This engaging and detailed REVISION resource has been written to encourage students to evaluate their understanding of the content found in MODULE 4.1.1 (Communicable diseases, disease prevention and the immune system) of the OCR A-Level Biology specification. The resource contains a motivating PowerPoint (86 slides) and associated worksheets which have been differentiated to support students of differing abilities in their access of the work. The lesson includes a wide range of activities such as exam questions, quick tasks and quiz competitions to motivate the students whilst they recognise those areas of the specification which require even more attention. The lesson has been designed to cover as much of the content in module 4.1.1 as possible but the following sub-topics have been given particular attention: Communicable diseases caused by bacteria, viruses and fungi Bacteria as pathogens Antigen-presenting cells The specific immune response Antibiotics and the existence of resistant strains Preventing the spread of pathogens Vaccinations Primary defences of the human body In addition to content from this module, links are made to earlier modules and challenges posed so that students can see how connections between the modules have to be made to be successful. This resource is suitable for use at the end of the module, in the lead up to AS or A2 mocks or in the lead up to the actual A-level exams.

This is a fully-resourced lesson which has been designed to cover specification point 6.4.1 of the AQA A-level Biology specification. The resource contains a detailed and engaging PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets which ensure that students can apply their understanding of the principles of homeostasis to include the regulation by negative feedback. 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 and the use of glucose as a respiratory substrate. 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 restricted limits and the importance of these systems are looked into in detail. Time is taken to consider the importance of maintaining these aspects, specifically with relation to the activity of enzymes. As such, students will also discuss how the pH of the blood is maintained. 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 the aspect back to the optimum and the added degree of control which this provides. Positive feedback is also briefly mentioned at the end. This lesson has been written for A-level students who are studying the AQA A-level Biology course and because of the detail of this specification point, it is likely that this resource will cover 2 or more lessons in order for deep understanding to be developed.

A fully resourced lesson which uses a combination of exam questions, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the topics found within module 5.2 (Excretion as an example of homeostatic control) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification. The following topics are tested within the lesson: Excretion The structure of the liver Liver function Kidney structure Kidney function Osmoregulation Kidney failure Students will be engaged through the various activities whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need further attention.

An engaging lesson presentation and associated worksheet that looks at the use of antibiotics to treat bacterial infections and the raises the issue of the potential over-use of these substances. The lesson begins by getting the students to recognise the difference between three key terms that begin with anti (antibiotics, antivirals, antiseptics). Students will be introduced to the idea that antibiotics are specific to a small range of bacteria and therefore the correct one has to be selected before being prescribed. Moving forwards, students will meet the idea of the zone of inhibition and will understand how the size of this zone can be used as an indicator to the effectiveness of the treatment. Students are shown how to calculate the size of the zone and then are tested on their ability to apply this mathemetical knowledge. Finally, time is taken to look at the links to the topic of natural selection to explain how some bacteria are resistant to certain antibiotics. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson so that students can assess their understanding. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students but could be used as an introduction with A-level Biology students who are about to begin the topic of immunity.

This lesson describes how large molecules are hydrolysed to smaller molecules by the enzymes produced by the digestive system in mammals. The detailed PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets are part of the 1st lesson in a series of 2 which have been designed to cover the content of point 3.3 of the AQA A-level Biology specification and this lesson includes descriptions of the action of amylase, disaccharidases, lipase, endopeptidases, exopeptidases and dipeptidases. The lesson has been designed to walk the students through the functions of the digestive system at each point of the digestive tract up until the duodenum and focuses on the action of the enzymes produced in the mouth, stomach and small intestine and by the accessory organs of the system. Time is taken to describe and explain key details, such as the fact that endopeptidases cleave peptide bonds within the molecules, meaning that they cannot break down proteins into monomers. The lesson is filled with exam-style questions which will develop their understanding of the current topic as well as checking on their knowledge of related topics which have been previously-covered such as the structure of the biological molecules and qualitative tests. In addition to the detailed content and regular questioning, the lesson PowerPoint contains guided discussion periods and two quick quiz competitions which introduce a key term and a key value in a fun and memorable way This lesson has been specifically planned to prepare the students for the very next lesson where the mechanisms for the absorption of the products of digestion are described.

This fully-resourced lesson describes how natural selection results in species with anatomical, behavioural and physiological adaptations. The engaging and detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the fourth part of point 4.4 of the AQA A-level Biology specification and make continual links to the earlier parts of this topic including evolution and genetics. A quick quiz competition at the start of the lesson introduces the different types of adaptation and a series of tasks are used to ensure that the students can distinguish between anatomical, behavioural and physiological adaptations. The Marram grass is used to test their understanding further, before a step by step guide describes how the lignified cells prevent a loss of turgidity. Moving forwards, the students are challenged to explain how the other adaptations of this grass help it to survive in its environment. A series of exam-style questions on the Mangrove family will challenge them to make links to other topics such as osmosis and the mark schemes are displayed to allow them to assess their understanding. The final part of the lesson focuses on the adaptations of the anteater but this time links are made to the upcoming topic of taxonomy so that students are prepared for this lesson on species and classification hierarchy.

This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Module 2.1.1 (Cell structure) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification. The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include: The use of microscopy to observe and investigate different types of cells The use and manipulation of the magnification formula The difference between magnification and resolution The ultrastructure of eukaryotic cells and the function of the different cellular components Interpretation of electron microscope images The interrelationship between the organelles involved in the production and secretion of proteins The similarities and differences in the structure and ultrastructure of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “It doesn’t HURT to CONVERT” and “Word association game” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which require their further attention during general revision or during the lead up to the actual A-level terminal exams

This is an engaging and fully-resourced revision lesson which uses a range of exam questions, understanding checks, quick tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content within topic 8 (Exchange and transport in animals) of the Edexcel GCSE Biology 9-1 specification. The specification points that are covered in this revision lesson include: Explain the need for exchange surfaces and a transport system in multicellular organisms including the calculation of surface area : volume ratio Explain how alveoli are adapted for gas exchange by diffusion between air in the lungs and blood in capillaries Describe the factors affecting the rate of diffusion, including surface area, concentration gradient and diffusion distance Explain how the structure of the blood is related to its function Explain how the structure of the blood vessels is related to their function Explain how the structure of the heart and circulatory system is related to its function, including the role of the major blood vessels, the valves Describe cellular respiration as an exothermic reaction which occurs continuously in living cells to release energy for metabolic processes, including aerobic and anaerobic respiration Compare the process of aerobic respiration with the process of anaerobic respiration Calculate heart rate, stroke volume and cardiac output, using the equation cardiac output = stroke volume × heart rate The students will thoroughly enjoy the range of activities, which include quiz competitions such as Where’s LENNY?” where they compete to recognise the blood vessel being described from the clues whilst crucially being able to recognise the areas of this topic which need their further attention. This lesson can be used as revision resource at the end of the topic or in the lead up to mocks or the actual GCSE exams.

This lesson describes how to use the magnification formula to calculate the magnification or the actual size in a range of units. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the 3rd part of point 2.1.3 of the AQA A-level Biology specification The students are likely to have met the magnification formula at GCSE so this lesson has been written to build on that knowledge and to support them with more difficult questions when they have to calculate actual size without directly being given the magnification. A step by step guide is used to walk the students through the methodology and useful tips are provided. Students could be asked to calculate the actual size in millimetres, micrometres, nanometres or picometres so time is taken to ensure that they can convert between one and another. This lesson has been written to tie in with the previous two lessons on microscopes and measuring the size of an object and the two rounds of the ongoing quiz competition take place in this lesson.

A fully-resourced lesson which looks at the structure of DNA in the detail which is required at GCSE level (14 - 16 year olds in the UK). The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (35 slides) and associated worksheets. The main aim of the lesson is to ensure that students recognise key terminology that comes with this topic such as nucleotide and (nitrogenous) bases. Engaging tasks have been written into the lesson, in order to maintain the motivation, such as when students are introduced to complimentary base pairing through a version of the gameshow “Take me Out”. Additional knowledge is provided at appropriate times in the lesson to stretch and challenge the more able. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson so that students can assess their understanding of the structure. As stated above, this lesson has been written for GCSE students but could be used with younger students and also with A-level students as a means of a recap before they learn about this in greater detail.

This is a fully-resourced REVISION lesson that challenges the students on their knowledge of the content found in TOPIC 4 (Biodiversity and Natural resources) of the Edexcel A-level Biology (Salters Nuffield) specification. The lesson contains an engaging PowerPoint (104 slides) and accompanying worksheets that use a range of exam questions, differentiated tasks and quiz competitions to motivate the students whilst they evaluate their knowledge of the different sub-topics. The lesson has been designed to cover as much of the topic 4 specification as possible, but the following sub-topics have been given particular attention: Three-domain classification The features of the kingdoms Evolutionary relationships Behavioural, anatomical and physiological adaptations Glycosidic bonds The structure and function of cellulose The ultrastructure of plant cells Calculating the index of diversity and the heterozygosity index Applying the Hardy-Weinberg principle to calculate allele frequencies This lesson is suitable for revision at the end of the topic, in the lead up to the mocks or in the lead up to the actual A-level exams as topic 4 is assessed on both Paper 1 and Paper 2.

A thought-provoking and discussion-based lesson which looks at the different ways that biodiversity is being lost across the World. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students and includes a detailed lesson presentation (31 slides) and accompanying worksheet. The lesson begins by challenging the students to use their Biological knowledge to get to a quantitative answer, which is 80%, and then getting them to consider where this much biodiversity would be found around the World. The rainforest plays a key role in the lesson as important discussion topics such as deforestation can easily be related to this area. A range of tasks and discussion points are used to look at the different ways that humans are causing a loss in biodiversity. As well as deforestation, agriculture and eutrophication are explored and related back to the Science. This can be a word heavy topic and therefore a number of quick quiz competitions have been written into the lesson to maintain engagement and energy levels. In addition, progress checks are involved at regular points, including those which challenge mathematical skills in manipulating data. This allows students to constantly assess their understanding.

This detailed and engaging lesson covers the detail of specification points 5.1.4 (c and d) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification which states that students should be able to demonstrate and apply an understanding of the histology of the pancreas and the control of insulin secretion. There is a particular emphasis on structure throughout the lesson so that students can recognise the exocrine and endocrine tissues of the pancreas as well as describe their specific functions. The lesson begins with a list of endocrine glands and the students are challenged to select the gland which also has exocrine functions. This leads into a focus on the exocrine tissues of the pancreas, beginning with the enzymes that are secreted and form pancreatic juice. Students will discover how groups of these cells are called acini and the secretion of the enzymes into the lobule at the centre will lead to the intralobular ducts and finally the formation of the pancreatic duct. Moving forwards, students are introduced to the Islets of Langerhans and the specialised alpha and beta cells that are found within this endocrine tissue. The rest of this lesson looks at how the release of insulin from the beta cells is controlled. Some of the structures and substances involved have been met in earlier topics so a fun quiz round is used to see which students can recall these parts first. A series of questions and discussion points challenge the students to verbalise answers and to discuss key points so that the cascade of events that take place in the lead up to the release can be considered. In the final task, students have to describe these events in detail and this task has been differentiated so that students of differing abilities can access the work. This lesson has been specifically designed for students on the OCR A-level Biology A course and ties in well with the other lessons from module 5.1.4 on the control of blood glucose concentration and diabetes mellitus type I and II

This engaging lesson covers the detail of the 2nd part of specification point 6.2.2 of the AQA A-level Biology specification which states that students should be able to explain temporal and spatial summation as well as understand inhibition by inhibitory synapses. This is a topic which is generally poorly understood by students or brushed over so considerable time has been taken to design the activities to motivate the students so that the content is memorable whilst still being covered in detail. Links are continually made to earlier topics in this module such as synapses and generator potentials but also to topics covered in the previous year and still to be covered. The lesson begins by challenging the students to recognise a description of generator potential and they will then discover that this is also known as an EPSP. Students will recall that a small depolarisation may not lead to the opening of the voltage gated channels and therefore the full depolarisation which is needed for the initiation of an action potential and will discuss how this problem could be overcome. Lots of discussion points like this are included in the lesson to encourage the students to challenge and debate why a particular process of mechanism occurs. Students will therefore learn that EPSPs can be combined and this is known as summation. A quiz round is used to introduce temporal and spatial summation. Moving forwards, students are presented with a number of examples where they have to decide why type of summation is involved. Again, the lesson has been written to include real-life examples such as chronic pain conditions so the chances of the content sticking is increased. The final part of the lesson introduces IPSPs and the effect of these on summation and action potentials is discussed. This lesson has been designed for students studying on the AQA A-level Biology course and ties in well with the other uploaded lessons from topic 6 which include cholinergic synapses and neuromuscular junctions, sensory receptors and nerve impulses

This detailed lesson has been planned to cover the 1st part of specification point 6.4.3 of the AQA A-level Biology specification which states that students should be able to describe the detailed structure of the nephron and understand its role in ultrafiltration, selective reabsorption and osmoregulation. The lesson was designed at the same time as the other lessons in this topic on ultrafiltration, selective reabsorption and osmoregulation so that a common theme runs throughout and students can build up their knowledge gradually in order to develop a deep understanding of this organ. Students will come to recognise the renal cortex and renal medulla as the two regions of the kidney and learn the parts of the nephron which are found in each of these regions. Time is taken to look at the vascular supply of this organ and specifically to explain how the renal artery divides into the afferent arterioles which carry blood towards the glomerulus and the efferent arterioles which carry the blood away. The main task of the lesson challenges the students to relate structure to function. Having been introduced to the names of each of the parts of the nephron, they have to use the details of the structures found at these parts to match the function. For example, they have to make the connection between the microvilli in the PCT as a sign that this part is involved in selective reabsorption. This lesson has been designed for students studying on the AQA A-level Biology course

A highly engaging lesson that looks at the structures that are found in the 1st line of defence and explores the methods of action use by phagocytes and lymphocytes. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students but could be used as an initial recap with A-level students before they go on to learn this topic in greater detail The lesson begins by introducing the meaning of the 1st line of defence. A quick competition is used to challenge the students to recognise the names of some of these structures when their names have some letters missing. Time is taken to discuss the action of the cilia and skin and then students are challenged to make links to the related topics of enzymes and pH as they complete a passage about the role of hydrochloric acid in the stomach. Moving forwards, students will learn that there are two types of white blood cells, phagocytes and lymphocytes, and the details of their actions is explored. Key points such as the specificity of antibodies and the involvement of enzymes are discussed in detail so that this topic can be understood to the depth needed at this level. In addition to a number of games to maintain engagement, progress checks are written into this at regular intervals to allow the students to assess their understanding.

This revision resource has been designed with the simple aim of motivating the students whilst they assess their understanding of the content found in module 4.2.2 (Classification and evolution) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification. This module is often brushed over by students which leads to misconceptions and therefore time has been taken to explain the important concepts so that key points are recalled and retained. The resource includes a detailed and engaging Powerpoint (85 slides) and associated worksheets, some of which are differentiated to allow students of differing abilities to access the work. The range of activities have been designed to cover as much of the content as possible but the following sub-topics have been given particular attention: The biological classification of a species Classification hierarchy The three-domain and five-kingdom classification The features of the five kingdoms Phylogenetic trees Anatomical, physiological and behavioural adaptations Calculating the standard deviation Continuous and discontinuous variation In addition to these topics, some topics from other modules such as cell division and prokaryotic cells are tested in order to challenge the students on their ability to make links between the modules. The range of activities include exam questions and understanding checks as well as quiz competitions to maintain student engagement.

An engaging lesson presentation (58 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 B1 of the AQA GCSE Biology specification. The topics that are tested within the lesson include: Eukaryotes and prokaryotes Animal and plant cells Microscopy Chromosomes Diffusion Osmosis Active transport Students will be engaged through the numerous activities including quiz rounds like "A QUESTION of CELLS" and "Take the Hotseat" whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need further attention

A highly engaging lesson presentation (60 slides) and accompanying worksheets that uses exam questions (with explained answers), quick tasks and competitions to allow students to assess their understanding of the topic of Genes and Health (Topic 2). Students will have fun whilst recognising those areas of the specification which need further attention. Competitions include "Blockbusters" Hotseat" and "james BOND" so that literacy and numeracy skills are tested along with the content knowledge.

An engaging lesson presentation (31 slides) and associated worksheet that looks at animal and plant cells as eukaryotic cells. The lesson focuses on the organelles which are found inside these two cells and ensures that students understand the difference between the cells as well as briefly looking at the difference to prokaryotic cells at the end of the lesson. There is a lot of key terminology involved in this topic, so a range of tasks including fun quiz competitions are used to introduce these terms in an engaging manner. The lesson is student based, with the emphasis on them to identify the functions of the different organelles as well as recognising which ones are found in both cells or just plant cells. Discussions are encouraged during the lesson with leading questions, such as questioning whether a red blood cell isn’t actually an eukaryotic cell because of the lack of nucleus. Progress checks have been written into the lesson at regular intervals during the lesson so that students can assess their understanding. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but could be used with KS3 students who are looking to extend their knowledge beyond the basics that they will be taught at this level.