This engaging lesson presentation (51 slides) and associated worksheets uses exam questions with displayed mark schemes, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the topics found within module B6 of the OCR Gateway A Combined Science specification. The topics which are specifically tested within the lesson include: Genetic engineering, Health and disease, Spread of communicable diseases and preventing the spread, Non-communicable diseases, Treating CVD and Modern advances in medicine Students will enjoy the competitions such as "Is this ENGINEERED correctly" and "COMMUNICATE the word" whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need their further attention

This fully-resourced lesson describes the main stages of mitosis and explains the significance of this type of nuclear division in life cycles. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points 2.1.6 (c & e) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification and make direct links to the previous lesson which covered the cell cycle Depending upon the exam board taken at GCSE, the knowledge and understanding of mitosis will differ considerably between students and there may be a number of misconceptions. This was considered at all points during the planning of the lesson so that existing errors are addressed and key points are emphasised throughout. Their understanding of interphase is challenged at the start of the lesson to ensure that they realise that it is identical pairs of sister chromatids that enter the M phase. The main part of the lesson focuses on prophase, metaphase, anaphase and telophase and describes how the chromosomes behave in these stages. There is a focus on the centrioles and the spindle fibres that they produce which contract to drag one chromatid from each pair in opposite directions to the poles of the cell. The remainder of the lesson is a series of understanding and application questions where students have to identify the various roles of mitosis in living organisms as well as tackling a Maths in a Biology context question. The lesson concludes with a final quiz round of MITOSIS SNAP where they only shout out this word when a match is seen between the name of a phase, an event and a picture.

A fully-resourced lesson, designed for GCSE students which includes an engaging and informative lesson presentation (49 slides) and an image, actual and magnification question worksheet. This lesson looks at the key features of light and electron microscopes and guides students through calculating size and magnification. The lesson begins by challenging students to pick out two key terms about microscopes, magnification and resolution, from a group of Scientific words. The understanding of these two terms is critical if students will be able to compare the two types of microscopes so time is taken to go through the definitions and give examples. A number of quick quiz competitions have been written into the lesson to aid the engagement on a topic that some students may not initially consider to be that motivating. These competitions allow key terms such as micrometer and the two types of electron microscope to be introduced in an engaging way. As a result, students will know the numbers that explain why electron microscopes are more advanced than their light counterparts. The remainder of the lesson looks at the units of size which are used in calculation questions and a step by step guide is used to show the students to calculate the actual size of an object or the magnification. Progress checks have been written into this lesson at regular intervals so that students are constantly assessing their understanding.

This lesson describes the active loading of assimilates like sucrose at the source and the translocation along the phloem to the sink. Both the detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 3.1.3 (f) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification. The lesson begins by challenging the students to recognise the key term translocation when it is partially revealed and then the rest of the lesson focuses on getting them to understand how this process involves the mass flow of assimilates down the hydrostatic pressure gradient from the source to the sink. It has been written to tie in with 3.1.3 (b) where the structure of the phloem tissue was initially introduced and the students are continually challenged on this prior knowledge. A step-by-step guide is used to describe how sucrose is loaded into the phloem at the source by the companion cells. Time is taken to discuss key details such as the proton pumping to create the proton gradient and the subsequent movement back into the cells by facilitated diffusion using co-transporter proteins. Students will learn that the hydrostatic pressure at the source is high, due to the presence of the water and sucrose as cell sap, and that this difference when compared to the lower pressure at the sink leads to the movement along the phloem. A number of quick quiz rounds are included in the lesson to maintain engagement and to introduce key terms and the lesson concludes with a game of SOURCE or SINK as students have to identify whether a particular plant structure is one or the other (or both)

This is an engaging and discussion filled lesson which looks at the menstrual cycle and specifically focuses on the interaction of the four hormones in the cycle. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students (ages 14 - 16 in the UK) but is suitable for older students who want a recap on this topic before going into more depth. In order to understand the cycle, it is critical that students know the roles that each of the hormones perform and also can describe how one hormone affects another. The main task of the lesson goes through the steps in the cycle, but challenges the students to use their prior knowledge of the endocrine system to add in the name of the correct hormone. At appropriate points of the lesson, time is taken to relate this topic to others in Biology, such as the use of oestrogen in the contraceptive pill and also hCG as the hormone which is detected by pregnancy tests. Students will know key landmarks in the 28 day cycle and be able to relate this back to the hormones. There are progress checks throughout the lesson but the final part of the lesson involves three understanding checks where students are challenged to apply their knowledge.

This fully-resourced lesson describes the role of barriers in protecting the body from infection by pathogens when entering the body by the major routes. The engaging and detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points 6.11 (i) & (ii) of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A (Salters Nuffield) specification and describe the following barriers: skin key steps of the blood clotting process mucous membranes stomach acid vaginal and skin flora There are clear links to topics 1, 2 and 3 in each of these barriers, so time is taken to consider these during the descriptions. For example, the presence of keratin in the cytoplasm of the skin cells allows the student knowledge of the properties of this fibrous protein to be checked. Other topics that are revisited during this lesson include blood clotting, protein structure, key terminology and the epithelium that lines the different parts of the airways. All of the exam-style questions and tasks have mark schemes that are embedded in the PowerPoint and a number of them have been differentiated to allow students of differing abilities to access the work.

This REVISION resource has been written with the aim of motivating the students whilst they are challenged on their knowledge of the content in Biology TOPIC 8 (Exchange and transport in animals) of the Edexcel GCSE Combined Science specification. The resource contains an engaging and detailed PowerPoint (90 slides) and accompanying worksheets, most of which are differentiated to allow all abilities to access the work. The wide range of activities, which include exam questions and quiz competitions, have been designed to cover as much of topic 8 as possible but the following sub-topics have been given a particular focus: Surface area to volume ratio Gas exchange at the alveoli The structure of the blood vessels The gross structure of the heart and the major blood vessels Calculating the cardiac output The functions of the components of the blood Aerobic vs anaerobic respiration There is a large emphasis on mathematical skills in the new specification and these are tested throughout the lesson. This resource is suitable for use at the end of topic 8, in the lead up to mocks or in the preparation for the final GCSE exams.

This is a detailed and engaging lesson which has been designed to cover specification points 14.1 (a, b and c) of the CIE International A-level Biology specification which states that students should be able to explain the importance of homeostasis and the roles of negative feedback and the communication systems in this control. As homeostasis is a topic met at GCSE, this lesson has been written to build on this knowledge as well as to check on their prior knowledge of earlier A-level topics such as osmosis when considering blood water potential. Discussion points are written into the lesson at regular intervals to encourage the students to consider why a particular process or method takes place and understanding checks allow them to assess their progress. Students will recall how body temperature, blood water potential and blood glucose concentration are maintained within strict limits and the importance of these systems are looked into in detail. They will also learn that carbon dioxide concentration and blood pressure are aspects that are controlled in the body and key terminology such as chemoreceptors and baroreceptors are used throughout so that students are confident with the meaning when met later in the module. The key components of the control system are recalled and then time is taken to focus on the cell signalling that occurs between the coordination centre and the effectors. Students will learn to associate the response with either the use of the neuronal or hormonal system. The final part of the lesson looks at the importance of negative feedback in reversing the change in order to bring it back to the optimum and the differences to positive feedback are also explored. This lesson has been written for students who are studying the CIE International A-level Biology course and ties in well with the other uploaded lessons on this topic such as those on the kidney

This fully-resourced lesson looks at the contribution of environmental and genetic factors to phenotypic variation. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets have been designed to cover point 6.1.2 (a) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification which states that students should be able to demonstrate and apply an understanding of how mutations and meiosis and the lack of availability of ions can cause variation within a species. Students are challenged at the start of the lesson to recognise the terms phenotype and species from their definitions in order to begin a discussion on the causes of the phenotypic variation within a species. Moving forwards, students will recall that mutations are the primary source of genetic variation and time is taken to look at the effect of gene and chromosome mutations. Gene mutations were covered earlier in module 6 so these tasks act as a prior knowledge check as students have to recognise the different types of gene mutations and explain their effects on the primary structure with reference to the genetic code. These prior knowledge checks are found throughout the lesson and challenge the knowledge of other topics that include photosynthesis and meiosis. The karyotype of an individual who has Down syndrome is used to introduce chromosome mutations and students will be introduced to the different types, with a focus on non-disjunction. The key events of meiosis that produce variation (crossing over and independent assortment) are explored and students will be given a mathematical formula to use to calculate the number of chromosome combinations in gametes and in the resulting zygote. The final part of the lesson looks at chlorosis and how an environmental factor can prevent the express of a gene. If you would like a lesson that goes into chromosome mutations in even greater detail, please search for the uploaded lesson on that topic which complements this lesson

This engaging REVISION LESSON has been designed to cover the content of topic 13 (Photosynthesis) of the CIE International A-level Biology specification. Filled with a wide range of activities, that include exam questions with explanations, quick tasks and quiz competitions, the students will be motivated whilst they assess their ability to apply their knowledge. Due to the obvious importance of this reaction, assessment questions are extremely common and so a deep understanding of this topic is key to success and the lesson has been designed to cover the important ideas. The following sub-topics have received particular attention in this lesson: Photophosphorylation An outline of cyclic and non-cyclic photophosphorylation Photolysis of water The light dependent reaction The structure of the chloroplast and the site of the different reactions The Calvin cycle The limiting factors of photosynthesis Investigating the effect of light intensity using DCPIP as a redox indicator and a Hill suspension The effect of temperature on the rate There is a focus on terminology throughout the lesson so that students are comfortable with the terms that will be encountered in exam questions. Revision lessons on the other topics of the specification are uploaded so please take a moment to look at those too

This engaging and fully-resourced lesson looks at the effects of stabilising, directional and disruptive selection as the three main types of selection. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 17.2 (b) of the CIE International A-level Biology specification which states that students should be able to identify each type of selection by its effect on different phenotypes. The lesson begins with an introduction to the mark, release, recapture method to calculate numbers of rabbits with different coloured fur in a particular habitat. This method is covered later in topic 18 so this section of the lesson is designed purely to generate changes in numbers of the organisms. Sketch graphs are then constructed to show the changes in the population size in this example. A quick quiz competition is used to engage the students whilst introducing the names of the three main types of selection before a class discussion point encourages the students to recognise which specific type of selection is represented by the rabbits. Key terminology including intermediate and extreme phenotypes and selection pressure are used to emphasise their importance during explanations. A change in the environment of the habitat and a change in the numbers of the rabbits introduces directional selection before students will be given time to discuss and to predict the shape of the sketch graph for disruptive selection. Students are challenged to apply their knowledge in the final task of the lesson by choosing the correct type of selection when presented with details of a population and answer related questions.

This fully-resourced REVISION lesson has been written to challenge the students on their knowledge of the content of topic 8 (Transport in mammals) of the CIE International A-level Biology specification. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources will motivate the students whilst they assess their understanding of the content and identify any areas which may require further attention. The wide range of activities have been written to cover as much of the topic as possible but the following specification points have been given particular focus: The significance of the oxygen dissociation curves at different concentrations of carbon dioxide (The Bohr effect) The role of haemoglobin in carrying oxygen The role of haemoglobin in carrying carbon dioxide Draw the structures of red blood cells, neutrophils, monocytes and lymphocytes The relationship between the structure and function of a capillary The internal structure of the heart and its associated blood vessels Explain how heart action is initiated and controlled The pressure changes of the cardiac cycle The relationship between the structure and function of arteries and veins The double, closed circulatory system of a mammal Quiz rounds such as “Does this FLOW correctly” and “YOU DO THE MATH” are used to test the students on the finer details of their knowledge of the blood vessels and numerical facts

Water is very important for living organisms because of its numerous properties and this lesson focuses on its role as a solvent in transport. The engaging and detailed PowerPoint and accompanying worksheet have been designed to cover point 1.1 of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification and also explains the importance of the dipole nature for this role in transport. A mathematical theme runs throughout the lesson as students have to match the numbers calculated in the starter task to water statistics, such as the percentage of the volume of blood plasma that is water. This has been included to try to increase the relevance of each property so that it can be described in a biological context. Time is taken at the beginning of the lesson to describe the structure of water in terms of the covalent bonds between the oxygen and hydrogen atoms as well as the hydrogen bonds which form between molecules because of its polarity. Students will understand how water is a solvent which means that it is critical for transport in animals, a topic covered in the next few lessons but also for transport in plants as discussed in topic 4. The high heat capacity and latent heat of vaporisation of water is also discussed and explained through the examples of thermoregulation and the maintenance of a stable environment for aquatic animals. The final part of the lesson focuses on the involvement of water in condensation and hydrolysis reactions, two reactions which must be well understood for topic 1 and 2 and the formation and breakage of polysaccharides, lipids, polypeptides and polynucleotides.

This fully-resourced lesson describes the modes of action of the T and B lymphocytes in the immune response. The detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 2.4 of the CIE A-level Biology specification and the structure of antibodies and the roles of memory cells is also briefly introduced. Antigen presentation was introduced at the end of the previous lesson so the task at the start of this lesson challenges students to recognise the name of this process and then they have to spot the errors in the passage that describes the details of this event. This reminds them that contact between the APC and T lymphocytes is necessary to elicit a response which they will come to recognise as the cellular response. A series of quick quiz rounds reveals key terms in a memorable way and one that is introduced is helper T cells. Time is then taken to describe the importance of cell signalling for an effective response and students will learn how the release of chemicals by these cells activates other aspects of the response. The role of the killer T cells is also described before an exam-style question is used to check on their understanding at this point of the lesson. This leads into the section of the lesson that deals with the humoral response and students will understand how this involves the antibodies that are produced by the plasma cells that are the result of clonal selection and expansion. The remainder of the lesson focuses on the role of the antibodies and the attachment of phagocytes to opsonins.

This detailed lesson describes how changes in ventilation rate are brought about to allow for the delivery of oxygen and the removal of carbon dioxide. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the second part of point 7.9 (ii) in the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A specification. The previous lesson described the control of heart rate so this lesson has been written to tie in with this and to use this knowledge to further the students understanding of the control of ventilation rate. The lesson begins with a focus on the muscles involved in ventilation, specifically the diaphragm and external intercostal muscles, so that students can understand how their contraction results in an increase in the volume of the thoracic cavity. Boyle’s law is briefly introduced to allow students to recognise the relationship between volume and pressure so that the movement of air with the pressure gradient can be described. Time is then taken to consider the importance of inhalation and an exam-style question challenges the students to explain that a constant supply of oxygen to the alveoli is needed to maintain a steep concentration gradient with the surrounding capillaries. The students are then tasked with writing a description of exhalation at rest using the description of inhalation as their guide. The rest of the lesson focuses on the mechanisms involved in increasing the rate and depth of breathing during exercise. Students will use their knowledge of the control of heart rate to recall that chemoreceptors detect changes in oxygen and carbon dioxide and blood pH and that the medulla oblongata processes the sensory information that it receives before coordinating a response. The final task challenges them to use the information provided in this lesson and the previous one to order 10 detailed descriptions so they can form a complete passage about this control system.

This detailed lesson describes each of the 4 stages of aerobic respiration and explains how this cellular reaction yields ATP and generates heat. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been designed to cover points 5.1 (i) and (ii) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specificaiton and acts as a clear introduction for the upcoming lessons where the finer details of glycolysis, the Link reaction and Krebs cycle and oxidative phosphorylation are described The lesson begins with an introduction to glycolysis and students will learn how this first stage of aerobic respiration is also the first stage when oxygen is not present. This stage involves 10 reactions and an opportunity is taken to explain how each of these reactions is catalysed by a different, specific intracellular enzyme. A version of “GUESS WHO” challenges students to use a series of structural clues to whittle the 6 organelles down to just the mitochondrion so that they can learn how the other three stages take place inside this organelle. Moving forwards, the key components of the organelle are identified on a diagram. Students are introduced to the stages of respiration so that they can make a link to the parts of the cell and the mitochondria where each stage occurs. Students will learn that the presence of decarboxylase and dehydrogenase enzymes in the matrix along with coenzymes and oxaloacetate allows the link reaction and the Krebs cycle to run and that these stages produce the waste product of carbon dioxide. Finally, time is taken to introduce the electron transport chain and the enzyme, ATP synthase, so that students can begin to understand how the flow of protons across the inner membrane results in the production of ATP and the the formation of water when oxygen acts as the final electron acceptor.

This fully-resourced lesson describes how polygenic inheritance gives rise to phenotypes that show continuous variation. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been primarily designed to cover points 3.20 (i) & 3.21 of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification but also includes activities to challenge the students on previous concepts in topics 3 and 2. The students begin the lesson by having to identify phenotype and species from their respective definitions so that a discussion can be encouraged where they will recognise that phenotypic variation within a species is due to both genetic and environmental factors. The main part of the the lesson focuses on these genetic factors, and describes how mutation and the events of meiosis contribute to this variation. A range of activities, which include exam-style questions and quick quiz rounds, are used to challenge the students on their knowledge and understanding of substitution mutations, deletions, insertions, the genetic code, crossing over and independent assortment. Moving forwards, the concept of multiple alleles is introduced and students will learn how the presence of more than 2 alleles at a locus increases the number of phenotypic variants. Another quick quiz round is used to introduce polygenic inheritance and the link is made between this inheritance of genes at a number of loci as an example of continuous variation. The final part of the lesson describes a few examples where environmental factors affect phenotype, such as chlorosis in plants. As this is the final lesson in topic 3, the numerous activities can be used for revision purposes and to demonstrate the links between different biological topics.

This revision resource includes exam questions, understanding checks and quiz competitions, all of which have been designed with the aim of motivating and engaging the students whilst they assess their understanding of the content found in topic 3 (Movement in and out of cells) of the CIE IGCSE Biology specification for examination in June and November 2020 and 2021. This revision resource contains a detailed and engaging PowerPoint (42 slides) and associated worksheets, some of which have been differentiated to help and challenge differing abilities. The range of activities have been designed to cover as much of the Core and supplement content as possible but the following sub-topics have been given particular attention: Active transport as the movement of particles against their concentration gradient using energy from respiration The importance of active transport as demonstrated by the absorption of mineral ions by the root hair cells The movement of water across cell membranes by osmosis The importance of osmosis and water potential in the uptake of water by plants The effects on plant cells of immersion into solutions of different concentrations The importance of turgor pressure for a plant Diffusion as the net movement of particles with the concentration gradient Recognising the factors that influence the rate of diffusion In addition, topics from other modules such as specialised plant cells are covered so that students can see the importance of being able to make connections and links between Biological topics.

This lesson looks at the detailed structure of DNA and builds on the knowledge from topic 1 to explain how this nucleic acid differs in the nucleus, mitochondria and chloroplasts of eukaryotic cells and in prokaryotic cells. Both the engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the first part of point 6.1 (b) of the CIE International A-level Biology specification. As well as focusing on the differences between the DNA found in these two types of cells which includes the length, shape and association with histones, the various tasks will ensure that students are confident to describe how this double-stranded polynucleotide is held together by hydrogen and phosphodiester bonds. These tasks include exam-style questions which challenge the application of knowledge as well as a few quiz competitions to maintain engagement.

This engaging lesson describes the relationship between the structure, properties and functions of a phopholipid and cholesterol. The PowerPoint has been written as the second lesson in a series of two that cover specification points 2.1.2 (h), (i) & (j) of the OCR A-level Biology A course and there is a particular focus on their roles in membranes to link to module 2.1.5. In the previous lesson, the students met triglycerides and a quick quiz round called FAMILY AFFAIR is used at the start of the lesson to challenge the students on their knowledge of the structure of this macromolecule to identify the shared features in a phospholipid. This then allows the differences to be introduced, such as the presence of a phosphate group in place of the third fatty acid. Moving forwards, the students will learn that the two fatty acid tails are hydrophobic whilst the phosphate head is hydrophilic which leads into a key discussion point where the class has to consider how it is possible for the phospholipids to be arranged when both the inside and outside of a cell is an aqueous solution. The outcome of the discussion is the introduction of the bilayer which is critical for the lesson in module 2.1.5 on the fluid mosaic model. Students are briefly introduced to facilitated diffusion and reminded of active transport so they can recognise that proteins will be found in the membrane to allow for movement of large or polar molecules. The remainder of the lesson focuses on cholesterol, beginning with the structure. The hydrophobic nature of this molecule is then considered and discussed so that they can understand its role in the regulation of membrane fluidity. That just leaves one final quiz round which identifies vitamin D, testosterone and oestrogen as three substances that are formed from cholesterol