An informative lesson presentation (24 slides) that looks at the relative size of the nanoparticles and explains why they are so effective for a range of purposes. The lesson begins by looking at exactly how small nanoparticles are and ensures that students can recognise this size in a range of ways, including standard form. Moving forwards, in order to help students to understand why these nanoparticles are being used in a lot of different ways, students are introduced to bulk materials. Included in the remainder of the lesson is calculating the surface area to volume ratio so this can be used as a comparison point. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson so that students can assess their understanding. This lesson has been written for GCSE students.

An engaging and informative lesson presentation (43 slides) that shows students how to write accurate chemical formulae for ionic compounds. In order to write accurate chemical formulae, students need to know the charges of the ions involved. For this reason, the lesson begins by reminding students how they can use the Periodic Table to work out the charge of the charged atoms. Students are shown how they can use these ion charges to write the formula and then are given the opportunity to apply this to a number of examples. Moving forwards, students are shown how some formulae need to contain brackets. The lesson finishes with a competition called “Ye Olde Chemical Formula Shop” where students get points if they are the first to work out the formula of a given substance. This lesson has been written for GCSE students.

A fully-resourced lesson which guides students through drawing, writing and recognising the electronic configurations of atoms and ions. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (33 slides), an associated worksheet and a competition worksheet. The lesson begins by introducing the students to the number of electrons that can be held on the first three electron shells. They are then shown how to draw an electronic configuration and write this in brackets form. Students are given the opportunity to apply this knowledge by drawing the configuration of first 20 elements of the Periodic Table. Moving forwards, students are guided to enable them to discover how the electron configuration is linked to the position of an atom in the Periodic Table. The remainder of the lesson focuses on ions and how the configuration of these substances can be recognised. Some time is taken to explain how ions are formed from atoms and the lesson finishes with a competition which challenges students to identify atoms or ions from their configurations to form a word. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding and a range of quiz competitions to maintain engagement. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but could be used with younger students, especially the initial part of the lesson on atoms and the link to the Periodic Table

A fully-resourced lesson which guides students through using moles to calculate the mass of a substance in a reaction. The lesson includes a detailed lesson presentation (22 slides) and associated worksheets which are used to check the skills and understanding of the students. The lesson begins by introducing the students to the three steps involved in a calculating mass question. These skills include calculating the relative formula mass and identifying molar ratios in equations to calculate amounts so time is taken to recap on how this is done before students are given the opportunity to try some progress check questions. A worked example brings these three steps together to guide the students to the final answer. The final task involves 4 questions where students are challenged to apply their new-found knowledge. This lesson has been written for GCSE students (14 - 16 year olds in the UK)

A fully-resourced lesson which looks at the gaseous reversible reaction known as the Haber Process and then explores and explains why the specific conditions are chosen for this reaction. The lesson includes a detailed lesson presentation (29 slides) and associated worksheets which are differentiated. The lesson begins by challenging the students to use a description of the reaction to complete the balanced symbol equation. A quiz competition involving both Chemistry and Maths skills is used to reveal the temperature and pressure which are chosen for this reaction. Students will learn that this only produces a yield of 30% and therefore are encouraged to question why these conditions are chosen. In doing so, they are made to wear two “hats”, so that they consider it from both a Science angle but also a business angle. Their knowledge of reversible reactions and the effect of changing either the temperature or the pressure on the position of the equilibrium are constantly challenged and then checked through a range of progress check questions. As a result of this lesson, students will understand that these conditions are a compromise and be able to explain why. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students (14 - 16 year olds in the UK).

A resourced lesson which guides students through the method of writing word equations for a range of different chemical reactions. The lesson includes an engaging and informative lesson presentation (33 slides) and an associated worksheet containing questions. The lesson begins by reminding students of the form which word equations take, with the reactants chemically changing into the products. Moving forwards, time is taken to show students how to work out the name of a compound that contains either 2 or 3 elements. This moves nicely into the reaction of acids and how to name the salt that is produced. Students are shown the general formula for the reactions of acids with a metal, a metal carbonate and a metal oxide or hydroxide so that they can form word equations for each of these reactions in the progress check task. The final section of the lesson introduces reversible reactions to the students and shows them the symbol that is used in these word equations to replace the arrow. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding and thorough explanations of the required answers. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but is perfectly suitable for KS3 students too.

A fully-resourced lesson which uses a step-by-step guide to show students how to write fully balanced symbol equations. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (38 slides) and associated worksheets containing questions which iaredifferentiated. The lesson begins by talking the students through the three steps involved in writing a chemical symbol equation. The first step involves writing in the formula for the elements. Students are introduced to the term, diatomic, and shown the 8 molecules that have to be written as a pair of atoms. Moving forwards, students are shown how to write chemical formulae for ionic compounds. They are reminded of how to use the group of the Periodic Table to work out the ion charge and how this is crucial when writing the formula. They are also shown how to write formulae which include brackets which is necessary when the charged molecules are involved. Finally, students are reminded of the rules of balancing symbol equations. There are progress checks at each stage so that students can assess their understanding and any misconceptions can be be addressed immediately. Time is taken to talk about state symbols, in case the exam question requires these to be included in the equation. The final section of the lesson involves students bringing their new-found skills together to write symbol equations for a range of reactions, including a neutralisation and reversible reaction. This task is differentiated so that students who need a little bit of assistance can still access the work. This lesson has been written for GCSE students (14-16 year olds in the UK)

A fully-resourced lesson which looks at how decomposers are involved with the process of decay. The lesson includes an engaging and detailed lesson presentation (31 slides) and an associated differentiated worksheets. The lesson begins by displaying the definitions for decomposers and detritivores and challenging students to use their bingo cards to see if they can work out the words which are being described. Students will learn how these two types of organisms work together to break down matter. Moving forwards, a worked example is used to guide students through how to calculate the rate of decay from a range of different data types. Students will be challenged to act like a travel agent for decomposers to come up with the different conditions that they require. Finally, they have to bring all of the new-found knowledge together to answer a range of summary questions. These questions are differentiated two ways so that differing abilities can access the work. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding. This lesson has been written for GCSE students (14 - 16 year olds in the UK)

A thought-provoking lesson presentation (34 slides) that looks at each of the stages in the development of drugs and considers the potential issues that arise at each of the stages. The lesson begins by ensuring that the students know the scientific definition of a drug and then they will be told how much is spent by the NHS alone each year on medicinal drugs so they can recognise the importance of this topic. Moving forwards, each stage in the development is considered in the appropriate detail. Students are challenged to consider some stages from both a scientific angle and a business angle so they can understand why certain animals are chosen for the testing. Key terms such as placebo and double blind trial are introduced and discussion time is written into the lesson so that insightful questions can be posed by all. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but could be used with KS3 students who might be carrying out research or a project on the topic of drugs.

A fully-resourced lesson which looks at the saturated hydrocarbons known as the alkanes and focuses on their structure and reactions. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (38 slides) and an associated worksheet which is differentiated. The lesson begins with the introduction of the name of this group and then a step-by-step guide is used to show students how to draw the displayed formula. Once the first four have been drawn, students are shown how to calculate the general formula for the alkenes and then challenged to do the same for the alkanes. Moving forwards, students will meet the key term, saturated, and time is taken to ensure that the meaning of this word is understood in the context of this lesson. Once they have been introduced to bromine water, students are challenged to work out what will happen when this substance is added to an alkane and they have to explain their answer. The remainder of the lesson looks at the complete and incomplete combustion of the alkanes, focusing on the different products of these reactions and specifically the problems associated with carbon monoxide. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding.

A concise, engaging lesson presentation (22 slides) which looks at the different responses of the body as a result of adrenaline release. In line with the actions of adrenaline, the lesson begins with a range of quiz competitions to introduce key terms and responses to the students. Once the students know that it causes both the breathing and heart rate to increase, they are challenged to complete a passage which brings this information together to explain how the increased respiration rate is related to the fight or flight tag line. Moving forwards, students will be introduced to the meaning of the term vasodilation and then asked to consider which organs will need extra blood flow during times of stress and conversely, which tissues can have blood directed away from them. The lesson finishes by looking at how a negative feedback loop is used as the final control to ensure that energy resources are not wasted during times when there is no stress.

A fully-resourced lesson which explores how the release of thyroxine from the thyroid gland regulates the metabolic rate and how a negative feedback loop is used as the final control. This lesson includes an engaging and detailed presentation (19 slides), a crossword and an understanding check task. The lesson begins by challenging the students knowledge of the endocrine system to get them to come up with the letters that form the name, “thyroid gland”. Students will be reminded that this gland releases thyroxine which is involved with the regulation of the metabolic rate. Students will learn that in order for the thyroid gland to release this hormone, it has to be stimulated by TSH from the pituitary gland which in turn was controlled by the hypothalamus. At this point, the students are challenged to put the order of the control mechanism in the right order on their worksheet. This leads them to the word negative which links to how a negative feedback loop is used as the final act in the mechanism. This lesson is designed for GCSE students but is suitable for A-level students too who need to know about this endocrine gland and also negative feedback

An engaging lesson presentation which looks at the two types of animal stem cells, exploring their important differences and briefly looking at their potential uses in medicine. The lesson begins by looking at the meaning of the term differentiation and then challenging students to draw a simple conclusion once they know that stems cells are undifferentiated cells. Time is taken to look into this part of the knowledge in depth but then students are given the key points which must be understood for them to move forwards. Students are told that there are two types of animal stem cells before a quiz competition is used to get them to predict which one of the two is being described by the clues. The answers to the competition then have to be used to write a summary passage about the two types. Students are also told that stem cells exist in plants in the form of meristem cells. Finally, Parkinson’s disease and Diabetes mellitus Type I are used as examples of conditions that could be potentially treated with stem cells.

A resourced lesson which looks at a range of methods that are used to increase biodiversity. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (31 slides) and an associated worksheet The lesson begins by getting students to recall the term biodiversity and time is taken to ensure that the meaning of this word is fully understood. The lesson takes the form of a bus ride around London, looking at some of the attractions which act to increase or maintain biodiversity. Students will “virtually” visit both London Zoo and Kew Gardens and will learn how methods such as the captive breeding programme and the Millenium Seed Bank are used to influence biodiversity. Along with the bus ride, students will compete in a number of quiz competitions which act to maintain engagement whilst introducing key terms or facts. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check their understanding. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students.

A fully-resourced lesson which guides students through using genetic trees to work out the genotypes of unknown individuals and also how to work out whether a condition is caused by a dominant or a recessive allele. This lesson includes a detailed lesson presentation (24 slides) and a series of differentiated questions to allow the students to try to apply their new-found knowledge. The lesson begins by challenging students to recall the meaning of the key terms, genotype and phenotype. Time is taken initially to explain how genetic trees can be used in questions. Lots of useful hints are given throughout the lesson, such as filling in the genotypes for those that you already know like the affected in a recessive condition. Moving forwards, a worked example is used to talk the students through a question. Students are then given the opportunity to try a question and this has been differentiated so those who need extra assistance can still access the work. The remainder of the lesson shows the students how they can use the tree to work out whether the condition is caused by a dominant or recessive allele and again a progress check is used so students can assess their understanding. This lesson has been designed for both GCSE and A-level students.

A resourced lesson which looks at the organisation of the human nervous system and explores how these structures are involved in nervous reactions. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (27 slides) and an associated worksheet with an understanding check. The lesson begins by looking at different examples of stimuli and therefore introducing the key term, receptors, as structures which detect these changes in the environment. Moving forwards, a quiz competition is used to introduce the students to the abbreviations CNS and PNS and students will learn the structures that are found in these parts. At this stage of the lesson, a quick understanding check is written into the lesson to see whether students know the functions of each of the structures and check whether they can order them correctly from stimuli to effectors. Students will meet the term synapse and be taught that the conduction across these gaps is slow so that this knowledge can be applied in future lessons on reflexes. The remainder of the lesson challenges the students to apply their new-found knowledge in ordering an example of a nervous reaction.

An engaging lesson presentation (39 slides) which explores how cells differentiate in order to specialise to become more effective at carrying out a particular function. This lesson focuses on five cells - red blood cells, sperm cells, fat cells, ciliated cells and palisade cells. The lesson begins by challenging the mathematical skills of the students as they have to convert the number 37 trillion into standard form. Students will learn that although all of the cells found in a human would be eukaryotic animal cells, they wouldn’t all be the same. They are introduced to the key term differentiation through a quiz competition and time is taken to ensure that students understand how this process leads to specialisation. The remainder of the lesson concentrates on looking at the function and features of the five cells. Quiz competitions are used throughout to maintain engagement whilst ample time is given to student discussion where they are challenged to consider why a cell would have specialised in such a way. Key terminology is consistently used so that students are not caught off guard in an exam question when this specialist language is used. Regular progress checks are written into the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but could be used with higher ability KS3 students who are looking to extend their knowledge on the topic of cells.

An engaging lesson presentation (16 slides) which looks at the surface area to volume ratio and ensures that students can explain why this factor is so important to the organisation of living organisms. This is a topic which is generally poorly misunderstood by students and therefore time has been taken to design an engaging lesson which highlights the key points in order to encourage greater understanding. The lesson begins by showing students the dimensions of a cube and two answers and challenges them to work out what the questions were that produced these answers. Students are shown how to calculate the surface area and the volume of an object before it is explained how this can then be turned into a ratio. Time is taken at this point to ensure that students can apply this new-found knowledge as they have to work out which of the three organisms in the “SA: V OLYMPICS” would stand aloft the podium. Students are given the opportunity to draw conclusions from this task so that they can recognise that the larger the organism, the lower the surface area to volume ratio. The lesson finishes by explaining how larger organisms, like humans, have adapted in order to increase the surface area at important exchange surfaces in their bodies. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but is perfectly suitable for A-level students who want to look at this topic from a basic level

A resourced lesson which looks at gas exchange at the alveoli and focuses on how these structures are adapted to carry out efficient gas exchange. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (21 slides) and an associated worksheet. The lesson begins by revisiting the idea of the surface area to volume ratio of small organisms against larger organisms. This will remind students that due to the low surface area to volume ratio of a human, they need to have adaptations at the exchange surfaces to increase the surface area. Moving forwards, a range of competitions are used to introduce students to the numbers and key terms associated with the alveoli. Students will learn how the large number (700 million) of alveoli leads to a large surface area and how a permeable membrane is also essential. Time is written into the lesson to allow students to think about key features, such as the one cell thick lining, and relate this to the rate of diffusion. The lesson concludes with students completing a passage about how the respiratory and circulatory systems work together to maintain a steep concentration gradient between the alveoli and the capillaries. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding. As always, the lesson finishes with a slide containing advanced terminology so that students who have aspirations to take A-level Biology can extend and deepen their knowledge

A resourced lesson which looks at three of the main components of blood and ensures that students can relate their features to their function. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (31 slides) and an associated worksheet The lesson begins by challenging the students to recognise blood from a description of some of its contents. This will enable students to identify some of the substances like hormones and urea that are carried in the plasma. Moving forwards, the rest of the lesson takes a format where the students have to act as recruitment consultants. They have been given 3 job roles to fill and once they have decided on the right candidates for the job, they need to be able to explain why these have been chosen. Students will go study the red and white blood cells and platelets, focusing on how their different specialised features enable them to effectively carry out their respective functions. Students will be able to compare the cells in terms of size, number of nuclei and ultimately explain why they have their features. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students but is perfectly suitable to be used with KS3 students who are studying the circulatory system