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 sub-topics found within Topic P2 (Motion and forces) of the Edexcel GCSE Combined Science specification. The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include: Recall and use the equations to calculate average speed Recall and use the equation to calculate acceleration Use the equations of motion Analyse velocity-time graphs to be able to compare and calculate accelerations and calculate the distance travelled from the area under the graph Recall and use Newton’s second law involving force, mass and acceleration Describe the relationship between the weight of a body and gravitational field strength Define momentum, recall and use the equation Describe examples of momentum in collisions Recall that stopping distance is made up of the sum of the thinking distance and braking distance Explain the factors that affect stopping distance 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 GCSE terminal exams

A fully resourced lesson presentation (93 slides) and associated worksheets that uses a combination of exam questions, quick tasks and quiz competitions to help the students to assess their understanding of the topics found within unit C3 (Chemical reactions) of the OCR Gateway A GCSE Combined Science specification. The topics that are tested within the lesson include: Formulae of elements and molecules Formulae of ionic compounds Conservation of mass Chemical equations Half equations The mole Exothermic and endothermic reactions The pH scale Hydrogen ions and pH Electrolysis of molten salts Electrolysis of solutions Students will be engaged through the numerous activities including quiz rounds like “E Numbers” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need further attention

This fully-resourced lesson explores the effect of geographical and reproductive isolation on the evolution of a new species. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 6.1.2 (g) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification which states that students should be able to demonstrate and apply an understanding of the effect of these isolating mechanisms on the evolution of a new species by either allopatric or sympatric speciation. The lesson begins by using the example of a hinny, which is the hybrid offspring of a horse and a donkey, to challenge students to recall the biological classification of a species. Moving forwards, students are introduced to the idea of speciation and the key components of this process, such as isolation and selection pressures, are covered and discussed in detail. Understanding and prior knowledge checks are included throughout the lesson to allow the students to not only assess their progress against the current topic but also to make links to earlier topics in the specification. Time is taken to look at the details of allopatric speciation and how the different mutations that arise in the isolated populations and genetic drift will lead to genetic changes. The example of allopatric speciation in wrasse fish because of the isthmus of Panama is used to allow the students to visualise this process. The final part of the lesson considers sympatric speciation and again a wide variety of tasks are used to enable a deep understanding to be developed. This lesson has been written to tie in with the other uploaded lessons on topic 6.1.2 (patterns of inheritance).

This engaging lesson explains why viruses are described as acellular and non-living and describes the structures of virus particles. The PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been designed to cover the second part of specification point 2.1.2 of the AQA A-level Biology specification and also includes details of HIV so that students are prepared for this lesson later in topic 2. Details of the COVID-19 epidemic are included in the lesson to increase relevance and to help students to understand this biological topic in greater depth. They will understand that the lack of cell structures results in an acellular classification and the fact that it is unable to reproduce without a host is one of the additional reasons that renders it as non-living. The main focus of the lesson is the nucleic acid, the capsid and the attachment proteins that are present in these microorganisms and time is taken to explain how these structures are involved in the infection of a host cell. The lipid membrane is also introduced and links are made to the previous lessons on eukaryotic cells. The final section uses a version of BBC 1’s POINTLESS to introduce a number of viral diseases in animals and the use of a glycoprotein by HIV to attach to helper T cells is briefly introduced.

This revision lesson provides students with the opportunity to assess their understanding of inheritance (topic 16). The lesson includes a multiple-choice assessment of 10 questions and a PowerPoint containing the answers, where each answer slide shows the exact specification code to enable students to note the areas which may require extra attention. The PowerPoint also contains additional questions to challenge content from topic 16 of the CIE A-level biology specification (2025 - 2027 update) that isn’t directly covered by the 10 questions, and prior knowledge checks to encourage students to make links to content from topics 1 - 15. This lesson has been designed to be used at the end of topic 16, and in the build up to mocks and the final A-level assessments.

This revision lesson provides students with the opportunity to assess their understanding of biological molecules (topic 2). The lesson includes a multiple-choice assessment of 10 questions and a PowerPoint containing the answers, where each answer slide shows the exact specification code to enable students to note the areas which may require extra attention. The PowerPoint also contains additional questions to challenge content from topic 2 of the CIE A-level biology specification (2025 - 2027 update) that isn’t directly covered by the 10 questions. This lesson has been designed to be used at the end of topic 2, and in the build up to mocks and the final A-level assessments.

This revision lesson provides students with the opportunity to assess their understanding of the AQA A-level biology topic 6 content. The lesson includes a multiple-choice assessment of 20 questions which have been written to challenge the content of topic 6 (Organisms respond to changes in their internal and external environments) and a PowerPoint where the answers are revealed, along with explanations and key points related directly to the specification. The PowerPoint also includes other questions about topic 6 that aren’t directly challenged in the 20 questions, as well as prior knowledge checks to encourage the students to make links to content from topics 1 - 5. This resource has been designed to be used at the end of the teaching of topic 6 and/or in the build up to the final A-level assessments. Lessons challenging content from the other 7 specification topics are also uploaded.

This lesson has been designed to provide students with the opportunity to assess their understanding of topic 1 of the AQA A-level biology specification. Included in the lesson is an assessment consisting of 20 multiple choice questions and a PowerPoint containing the answers. The PowerPoint also contains explanations and key points related to the specification, as well as additional knowledge checks to challenge the content which isn’t directly covered by the 20 questions. There are also slides titled “Link to the future” where content is linked to upcoming lessons from topics 2 - 8. This lesson has been planned to be used at the end of topic 1, and/or in the build up to the final A-level assessments. Multiple-choice assessments for the other 7 topics are also uploaded.

This resource contains a detailed and engaging PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets, all of which have been designed to cover point 2.14 of the Edexcel GCSE Biology or Combined Science specification. This specification point states that students should be able to explain the structure and function of a reflex arc including sensory, relay and motor neurones. The lesson builds on the knowledge from point 2.13 where students learnt about the structures in the nervous system. The lesson begins by challenging the students to come up with the word reflex having been presented with 5 other synonyms of the word automatic. This leads into a section of discovery and discussion where students are encouraged to consider how a reflex arc can be automatic and rapid despite the fact that the impulse is conducted into the CNS like any other reaction. Students will be introduced to the relay neurone and will learn how this provides a communication between the sensory neurone and the motor neurone and therefore means that these arcs do not involve processing by the brain. Moving forwards, the main task of the lesson challenges the students to write a detailed description of a reflex arc. Assistance is given on the critical section which involves the relay neurone in the spinal cord before they have to use their knowledge of nervous reactions to write a paragraph before and after to complete the description. As a final task, students will have to compare the structure and functions of the three neurones. This lesson contains a wide range of activities which include quiz competitions to introduce key terms and values in a fun and memorable way as well as understanding and prior knowledge checks so that students can assess their grasp of the critical content. It has been written for students studying the Edexcel GCSE Biology or Combined Science courses but is also suitable for younger students looking at the nervous system or A-level students who need to recall the key details and structures

This is a fully-resourced REVISION lesson which challenges the students on their knowledge of the content in TOPIC B4 (Natural selection and genetic modification) of the Edexcel GCSE Combined Science specification. The lesson uses an engaging PowerPoint (65 slides) and accompanying worksheets to motivate students whilst they assess their understanding of this topic. A range of exam questions, differentiated tasks and quiz competitions are used to test the following sub-topics: The discovery of key fossils and their implications for human evolution The dating of stone tools Evolution by natural selection Antibiotic resistance in bacteria as evidence for natural selection The domain and kingdom classification methods Genetic engineering of bacteria to produce human insulin The benefits and risks of genetic engineering and selective breeding The mathematical element of the course is also tested throughout the lesson and students are given helpful hints on exam techniques and how to structure answers. This resource is suitable for use at the end of topic B4 or in the lead up to mocks or the actual GCSE exams.

This fully-resourced lesson explains how a combination of hydrostatic pressure and oncotic pressure results in the formation of tissue fluid in animals. The detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the final part of point 3.4.1 of the AQA A-level Biology specification The lesson begins with an introduction to the arteriole and venule end of a capillary as these will need to be considered as separate entities when describing the formation of tissue fluid. A quick quiz competition introduces a value for the hydrostatic pressure at the arteriole end and students are challenged to first predict some parts of the blood will move out of the capillary as a result of the push from the hydrostatic pressure and this allows oncotic pressure to be initially explored. The main part of the lesson uses a step by step guide to describe how the net movement is outwards at the arteriole end before students will use this guidance to describe what happens at the venule end. In the concluding part of the lesson, students will come to recognise oedema as a condition where tissue fluid accumulates and they again are challenged to explain how this occurs before they finally learn how the fluid is returned to the circulatory system as lymph.

This lesson has been designed to cover the content as detailed in points 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3 (Mitosis as part of the cell cycle) of the Edexcel GCSE Biology & Combined Science specifications. Consisting of a detailed and engaging PowerPoint (44 slides) and an accompanying worksheet, the range of activities will motivate the students whilst ensuring that the content is covered in detail. Students will learn how interphase, the 4 phases of mitosis and cytokinesis result in the production of genetically identical diploid daughter cells. Time is taken to go through each of the three stages of the cell cycle in detail so students can recognise how the key events of each stage allow this important form of “copying” cell division to occur. Progress checks are included throughout the lesson so that students can assess their understanding of the content and any misconceptions can be addressed whilst quiz competitions, like The Big REVEAL and YOU DO THE MATH, are used to introduce new terms and important values in a fun and memorable way. This lesson has been written for GCSE-aged students who are studying the Edexcel GCSE Biology or Combined Science specifications but can be used with older students who need to know the key details of the cell cycle for their A level course before taking it to greater depths

This lesson describes meaning of the mole and shows how this measurement is used in a range of calculations. The clear lesson PowerPoint presentation and accompanying question worksheet have been designed to cover points 1.50 & 1.51 of the Edexcel GCSE Chemistry specification and also covers those points in the Chemistry section of the Combined Science course. This lesson has been specifically written to explain the concept in a concise manner so that the key details are understood and embedded. Students are shown how to recognise when a mole calculation requires them to use Avogadro’s constant and when they should the formula including the relative formula mass.

This engaging lesson uses the example of resistant bacteria to describe the principles of natural selection in the evolution of populations. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the second part of specification point 4.4 of the AQA A-level Biology specification and also introduces adaptations so that students are prepared for this topic in the upcoming lessons. President Trump’s error ridden speech about antibiotics is used at the beginning of the lesson to remind students that this is a treatment for bacterial infections and not viruses as he stated. Moving forwards, 2 quick quiz competitions are used to introduce MRSA and then to get the students to recognise that they can use this abbreviation to remind them to use mutation, reproduce, selection (and survive) and allele in their descriptions of evolution through natural selection. The main task of the lesson challenges the students to form a description that explains how this strain of bacteria developed resistance to methicillin to enable them to see the principles of natural selection. This can then be used when describing how the anatomy of the modern-day giraffe has evolved over time. The final part of the lesson introduces adaptations and convergent evolution and also links to the need for modern classification techniques.

This lesson describes how epigenetics, in the form of increased DNA methylation and decreased histone acetylation, controls gene expression. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources are part of the second lesson in a series of 4 which cover the content of point 8.2.2 (regulation of transcription and translation) of the AQA A-level biology specification. As shown in the cover image, the lesson begins with a challenge, where the students have to recognise the prefix epi. They will learn that this prefix means on or above in Greek meaning epigenetics can be described as factors causing changes to gene function beyond the genetic code. One of several discussion periods is used to encourage them to identify what is not involved here (i.e. gene mutations), and so, epigenetics is introduced as heritable changes in gene function without changes to the base sequence. Moving forwards, the process of DNA methylation is introduced, and students are challenged to predict how the addition of a methyl group could inhibit transcription before they have to use their prior knowledge of key terms to complete a passage about this concept. The details of a study which considered the correlation between DNA methylation and atherosclerosis are provided to broaden their knowledge and then they have to answer questions about the study using their knowledge of content from topics 1 - 7. The remainder of the lesson discusses acetylation and students will learn that the removal of acetyl groups from histones causes the chromatin to become highly condensed and prevents the transcription of the gene.

This lesson explains why large organisms with a low surface area to volume ratio need specialised gas exchange surfaces and a mass transport system. The PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets have been designed to cover points 4.1 (i & ii) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification and have been specifically planned to prepare students for the upcoming lessons on gas exchange (4.3) and circulation (4.4) The students are likely to have been introduced to the surface area to volume ratio at GCSE, but understanding of its relevance tends to be mixed. Therefore, real life examples are included throughout the lesson that emphasise the importance of this ratio in order to increase this relevance. A lot of students worry about the maths calculations that are associated with this topic so a step by step guide is included at the start of the lesson that walks them through the calculation of the surface area, the volume and then the ratio. Through worked examples and understanding checks, SA/V ratios are calculated for cubes of increasing side length and living organisms of different size. These comparative values will enable the students to conclude that the larger the organism or structure, the lower the surface area to volume ratio. A differentiated task is then used to challenge the students to explain the relationship between the ratio and the metabolic demands of a single-celled and multicellular organisms and this leads into the next part of the lesson, where the adaptations of large organisms to increase this ratio at the exchange surfaces are covered. The students will calculate the SA/V ratio of a human alveolus (using the surface area and volume formulae for a sphere) and will see the significant increase that results from the folding of the membranes. In addition to the ratio, time is taken to discuss and describe how the maintenance of a steep concentration gradient and a thin membrane are important for the rate of diffusion and again biological examples are used in humans and other organisms to increase the understanding. Fick’s law of diffusion is also introduced as a mechanism to help the students to recall that surface area, concentration difference and thickness of membrane govern the rate of simple diffusion. The final part of the lesson considers how a mass transport system is needed alongside the specialised gas exchange surface to allow the oxygen to be delivered to the respiring cells to enable them to continue to carry out aerobic respiration to generate ATP.

A lot of time and effort has gone into the design of this revision resource as it covers the very important Atoms, elements and compounds topic (C3) of the CIE IGCSE Combined Specification which will be examined in June and November 2020 and 2021. This topic tends to contribute a high volume of the questions in the examination papers as it contains fundamental understanding. The resource contains a detailed and engaging PowerPoint (87 slides) and associated worksheets, which have been differentiated to allow differing abilities the chance to complete the task. The range of activities that include exam questions, quick tasks and quiz competitions aim to cover as much of the content as possible but the following topics have received particular attention: Metals vs non-metals Using the proton and nucleon number to calculate the number of sub-atomic particles Atoms vs ions Drawing dot and cross diagrams for ionic compounds The structure of an ionic compound and the relation to its properties Drawing dot and cross diagrams for simple molecules Understanding of the terms solution, solvent, solute and soluble Throughout the lesson, links have been made to other modules (e.g. Electricity and chemistry) so that students can see how they will be expected to make these connections. The detail of this lesson means that it can be used a number of times and is ideal for revision during the learning of C3, at the end of the topic or in the lead up to mocks or terminal exams.

An engaging lesson presentation (72 slides) and associated worksheets that uses a combination of exam questions, quick tasks and quiz competitions to help the students to assess their understanding of the topics found within unit C6 (Global Challenges) of the OCR Gateway A GCSE Combined Science specification. The topics that are tested within the lesson include: Extracting metals Extracting iron Extracting aluminium Cracking oil fractions Water for drinking Students will be engaged through the numerous activities including quiz rounds like “EXTRACT the non-FACT” and “Say what you SEE” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need further attention

This lesson describes the similarities and differences between the xylem and phloem vessels and the sclerenchyma fibres. The engaging and detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 4.11 of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A specification which states that students should be able to compare these tissues in terms of structure, position in the stem and function. The lessons begins by challenging the students to identify the substances that a plant needs for the cellular reactions, where they are absorbed and where these reactions occur in a plant. The aim of this task is to get the students to recognise that water and mineral ions are absorbed in the roots and needed in the leaves whilst the products of photosynthesis are in the leaves and need to be used all over the plant. Students will be reminded that the xylem and phloem are part of the vascular system responsible for transporting these substances and then the rest of the lesson focuses on linking structure to function. A range of tasks which include discussion points, exam-style questions and quick quiz rounds are used to describe how lignification results in the xylem as a hollow tube of xylem cells to allow water to move as a complete column. They will also learn that the narrow diameter of this vessel allows capillary action to move water molecules up the sides of the vessel. The same process is used to enable students to understand how the structures of the companion cells allows assimilates to be loaded before being moved to the sieve tube elements through the plasmodesmata. The final part of the lesson introduces the sclerenchyma tissue as part of the vascular bundle and along with the structure and function, the students will observe where this tissue is found in the stem in comparison to the xylem and phloem. It is estimated that it will take in excess of 2 hours of A-level teaching time to cover the detail which has been written into this lesson

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