engaging revision lesson which uses a range of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content within topic 1 (Characteristics and classification of living organisms) of the CIE IGCSE Biology specification, for examination in 2020 and 2021. The lesson covers the content in both the core and supplement sections of the specification and therefore can be used with students who will be taking the extended papers as well as the core papers.
The specification points that are covered in this revision lesson include:
CORE
Describe the characteristics of living organisms by defining the terms movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, reproduction, excretion and nutrition
State that organisms can be classified into groups by the features that they share
Define and describe the binomial system of naming species as an internationally agreed system in which the scientific name of an organism is made up of two parts showing the genus and species
List the main features used to place animals and plants into the appropriate kingdoms
SUPPLEMENT
Explain that classification systems aim to reflect evolutionary relationships
Explain that classification is traditionally based on studies of morphology and anatomy
Explain that the sequences of bases in DNA and of amino acids in proteins are used as a more accurate means of classification
Explain that organisms which share a more recent ancestor (are more closely related) have base sequences in DNA that are more similar than those that share only a distant ancestor
List the main features used to place all organisms into one of the five kingdoms: Animal, Plant, Fungus, Prokaryote, Protoctist
List the features of viruses, limited to protein coat and genetic material
The students will thoroughly enjoy the range of activities, which include quiz competitions such as “Are you the KING of the KINGDOMS” where they have to name the kingdoms involved based on a feature whilst crucially being able to recognise the areas of this topic which need their further attention. This lesson can be used as revision resource at the end of the topic or in the lead up to mocks or the actual IGCSE exams
This is an engaging and fully-resourced revision lesson which uses a range of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content within topic 2 (Cells and control) of the Edexcel GCSE Biology 9-1 specification.
The specification points that are covered in this revision lesson include:
Describe mitosis as part of the cell cycle, including the stages interphase, prophase, metaphase, anaphase and telophase and cytokinesis
Describe the importance of mitosis in growth, repair and asexual reproduction
Describe the division of a cell by mitosis as the production of two daughter cells, each with identical sets of chromosomes in the nucleus to the parent cell, and that this results in the formation of two genetically identical diploid body cells
Explain the importance of cell differentiation in the development of specialised cells
Discuss the potential benefits and risks associated with the use of stem cells in medicine
Describe the structures and functions of the brain including the cerebellum, cerebral hemispheres and medulla oblongata
Explain how the difficulties of accessing brain tissue inside the skull can be overcome by using CT scanning and PET scanning to investigate brain function
Explain the structure and function of sensory receptors, sensory neurones, relay neurones in the CNS, motor neurones and synapses in the transmission of electrical impulses, including the axon, dendron, myelin sheath and the role of neurotransmitters
Explain the structure and function of the eye as a sensory receptor including the role of the cornea, lens and iris
Describe defects of the eye including cataracts, longsightedness and short-sightedness
Explain how long-sightedness and short-sightedness can be corrected
The students will thoroughly enjoy the range of activities, which include quiz competitions such as "Can I have a P please BOB” where they have to recognise the different phases of mitosis from pictures or descriptions. The activities will crucially enable the students to determine which areas of topic 2 will need their further attention. This lesson can be used as revision resource at the end of the topic or in the lead up to mocks or the actual GCSE exams.
This bundle of 5 revision lessons covers the specification content which can be assessed in Paper 2 of the Edexcel GCSE Biology qualification.
The topics covered within this bundle are:
Topic 1: Key concepts in Biology
Topic 6: Plant structures and functions
Topic 7: Animal coordination, control and homeostasis
Topic 8: Exchange and transport in animals
Topic 9: Ecosystems and material cycles
All of the lessons have been written to include a range of activities to engage the students whilst enabling them to assess and evaluate their content knowledge so that they address any areas which need further attention.
This is an engaging and fully-resourced revision lesson which uses a range of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content within topic 8 (Exchange and transport in animals) of the Edexcel GCSE Biology 9-1 specification.
The specification points that are covered in this revision lesson include:
Explain the need for exchange surfaces and a transport system in multicellular organisms including the calculation of surface area : volume ratio
Explain how alveoli are adapted for gas exchange by diffusion between air in the lungs and blood in capillaries
Describe the factors affecting the rate of diffusion, including surface area, concentration gradient and diffusion distance
Explain how the structure of the blood is related to its function
Explain how the structure of the blood vessels is related to their function
Explain how the structure of the heart and circulatory system is related to its function, including the role of the major blood vessels, the valves
Describe cellular respiration as an exothermic reaction which occurs continuously in living cells to release energy for metabolic processes, including aerobic and anaerobic respiration
Compare the process of aerobic respiration with the process of anaerobic respiration
Calculate heart rate, stroke volume and cardiac output, using the equation cardiac output = stroke volume × heart rate
The students will thoroughly enjoy the range of activities, which include quiz competitions such as Where’s LENNY?” where they compete to recognise the blood vessel being described from the clues whilst crucially being able to recognise the areas of this topic which need their further attention. This lesson can be used as revision resource at the end of the topic or in the lead up to mocks or the actual GCSE exams.
This is an engaging and fully-resourced revision lesson which uses a range of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content within topic 3 (Genetics) of the Edexcel GCSE Biology 9-1 specification.
The specification points that are covered in this revision lesson include:
Explain some of the advantages and disadvantages of asexual reproduction, including the lack of need to find a mate, a rapid reproductive cycle, but no variation in the population
Explain some of the advantages and disadvantages of sexual reproduction, including variation in the population, but the requirement to find a mate
Explain the role of meiotic cell division, including the production of four daughter cells, each with half the number of chromosomes, and that this results in the formation of genetically different haploid gametes
Describe the structure of DNA
Describe the genome as the entire DNA of an organism and a gene as a section of a DNA molecule that codes for a specific protein
Explain how the order of bases in a section of DNA decides the order of amino acids in the protein and that these fold to produce specifically shaped proteins such as enzymes
Describe the stages of protein synthesis, including transcription and translation
Describe how genetic variants in the coding DNA of a gene can affect phenotype by altering the sequence of amino acids and therefore the activity of the protein produced
Explain why there are differences in the inherited characteristics as a result of alleles
Explain the terms: chromosome, gene, allele, dominant, recessive, homozygous, heterozygous, genotype, phenotype, gamete and zygote
Explain monohybrid inheritance using genetic diagrams, Punnett squares and family pedigrees
Describe how the sex of offspring is determined at fertilisation, using genetic diagrams
Calculate and analyse outcomes (using probabilities, ratios and percentages) from monohybrid crosses and pedigree analysis for dominant and recessive traits
Explain how sex-linked genetic disorders are inherited
State that most genetic mutations have no effect on the phenotype
The students will thoroughly enjoy the range of activities, which include quiz competitions such as “Is this SYNTHESISED correctly” where they have to recognise whether a passage on protein synthesis is 100% correct or contains errors whilst crucially being able to recognise the areas of this topic which need their further attention. This lesson can be used as revision resource at the end of the topic or in the lead up to mocks or the actual GCSE exams.
This is an engaging and fully-resourced revision lesson which uses a range of exam questions, understanding checks, quiz tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content within topic 1 (Key concepts in Biology) of the Edexcel GCSE Biology 9-1 specification.
The specification points that are covered in this revision lesson include:
Explain how the sub-cellular structures of eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells are related to their functions
Describe how specialised cells are adapted to their function
Know that changes in microscope technology, including electron microscopy, have enabled us to see cell structures and organelles with more clarity and detail than in the past
Demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between quantitative units in relation to cells
Explain how substances are transported into and out of cells, including by diffusion, osmosis and active transport
Core Practical: Investigate osmosis in potatoes
Calculate percentage gain and loss of mass in osmosis
The students will thoroughly enjoy the range of activities, which include quiz competitions such as “CELL, CELL, CELL” where they have to compete to quickly identify specialised cells from their descriptions whilst crucially being able to recognise the areas of this topic which need their further attention. This lesson can be used as revision resource at the end of the topic or in the lead up to mocks or the actual GCSE exams.
This is an engaging revision lesson which uses a range of exam questions, understanding checks, quick differentiated tasks and quiz competitions to allow students to assess their knowledge of the topic of cells and related topics as covered in the GCSE Biology and GCSE Combined Science courses. As cells are the building blocks of living organisms, a strong understanding of this topic is critical for the success of a student on these two courses.
The following topics are covered in this revision lesson:
The key differences between eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells
The structure of a bacterial cell
Specialised cells
The individual functions of the organelles
Calculating size
Students will be engaged through the range of activities which includes quiz competitions such as “CELL, CELL, CELL” where students have to compete to identify specialised cells from descriptions. This lesson can be used at any time during the year as a revision material, in the lead up to mocks or as a final revision lesson before the GCSE terminal exams.
This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick differentiated tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Topic 5 (On the wild side) of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
Be able to describe how to carry out a study on the ecology of a habitat
Understand the stages of succession
Understand the overall reaction of photosynthesis
Understand the structure of chloroplasts in relation to their role in photosynthesis
Understand the relationship between NPP, GPP and respiration
Understand the effect of temperature on enzyme activity and its impact on plants and animals and microorganisms
Know how the temperature coefficient Q10 quantifies the rate of an enzyme-catalysed reaction
Understand how knowledge of the carbon cycle can be applied to methods to reduce atmopsheric levels of carbon dioxide
A number of the tasks have been differentiated to allow all abilities of student to access the work and there is a big emphasis on the mathematical skills that can be tested in this topic. Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “Can you DEPEND on your knowledge” and “From NUMBERS 2 LETTERS” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a fully-resourced REVISION lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, differentiated tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Topic 3.3 (Organisms exchange substances with their environment) of the AQA A-level Biology specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
Surface area to volume ratio
Gas exchange
Digestion and absorption
Mass transport in animals
Mass transport in plants
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This bundle of 8 revision lessons covers all of the topics on the AQA A-level Biology specification:
Topic 1: Biological molecules
Topic 2: Cells
Topic 3: Organisms exchange substances with their environment
Topic 4: Genetic information, variation and relationships between organisms
Topic 5: Energy transfers in and between organisms
Topic 6: Organisms respond to changes in their internal and external environments
Topic 7: Genetics, populations, evolution and ecosystems
Topic 8: The control of gene expression
These lessons use a range of exam questions, quick tasks and quiz competitions to motivate and engage the students whilst they assess their understanding of the different topics and evaluate which areas of the specification will require their further attention. These lessons can be used for revision at the end of the topic, in the lead up to mocks or in the lead up to the actual exams.
This is a fully-resourced REVISION lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Topic 5 (Energy transfers in and between organisms) of the AQA A-level Biology specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
The light dependent reaction including the production of ATP and reduced NADP and the photolysis of water
The light-independent reaction to form triose phosphate and regenerate RuBP
Identify environmental factors that limit the rate of photosynthesis
Glycolysis as the first stage of both aerobic and anaerobic respiration
The conversion of pyruvate to lactate
The stages of aerobic respiration that occur in the mitochondria
Losses of energy through food chains
The roles of microorganisms in the nitrogen cycle
The environmental issues of the use of fertilisers as seen with eutrophication
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “Can you DEPEND on your knowledge” and “Are you on the right PATH” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Module 5.2.1 (Photosynthesis) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
The interrelationship between photosynthesis and respiration
The structure of a chloroplast
The importance of photosynthetic pigments in photosynthesis
The light dependent stage of photosynthesis
The fixation of carbon dioxide and the light independent stage of photosynthesis
Factors affecting photosynthesis
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “Can you DEPEND on your knowledge” and “Photosynthesising the SAFE way” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Module 2.1.1 (Cell structure) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
The use of microscopy to observe and investigate different types of cells
The use and manipulation of the magnification formula
The difference between magnification and resolution
The ultrastructure of eukaryotic cells and the function of the different cellular components
Interpretation of electron microscope images
The interrelationship between the organelles involved in the production and secretion of proteins
The similarities and differences in the structure and ultrastructure of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “It doesn’t HURT to CONVERT” and “Word association game” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Topic 2 (Cells) of the AQA A-level Biology specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
Structure of eukaryotic cells
Structure of prokaryotic cells and of viruses
All cells arise from other cells
Transport across cell membranes
Cell recognition and the immune response
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “Make sure you are very SPECIFIC” and “Can I have a P please Bob” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This bundle of 8 revision lessons have been designed to include a range of exam questions (with explained answers), differentiated tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A (Salters Nuffield) specification content.
The 8 topics that are covered in the specification are included in this bundle and are:
Topic 1: Lifestyle, Health and Risk
Topic 2: Genes and Health
Topic 3: Voice of the Genome
Topic 4: Biodiversity and natural resources
Topic 5: On the wild side
Topic 6: Infection, immunity and forensics
Topic 7: Run for your life
Topic 8: Grey matter
Students will enjoy the range of activities, which provide a much needed alternative to their other revision methods, and these lessons can be used throughout the duration of the course, as an end of topic revision lesson or in the lead up to mocks or the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick differentiated tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Topic 3 (Voice of the Genome) of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
Know the ultrastructure of eukaryotic cells
Understand the role of the rER and the Golgi apparatus in protein transport within cells
Know the ultrastructure of prokaryotic cells
Be able to recognise the organelles of eukaryotic cells from EM images
Know that a locus is the location of a gene on a chromosome
Understand the linkage of genes on a chromosome and sex linkage
Understand the role of meiosis in ensuring genetic variation
Understand the role of mitosis and the cell cycle in producing identical daughter cells
Understand how gene expression is controlled
Understand how phenotype is the result of an interaction between genotype and the environment
Know how some phenotypes are affected by multiple alleles as well as the environment and how this shows continuous variation
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “Is your knowledge of the Lac Operon LACKING” and “Can I have a P please Bob” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Topic 6 (Immunity, infection and forensics) of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
Know how DNA profiling is used for identification and determining genetic relationships
Know how DNA can be amplified using the PCR
Know the structure of a virus
Understand how HIV infects human cells, causing a sequence of symptoms that may result in death
Understand the non-specific responses of the body to infection
Understand the roles of antigens and antibodies in the body’s immune response
Understand the differences between the roles of B cells and T cells
Understand how one gene can give rise to more than one protein through post-transcriptional changes
Understand the difference between bacteriostatic and bactericidal antibiotics
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “FROM NUMBERS 2 LETTERS” and “Make sure you are very SPECIFIC” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Topic 6 (Organisms respond to the changes in the internal and external environment) of the AQA A-level Biology specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
Nerve impulses
Synaptic transmission
Skeletal muscles are stimulated to contract by nerves and act as effectors
The principles of homeostasis and negative feedback
Control of blood glucose concentration
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “Communicate the word” and “Only CONNECT” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Module 5.1.3 (Neuronal communication) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification.
The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include:
The structure and function of sensory, motor and relay neurones
The generation and transmission of nerve impulses in mammals
The structure and roles of synapses in neurotransmission
Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “Communicate the word” and “Only CONNECT” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams
This is a concise, fast-paced lesson that has been designed to enable students to discover the key structural features of a synapse and be able to write accurate descriptions of the sequence of events that occur at these structures. The neurotransmitter involved is acetyl choline and therefore this is specifically a lesson about cholinergic synapses.
The lesson begins by going through the terminology associated with synapses which includes pre-synaptic terminal or knob, synaptic cleft and post-synaptic neurone. Then time is taken to look at each of the two neurones and the structures found inside the terminal or on the membranes. The main task of the lesson involves a step by step guide through the sequence of events at the synapse. This guide has been written in a bullet point format and students are challenged to use the features they have met and their own Biological knowledge to complete each point. The final part of the lesson looks at how the enzyme acetylcholinesterase is involved in the breakdown and then how the neurotransmitter is re-formed using the ATP generated in the mitochondria
This lesson is written for A-level students