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 fully-resourced lesson describes the meaning of the terms stem cell, pluripotency and totipotency. The PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets have been designed to cover points 3.11 (i) and (ii) of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A (Salters Nuffield) specification and therefore this lesson also contains discussion periods where the topic is the decisions that the scientific community have to make about the use of stem cells in medical therapies.
The lesson begins with a knowledge recall of the structure of eukaryotic cells and the students have to use the first letters of each of the four answers to reveal the key term, stem cell. Time is then taken to consider the meaning of cellular differentiation, and this leads into the key idea that not all stem cells are equal when it comes to the number of cell types that they have the potential to differentiate into. A quick quiz round introduces the five degrees of potency, and then the students are challenged to use their understanding of terminology to place totipotency, pluripotency, multipotency, oligopotency and unipotency in the correct places on the potency continuum. Although the latter three do not have to be specifically known based on the content of specification point 3.11 (i), an understanding of their meaning was deemed helpful when planning the lesson as it should assist with the retention of knowledge about totipotency and pluripotency. These two highest degrees of potency are the main focus of the lesson, and key details are emphasised such as the ability of totipotent cells to differentiate into any extra-embroyonic cell, which the pluripotent cells are unable to do. The morula, and inner cell mass and trophoblast of the blastocyst are used to demonstrate these differences in potency. The final part of the lesson discusses the decisions that the scientific community have to make about the use of embryonic stem cells, adult stem cells and also foetal stem cells which allows for a link to chorionic villus sampling from topic 2.
There is also a Maths in a Biology context question included in the lesson (when introducing the morula) to ensure that students continue to be prepared for the numerous calculations that they will have to tackle in the terminal exams. This resource has been differentiated two ways to allow students of differing abilities to access the work
This bundle contains 20 PowerPoint lessons, and all are highly-detailed and are fully-resourced with differentiated worksheets. Intricate planning means that the wide range of activities included in these lessons will engage and motivate the students, check on their current understanding and their ability to make links to previously covered topics and most importantly will deepen their understanding of the following specification points in topic 2 (Cells) of the AQA A-level Biology specification:
Structure and function of the organelles in eukaryotic cells
The specialised cells in complex, multicellular organisms
The structure of prokaryotic cells
The structure of viruses which are acellular and non-living
Measuring objects under an optical microscope
Use of the magnification formula
The principles of cell fractionation and ultracentrifugation
The behaviour of chromosomes during the stages of the cell cycle
Calculating the mitotic index
Uncontrolled cell division leads to the formation of tumours and cancer
Binary fission
The basic structure of cell membranes
The role of phospholipids, proteins, glycoproteins, glycolipids and cholesterol
Simple diffusion
Facilitated diffusion
Osmosis, explained in terms of water potential
The role of carrier proteins and the hydrolysis of ATP in active transport
Co-transport as illustrated by the absorption of sodium ions and glucose by the cells lining the mammalian ileum
Recognition of different cells by the immune system
The identification of pathogens from antigens
The phagocytosis of pathogens
The cellular response involving T lymphocytes
The humoral response involving the production of antibodies by plasma cells
The structure of an antibody
The roles of plasma cells and memory cells in the primary and secondary immune response
The use of vaccines to protect populations
The differences between active and passive immunity
The structure of the human immunodeficiency virus and its replication in helper T cells
Why antibiotics are ineffective against viruses
The use of antibodies in the ELISA test
If you would like to sample the quality of these lessons, then download the eukaryotic animal cells, viruses, osmosis, lymphocytes, HIV and AIDS lessons as these have been shared for free.
I have also uploaded lessons on optical microscopes and HIV and AIDS (for free) but neither are included in this bundle as the limit of 20 resources has been reached!
This bundle of detailed lesson PowerPoints and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the content of topic 5.1 (Photosynthesis) in the AQA A-level Biology specification. This cellular reaction can prove difficult for the students to understand, so extra planning has gone into these 4 lessons to ensure that the key details of the reactions are embedded and understanding is constantly checked through a variety of activities. All of the exam-style questions which are used in these current understanding and prior knowledge checks have mark schemes that are included in the PowerPoint to allow the students to assess their work.
If you would like to sample the quality of these lessons, download the chloroplast structure lesson as this has been uploaded for free.
A fully resourced lesson which includes an informative lesson presentation (34 slides) and differentiated worksheets that show students how to convert between units so they are confident to carry out these conversions when required in Science questions. The conversions which are regularly seen at GCSE are covered as well as some more obscure ones which students have to be aware of. A number of quiz competitions are used throughout the lesson to maintain motivation and to allow the students to check their progress in an engaging way
This lesson has been designed for GCSE students but is suitable for KS3
This concise lesson acts as an introduction to topic 5.3, Energy and Ecosystems, and describes how plant biomass is formed, measured and estimated. The engaging PowerPoint is the 1st in a series of 3 lessons which have been designed to cover the detailed content of topic 5.3 of the AQA A-level Biology specification.
A quiz round called REVERSE Biology Bingo runs throughout the lesson and challenges students to recognise the following key terms from descriptions called out by the bingo caller:
community
ecosystem
abiotic factor
photosynthesis
respiratory substrate
biomass
calorimetry
The ultimate aim of this quiz format is to support the students to understand that any sugars produced by photosynthesis that are not used as respiratory substrates are used to form biological molecules that form the biomass of a plant and that this can be estimated using calorimetry. Due to the clear link to photosynthesis, a series of prior knowledge checks are used to challenge the students on their knowledge of this cellular reaction but as this is the first lesson in the topic, the final section of the lesson looks forwards and introduces the chemical energy store in the plant biomass as NPP and students will also meet GPP and R so they are partially prepared for the next lesson.
An engaging lesson presentation (64 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 C2 (Elements, compounds and mixtures) of the OCR Gateway A GCSE Chemistry specification.
The topics that are tested within the lesson include:
Relative formula mass
Empirical formula
Pure and impure substances
Separation methods
Electronic structures
Forming ions
Ionic compounds
Simple molecules
Giant covalent substances
Carbon
Nanoparticles
Students will be engaged through the numerous activities including quiz rounds like “SEPARATE the fact from the fiction” and “Higher or Lower” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need further attention
A fully-resourced lesson which includes a lesson presentation (24 slides) and a worksheet which is differentiated so that students can judge their understanding of the topic of writing half equations for electrolysis and access the work accordingly. The lesson uses worked examples and helpful hints to show the students how to write half equations at both the cathode and anode. Time is taken to remind students about the rules at the electrodes when the electrolyte is in solution so that they can work out the products before writing the equations.
This lesson has been designed for GCSE students (14 - 16 years old in the UK) but could be used with older students.
This highly detailed, fully-resourced lesson has been designed to cover the content of specification point 5.1.4 (d) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification which states that students should be able to demonstrate and apply an understanding of the regulation of blood glucose concentration. There is focus on the negative feedback mechanisms that release insulin or glucagon and the role of the liver. It challenges the students recall of the control of insulin release from the beta cells which was taught in an earlier lesson.
A wide range of activities will maintain motivation and engagement whilst the content is covered in detail to enable the students to explain how the receptors in the pancreas detect the concentration change and how the hormones attaching to receptor sites on the liver triggers a series of events in this effector organ. This is a topic which has a huge amount of difficult terminology so time is taken to look at all of the key words, especially those which begin with the letter G so students are able to use them accurately in the correct context. The action of adrenaline is also considered and linked to the breakdown of glycogen to glucose during glycogenolysis.
This lesson has been written for students studying on the OCR A-level Biology A course and ties in with the lesson on the differences between type I and II diabetes mellitus as well as the human endocrine system
This detailed lesson introduces the 3 main principles of the cell theory and describes how cells are organised into tissues, organs and organ systems. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points 2.1 (i) & (ii) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification.
The cell theory is introduced at the start of the lesson and the 1st principle is immediately discussed to ensure that students are aware that all living organisms are made of cells. This principle is discussed with relation to viruses to enable students to understand that the lack of cell structure in a virus is one of the reasons that they are not considered to be living. The second principle states that the cell is the basic unit of structure and organisation and this leads into the main part of the lesson where specialised cells and their groupings into tissues are considered. Students are challenged to compare an amoeba against a human to get them to focus on the difference in the SA/V ratio. This acts as an introduction into the process of differentiation and a recognition of its importance for multicellular organisms. Students will discover that a zygote is a stem cell which can express all of the genes in its genome and divide by mitosis. Time is then taken to introduce gene expression as this will need to be understood in the later topics of the course. Moving forwards, the lesson uses the process of haematopoiesis from haematopoietic stem cells to demonstrate how the red blood cell and neutrophil differ significantly in structure despite arising from the same cell along the same cell lineage. A series of exam-style questions will not only challenge their knowledge of structure but also their ability to apply this knowledge to unfamiliar situations. These differences in cell structure is further exemplified by the epithelial cells of the respiratory tract and students will understand why the shape and arrangement of these cells differ in the trachea and alveoli in line with function. The link between specialised cells and tissues is made at this point of the lesson with these examples of epithelium and students will also see how tissues are grouped into organs and then into organ systems. The third principle states that cells arise from pre-existing cells and this will be demonstrated later in topic 2 with mitosis and meiosis.
This lesson focuses on the key terms associated with ecosystems and describes how populations are affected by a range of factors. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources are part of the 1st lesson in a series of 4 lessons that cover the details of point 7.4 of the AQA A-level Biology specification
As shown in the cover image, a modified version of the quiz competition BLOCKBUSTERS runs throughout the lesson and this introduces new terms as well as challenging students to recall key terms that were encountered in previous topics. These include population, ecosystems, competition, niche, abiotic factors and carrying capacity. Each time a term is met, time is taken to describe its meaning and to explain its relevance and context in this topic of populations in ecosystems. Exam-style questions are also used to challenge the students to apply their understanding and displayed mark schemes allow them to assess their progress. Prior knowledge checks interspersed within the lesson which check on topics such as the nitrogen cycle, adaptations and the biological classification of a species
This lesson describes how genetic diversity within, or between species, can be investigated by comparison of characteristics or biological molecules. The PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets are primarily designed to cover the content of point 4.7 of the AQA A-level Biology specification but as this is the last lesson in the topic, it has also been planned to contain a range of questions, tasks and quiz rounds that will challenge the students on their knowledge and understanding of topic 4.
Over the course of the lesson, the students will discover that comparisons of measurable or observable characteristics, DNA and mRNA sequences and the primary structure of common proteins can all be used to investigate diversity. Links are continually made to prior learning, such as the existence of convergent evolution as evidence of the need to compare biological molecules as opposed to the simple comparison of phenotypes. The issues associated with a limited genetic diversity are discussed and the interesting biological example of the congenital dysfunctions consistently found in the Sumatran tigers in captivity in Australia and New Zealand is used to demonstrate the problems of a small gene pool. Moving forwards, the study of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene by Carl Woese is introduced and students will learn that this led to the adoption of the three-domain system in 1990. The final part of the lesson describes how the primary structure of proteins like cytochrome c that is involved in respiration and is therefore found in most living organisms can be compared and challenges the students to demonstrate their understanding of protein synthesis when considering the differences between humans and rhesus monkeys.
All 7 of the lessons in this bundle are fully-resourced and have been designed to cover the content as detailed in topic 5.2 (Respiration) of the AQA A-Level Biology specification. The specification points that are covered within these lessons include:
Respiration produces ATP
Glycolysis as the first stage of aerobic and anaerobic respiration
The phosphorylation of glucose and the production and oxidation of triose phosphate
The production of lactate or ethanol in anaerobic conditions
The Link reaction
The oxidation-reduction reactions of the Krebs cycle
The synthesis of ATP by oxidative phosphorylation
The chemiosmotic theory
Lipids and proteins as respiratory substrates
The lessons have been written to include a wide range of activities and numerous understanding and prior knowledge checks so students can assess their progress against the current topic as well as be challenged to make links to other sub-topics within this topic and earlier topics
If you would like to see the quality of the lessons, download the anaerobic respiration and oxidative phosphorylation lessons as these have been uploaded for free
This fully-resourced lesson describes how the eukaryotic cells of complex multicellular organisms become specialised for specific functions. The detailed and engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the 3rd part of point 2.1.1 of the AQA A-level Biology specification and also describes how these specialised cells are organised into tissues, organs and organ systems.
The start of the lesson focuses on the difference in the SA/V ratio of an amoeba and a human in order to begin to explain why the process of differentiation is critical for multicellular organisms. Students will discover that a zygote is a stem cell which can express all of the genes in its genome and divide by mitosis. Time is then taken to introduce gene expression as this will need to be understood in the later topics of the course. Moving forwards, the lesson uses the process of haematopoiesis from haematopoietic stem cells to demonstrate how the red blood cell and neutrophil differ significantly in structure despite arising from the same cell along the same cell lineage. A series of exam-style questions will not only challenge their knowledge of structure but also their ability to apply this knowledge to unfamiliar situations. These differences in cell structure is further exemplified by the epithelial cells of the respiratory tract and students will understand why the shape and arrangement of these cells differ in the trachea and alveoli in line with function. The link between specialised cells and tissues is made at this point of the lesson with these examples of epithelium and students will also see how tissues are grouped into organs and then into organ systems.
The remainder of the lesson focuses on specialised plant cells and the differing shapes and features of the palisade and spongy mesophyll cells and the guard cells are covered at length and in detail. Step by step guides will support the students so that they can recognise the importance of the structures and links are made to upcoming topics such as diffusion, active transport and osmosis so that students are prepared for these when covered in the future.
This lesson has been written to continually tie in with the previous two lessons in this specification point which are uploaded under the titles of the structure of eukaryotic animal and plant cells.
This revision lesson has been designed to challenge the students on their use of a range of mathematical skills that could be assessed on the AQA GCSE Combined Science papers. The mathematical element of the AQA GCSE Combined Science course has increased significantly since the specification change and therefore success in those questions which involve the use of maths can prove to be the difference between one grade and another or possibly even more.
The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources contain a wide range of activities that include exam-style questions with displayed mark schemes and explanations so that students can assess their progress. Other activities include differentiated tasks, class discussion points and quick quiz competitions such as “YOU DO THE MATH” and “FILL THE VOID”.
The following mathematical skills (in a scientific context) are covered in this lesson:
The use of Avogadro’s constant
Rearranging the formula of an equation
Calculating the amount in moles using mass and relative formula mass
Calculating the relative formula mass for formulae with brackets
Using the Periodic Table to calculate the number of sub-atomic particles in atoms
Changes to electrons in ions
Balancing chemical symbol equations
Converting between units
Calculating concentration in grams per dm cubed and volumes of solutions
Calculating size using the magnification equation
Using the mean to estimate the population of a sessile species
Calculating percentages to prove the importance of biodiversity
Calculating percentage change
Calculating the acceleration from a velocity-time graph
Recalling and applying the Physics equations
Understanding prefixes that determine size
Leaving answers to significant figures and using standard form
Helpful hints and step-by-step guides are used throughout the lesson to support the students and some of the worksheets are differentiated two ways to provide extra assistance.
Due to the detail of this lesson, it is estimated that it will take in excess of 3 hours of GCSE teaching time to cover the tasks and for this reason it can be used over a number of lessons as well as during different times of the year for revision.
This bundle of 9 revision lessons covers the specification content in all of the topics of the Pearson Edexcel GCSE Biology 9-1 specification.
Topic 1: Key concepts in Biology
Topic 2: Cells and control
Topic 3: Genetics
Topic 4: Natural selection and modification
Topic 5: Health, disease and the development of medicines
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 recognise those areas which will need further attention prior to the exams.
This revision lesson has been filled with activities that will challenge the students on their knowledge and understanding of the content detailed in topic 8 (Energy - forces doing work) of the Pearson Edexcel GCSE Physics specification. The wide range of activities in the engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources will check on the knowledge of this topic and allow the students to recognise those areas which need further attention before the mock or terminal GCSE exams.
This resource has been designed to cover as much of topic 8 as possible but the following points have received particular attention:
Describe how to measure the work done by a force
Understand that work done is equal to energy transferred
Recall and use the equation to calculate work done
Calculate the changes in energy involved when a system is changed by work done by forces
Recall and use the equation to calculate gravitational potential energy
Recall and use the equation to calculate kinetic energy
Explain how energy is dissipated so that it is stored in less useful ways
Define power as the rate at which energy is transferred and that 1 watt is equal to one joule per second
Recall and use the equation to calculate power
Recall and use the equation to calculate efficiency
The mathematical content of this specification and this topic is heavy and in line with this lots of calculated-based tasks are included and all of the answers are explained in steps so students can assess their progress
The main task of the lesson which challenges students to use the principle of moments has been differentiated so that differing abilities can access the work
This is a fully-resourced lesson which uses exam-style questions, quiz competitions, quick tasks and discussion points to challenge students on their understanding of topics B1 - B5, that will assessed on PAPER 1. It has been specifically designed for students on the Pearson Edexcel GCSE Combined Science course who will be taking the FOUNDATION TIER examinations but is also suitable for students taking the higher tier who need to ensure that the fundamentals are known and understood.
The lesson has been written to take place at the local hospital where the students have to visit numerous wards and clinics and the on-site pharmacy so that the following sub-topics can be covered:
Cancer as the result of uncontrolled cell division
The production of gametes by meiosis
Mitosis and the cell cycle
Sex determination
The difference between communicable and non-communicable diseases
The pathogens that spread communicable diseases
Identification of communicable diseases
Treating bacterial infections with antibiotics
Evolution of antibiotic resistance in bacteria
Vaccinations
Genetic terminology
Genetic diagrams
Structures involved in a nervous reaction
A Reflex arc
Risk factors
Chemical and physical defences
Osmosis and percentage gain and loss
Fossils as evidence for human evolution
In order to maintain challenge whilst ensuring that all abilities can access the questions, the majority of the tasks have been differentiated and students can ask for assistance sheets when they are unable to begin a question. Step-by-step guides have also been written into the lesson to walk students through some of the more difficult concepts such as genetic diagrams and evolution by natural selection.
Due to the extensiveness of this revision lesson, it is estimated that it will take in excess of 3 teaching hours to complete the tasks and therefore this can be used at different points throughout the duration of the course as well as acting as a final revision before the PAPER 1 exam.
This lesson uses 17 multiple-choice questions to challenge students to apply their understanding to the calculation sections of the course. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources are designed to act as revision during the final weeks leading up to the AQA GCSE Combined chemistry exams and the following topics are covered:
Atoms and ions
Isotopes
Concentration of solutions
Mole calculations using Avogadro’s constant
Calculating relative formula mass
Mole calculations using mass and relative formula mass
Calculating masses in reactions
Calculating energy changes in reactions
Calculating the mean rate of reaction
All 17 questions have answers embedded into the PowerPoint along with explanations and are followed by additional tasks to further check understanding if it was initially limited.
This is a fully-resourced lesson that covers the details of specification point 5.1.2 (e) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification which states that students should be able to demonstrate and apply an understanding of the effects of kidney failure and its potential treatments. This lesson consists of an engaging PowerPoint (55 slides) and associated differentiated worksheets that look at the diagnosis of a number of different kidney-related conditions and the potential treatments for kidney failure. This lesson is designed to get the students to take on the numerous roles of a doctor who works in the renal ward which include testing, diagnosis and treatment. Having obtained measurements by GFR and results by taking urine samples, hey are challenged to use their knowledge of the function of the kidney to study urine samples (and the accompanying GP’s notes) to diagnose one of four conditions. They then have to write a letter to the patient to explain how they made this diagnosis, again focusing on their knowledge of the structure and functions of the Bowman’s capsule and PCT. The rest of the lesson focuses on haemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis and kidney transplant. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson so that students can assess their understanding and there are a number of homework activities included in the lesson.
This lesson is designed for A-level students who are studying the OCR A-level Biology specification and ties in nicely with the other uploaded lessons on this organ which include the structure and function of the nephron, ultrafiltration, selective reabsorption and osmoregulation.
This bundle of 6 lessons covers a lot of the content in Module 6.1.3 (Manipulating genomes) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification and includes an end of module revision lesson. The topics covered within these lessons include:
The principles of DNA sequencing
The development of new DNA sequencing techniques
The principles of the PCR and its applications
The principles and uses of electrophoresis to separate DNA fragments and proteins
The principles and techniques of genetic engineering
6.1.3 REVISION
All of these lesson presentations and accompanying resources are detailed and engaging and contain regular progress checks to allow the students to constantly assess their understanding.
