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 bundle covers the content of the 4 specification points in topic 14.2 of the CIE A-level biology specification, titled “Homeostasis in plants”. The 4 specification points concern the structure and function of guard cells as well as the role of abscisic acid and calcium ions in a plant’s response to water stress.
The plant biology topics can be poorly understood by students, so both lessons have been filled with understanding checks so students can constantly assess their progress and address any knowledge gaps that arise.
A detailed and engaging lesson presentation (74 slides) which consists of a series of exam questions, quick tasks and competitions to enable the students to assess their understanding of the topics found within Module 2. All of the exam questions have displayed mark schemes with explanations so that students can recognise errors and misconceptions and address them. Students will thoroughly enjoy the numerous competitions which include "Name the 007 bonds" and "Biology catchphrase".
An engaging lesson presentation (70 slides) which covers a range of communicable diseases which are caused by each of the four pathogens and discusses how the spread of these diseases can be prevented. The lesson begins by challenging the students to make the link between communicable diseases and pathogens and ensures that they are comfortable with protoctists as this is a pathogen that a lot of them will not have met or at least known the name for. Moving forwards, a focus is given to each pathogen, looking at why they are so effective at causing disease and also looks at examples of diseases that they cause. A range of quiz competitions are used to introduce key terms and maintain engagement. The remainder of the lesson focuses on how the spread of these communicable diseases can be prevented and attempts are made to link to other topics such as contraception. Progress checks have been written into the lesson at regular intervals so that students can constantly assess their understanding and any misconceptions can be immediately addressed.
This lesson has been written for GCSE students (14 - 16 year olds in the UK) but can be used with both younger and older students.
This fully-resourced lesson describes the ultrastructure of eukaryotic cells and the functions of each of the organelles in these cells. The engaging and detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points 3.1, 3.2 & 3.3 of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification and therefore this lesson also describes how all living organisms are made of cells and that these cells are organised into tissues, organs and organ system in multicellular organisms.
As cells are the building blocks of living organisms, it makes sense that they would be heavily involved in all of the 8 topics in the Edexcel course and intricate planning has ensured that links to previously covered topics as well as upcoming ones are made throughout the lesson. The cell theory is introduced at the start of the lesson and the first 2 principles are explained. Students will see how epithelial cells are grouped together to form different types of epithelium in the respiratory tract and their prior knowledge of gas exchange at the alveoli from topic 2 is tested with a series of questions.
The rest of the lesson uses a wide range of activities, that include exam-style questions, class discussion points and quick quiz competitions, to maintain motivation and engagement whilst describing the relationship between the structure and function of the following organelles:
nucleus
nucleolus
centrioles
ribosomes
rough endoplasmic reticulum
Golgi apparatus
lysosomes
smooth endoplasmic reticulum
mitochondria
cell surface membrane
All of the worksheets have been differentiated to support students of differing abilities whilst maintaining challenge
Due to the detail that is included in this lesson, it is estimated that it will take in excess of 3 hours of allocated A-level teaching time to go through all of the tasks
This bundle of 4 lessons covers the majority of the content in the sub-topic B5.2 (Natural selection and evolution) of the OCR Gateway A GCSE Combined Science specification. The topics and specification points covered within these lessons include:
Developments in biological classification systems
Explain how evolution occurs through natural selection
Describe the evidence for evolution
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.
This bundle of 4 lessons covers a lot of the content in Topic B4 (Natural selection and genetic modification) of the Edexcel GCSE Combined Science specification. The topics covered within these lessons include:
The theory of evolution by natural selection
Resistant bacteria as evidence for natural selection
Classification
Selective breeding and the impact
The main stages of genetic engineering
The risks of genetic engineering
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.
Each of the 4 lessons in this bundle are fully-resourced and have been designed to cover the content as detailed in topic 4.3 (Genetic diversity can arise as a result of mutation or meiosis) of the AQA A-Level Biology specification. The specification points that are covered within these lessons include:
Base deletions and base substitutions as examples of gene mutations
The degenerate nature of the genetic code
Mutagenic agents increase the rate of mutation
Chromosome mutations arise spontaneously during meiosis
Meiosis produces genetically different daughter cells
Crossing over and independent segregation as events that contribute to genetic variation
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 topics within this topic and earlier topics
If you would like to see the quality of the lessons, download the gene mutations lesson which is free
Each of the 3 lessons in this bundle are fully-resourced and have been designed to cover the content as detailed in topic 4.2 (DNA and protein synthesis) of the AQA A-Level Biology specification. The specification points that are covered within these lessons include:
The concept of the genome and the proteome
The structure of mRNA
The structure of tRNA
Transcription as the production of mRNA from DNA
The differences between the outcome of transcription in porkaryotes and eukaryotes
Splicing
Translation as the production of polypeptides from the sequence of codons on mRNA
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 topics within this topic and earlier topics
If you would like to see the quality of the lessons, download the structure of RNA lesson as this has been shared for free
This bundle of 3 lessons looks at the different methods by which molecules move across cell membranes. These lessons have been written for GCSE aged students, but could be used with younger students who are studying this topic and want to be challenged. Students will understand how the passive processes of diffusion and osmosis move molecules with the concentration gradient whilst active transport moves them against the gradient and therefore requires energy in the form of ATP. Time is taken to go through the factors that increase the rate of diffusion as well as relating this to the living organism with examples in the body.
The three lessons included in this bundle describe the key events of the mitotic and meiotic cell cycles and cover the following points as detailed in topics 5 and 16 of the CIE A-level Biology specification:
Topic 5: The mitotic cell cycle
Explain the importance of mitosis in the production of genetically identical cells, growth, cell replacement, repair of tissues and asexual reproduction
Outline the cell cycle, including interphase, mitosis and cytokinesis
The behaviour of chromosomes in plant and animal cells during the mitotic cell cycle
Topic 16: Inherited change
Explain what is meant by a pair of homologous chromosomes
The behaviour of chromosomes in plant and animal cells during meiosis
Explain how crossing over and random assortment of homologous chromosomes during meiosis and random fusion of gametes at fertilisation lead to genetic variation
Each lesson is fully-resourced and the wide range of tasks found in the PowerPoint and the accompanying resources will check on current understanding and prior knowledge and engage the students with guided discussion points and quiz competitions.
If you would like to sample the quality of lessons in this bundle, then download the interphase, mitosis and cytokinesis lesson as this has been uploaded for free
This bundle of 5 revision lessons covers 5 of the 12 Biology topics that are found on the CIE IGCSE Combined Science specification for examination in June and November 2020 and 2021. Each of the lessons has been designed to include exam questions, differentiated tasks and quiz competitions that challenge the students on their recall of the content and their ability to apply knowledge. Students will be engaged and motivated by the range of activities whilst recognising those areas that need further attention.
The following topics are included in this bundle:
Topic B2: Cells
Topic B3: Biological molecules
Topic B4: Enzymes
Topic B6: Animal nutrition
Topic B8: Gas exchange and respiration
If you like these lessons, please look at my revision lessons for the Chemistry and Physics topics of the Combined Science specification as well as the IGCSE Biology, Chemistry and Physics
Each of the 3 lessons in this bundle have been planned extensively to ensure that they contain lots of engaging biological examples that will catch the interest of the students whilst covering the difficult content of topic 18.3 (Conservation) of the CIE A-level Biology specification. The lesson PowerPoints and accompanying worksheets are filled with a wide range of tasks that include guided discussion periods, exam-style questions (with mark schemes) and quick quiz competitions and these combine to cover the following specification points:
The reasons for the need to maintain biodiversity
Methods of protecting endangered species, including the roles of zoos, botanic gardens, national parks, marine conservation zones and seed banks
The roles of non-governmental organisations such as WWF and CITES in local and global conservation
If you would like to view the detailed content of this bundle, then download the “WWF, CITES and conservation” lesson as this has been uploaded for free
Each of the 3 lessons in this bundle are fully-resourced and have been designed to cover the content as detailed in topic 8.2 (The heart) of the CIE International A-Level Biology specification. The specification points that are covered within these lessons include:
The external and internal structure of the mammalian heart
The differences in the thickness of the walls of the chambers
The cardiac cycle and the blood pressure changes during systole and diastole
The initiation and control of heart action
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 topics within this topic and earlier topics
All 3 lessons included in this bundle are highly detailed and contain multiple biological examples to challenge the students to apply their understanding of a potentially difficult topic. A variety of tasks are embedded throughout the lessons and cover all of the content of topic 7.2 of the Edexcel A-level biology B specification (Factors affecting gene expression).
If you would like to view the quality of the lessons before deciding on the bundle, then download the epigenetic modification lesson as this has been shared for free.
All 4 of the lessons included in this bundle are fully-resourced with differentiated tasks to cater for all abilities of students whilst containing the detail to push them to the next level. These lessons have been designed to cover the details of topic 6.1 of the CIE International A-level Biology specification which concerns the structure and replication of DNA
The following specification points are covered within these lessons:
The structure of nucleotides
ATP as a phosphorylated nucleotide
The structure of DNA
The structure of mRNA, tRNA and rRNA
DNA replication
Links are continually made throughout the lessons to previously-covered topics as well as to those which will be covered later in the AS course or during the second year
If you would like to sample the quality of the lessons, download the semi-conservative replication lesson as this has been shared for free
This bundle contains 5 detailed and engaging lessons that cover the content in topic 2.2 of the CIE International A-level Biology course. Due to the importance of these biological molecules in living organisms, this mini-topic is fundamental to the whole course and planning has taken account of this with extra time given to those key details which must be understood.
The PowerPoints and accompanying resources contain a wide range of activities which include discussion points, current understanding and prior knowledge checks and quiz competitions.
The following specification points are covered in this bundle:
The ring forms of alpha and beta glucose
The meaning of the terms monomer, polymer, macromolecule, monosaccharide, disaccharide and polysaccharide
The formation and breakage of glycosidic bonds by condensation and hydrolysis reactions
The molecular structure of a triglyceride
The relationship between the structure and functions of triglycerides in living organisms
The structure and functions of phospholipids
If you would like to sample the quality of the lessons, download the glucose and phospholipids lessons as these have been shared for free
This bundle of 3 lessons covers the content of topic 15.2 of the CIE A-level biology specification (for assessment in 2025 - 27). This topic, titled control and coordination in plants, isn’t always a student favourite, so additional time has been put into the design and planning to maintain engagement whilst ensuring that the A-level content is covered in detail. A lot of these biological processes are sequences of events, so step-by-step guides are used to aid retention. Understanding checks are found throughout the lessons, as well as prior knowledge checks which challenge content from earlier plant-based topics such as 14.2 and 7. All answers to these checks are embedded into the PowerPoints to allow the students to assess their progress.
Topic 15.1, control and coordination in mammals, is also available on here, as well as the larger bundle containing all the topic 15 lessons.
Topic 5.4 of the AQA A-level biology specification is titled Nutrient cycles, and students are expected to understand how nutrients are recycled within ecosystems, as exemplified by the nitrogen and phosphorus cycle, and be able to describe environmental issues that arise when fertilisers leach into waterways.
These 3 lessons have been planned at length to ensure they cover all the detailed content in the specification and also contain prior knowledge checks and links to the future so students understand how this topic links with parts of topics 1 - 4 and 6 - 8.
If you would like to observe the quality of the lessons before purchasing the bundle, then download the phosphorus cycle lesson as this has been shared for free.
This bundle of 4 revision lessons covers the content in topics 1 - 4 of the AQA A-level Biology specification that are taught during year 12 (AS) of the two-year course.
Each of the lessons has been designed to include a range of exam questions, differentiated tasks and quiz competitions that will motivate the students whilst they evaluate their understanding of the different sub-topics.
Helpful hints are given throughout the lesson to aid the students in structuring their answers and the mathematical elements of the course are constantly challenged as well.
The 4 topics covered by this bundle are:
Topic 1:Biological molecules
Topic 2: Cells
Topic 3: Organisms exchange substances with their environment
Topic 4: Genetic information, variation and relationships between organisms
This bundle of 3 lessons covers all of the content in the sub-topic B1.2 (What happens in cells) of the OCR Gateway A GCSE Biology specification. The topics covered within these lessons include:
DNA
Transcription and translation
Enzymes
Enzyme actions
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.
