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 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.
A fully-resourced lesson which looks at speed and velocity as scalar and vector quantities and then guides students through a range of questions which challenge them to calculate both of these forms of motion. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (44 slides) and differentiated worksheets containing questions.
The lesson begins by introducing the terms magnitude and direction so that students can learn how scalar and vector quantities differ. Students will learn that speed is a scalar quantity and velocity is a vector quantity and then be questioned through a crossroads scenario to understand how speed can stay the same but as soon as an object changes direction, the velocity changes. Moving forwards, the students are given the equation to calculate speed and a few simple questions are worked through before they have to do a series of their own questions to find the average speeds for walking, running and cycling. A pair of more difficult speed questions are then attempted which challenge the students to convert from metres per seconds to miles per hour and to calculate the speed of a bicycle by calculating the distance travelled by the sensor on the wheel. This task is differentiated so that students who need some assistance will still be able to access the work. A quiz competition is then used to introduce students to the range of equations which contain velocity and then having been given them, they have to rearrange the formula to make velocity the subject and apply to some further questions. The final task of the lesson brings all the work together in one final competition where students have to use their new-found knowledge of speed and velocity to get TEAM POINTS. Progress checks have been written into the lesson at regular intervals to allow the students to check their understanding and any misconceptions to be addressed immediately.
This lesson has been written for GCSE students and links between the other topics on the curriculum but could be used with KS3 students who are finding the topic of speed too simple and are needing a challenge
Each of the 8 lessons that are included in this bundle are fully-resourced and have been designed to cover the content as detailed in topic 6.4 (Homeostasis is the maintenance of a stable internal environment) of the AQA A-Level Biology specification. The specification points that are covered within these lessons include:
The principles of homeostasis
The importance of maintaining temperature and blood glucose concentrations
Negative feedback systems
The action of insulin, glucagon and the role of the liver in blood glucose control
The role of adrenaline
The causes of type I and II diabetes and their control
The structure of the nephron and its numerous roles
The formation of the glomerular filtrate by ultrafiltration
Reabsorption of glucose and water by the proximal convoluted tubule
Maintaining a gradient of sodium ions in the medulla by the loop of Henle
The roles of the hypothalamus, the posterior pituitary gland and ADH in osmoregulation
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 ultrafiltration lesson which is free
This engaging lesson uses the example of resistant bacteria and the modern-day giraffe to describe how natural selection occurs. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 17.2 (a) of the CIE A-level Biology specification but also explains that genetic diversity is important for selection and therefore covers 17.1 (d) at the same time.
President Trump’s error ridden speech about viruses antibiotics is used at the beginning of the lesson to remind students antibiotics are actually a treatment for bacterial infections. Moving forwards, 2 quick quiz competitions will initially introduce MRSA and then will show the students that they can use this abbreviation to remind them to use mutation, reproduce, selection (and survive) and allele in their descriptions of evolution through natural selection. The main task of the lesson challenges the students to form a description that explains how this strain of bacteria developed resistance to methicillin. In doing so, they will see the principles of natural selection so they can be applied to different situations such as describing how the anatomy of the modern-day giraffe has evolved over time. The final part of the lesson introduces adaptations and convergent evolution and also links to the need for modern classification techniques which is covered later in topic 17.
This lesson describes how the surfaces in insects, fish and mammals are adapted for gas exchange. The PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets have been designed to cover the detail of point 4.3 (i) of the Edexcel A-level Biology B specification.
The lesson has been intricately planned to challenge the students on their understanding of the surface area to volume ratio (as covered in topic 4.1) and to make direct links to upcoming lessons on the transport systems in humans. The lesson begins by explaining that single-celled organisms are able to diffuse oxygen and carbon dioxide across their body surface but that as organisms increase in size and their SA/V ratio decreases, they need adaptations at their gas exchange surfaces to be able to obtain the oxygen to meet their metabolic demands. This leads into the next part of the lesson which describes the roles of the following structures in insects and bony fish:
spiracles, tracheae, tracheoles and tracheole fluid
operculum, gill arch, gill filaments and lamellae
The next task challenges the students to use their knowledge of topics 1, 2 and 3 to come up with the letters that form the key term, countercurrent flow. This is a key element of the lesson and tends to be a principle that is poorly understood, so extra time is taken to explain the importance of this mechanism. Students are shown two diagrams, where one contains a countercurrent system and the other has the two fluids flowing in the same direction, and this is designed to support them in recognising that this type of system ensures that the concentration of oxygen is always higher in the oxygenated water than in the blood in the lamellae.
As the alveoli as a structure of gas exchange was introduced at GCSE, this final part of the lesson has been written to challenge the recall of that knowledge and to build on it.
The main focus is the type of epithelium found lining the alveoli and students will discover that a single layer of flattened cells known as simple, squamous epithelium acts to reduce the diffusion distance. Again, students will have met this in a lesson in topic 2 on specialised cells (and tissues) so a number of prior knowledge checks are used alongside current understanding checks.
The following features of the alveolar epithelium are also covered:
Surface area
Moist lining
Production of surfactant
The maintenance of a steep concentration gradient
As a constant ventilation supply is critical for the maintenance of the steep concentration gradient, the final task considers the mechanism of ventilation
This lesson describes how only part of a cell’s DNA is translated and explains how the potency of a stem cell determines its ability to specialise. The engaging and detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been planned to cover all of the content in point 8.2.1 of the AQA A-level biology specification.
The lesson begins by challenging the students to recall any existing knowledge of stem cells, to check that they remember that these cells differentiate, before the concept of cell potency is introduced to allow them to recognise that not all cells can differentiate into the same amount of cell types. A quick quiz is used to introduce pluripotency, unipotency, totipotency and multipotency before they are challenged to use their understanding of language to order these along the potency continuum. Beginning with totipotency, time is taken to go through details of each of these cell types, including where these cells are located. During the section of the lesson considering pluripotency, induced pluripotent stem cells are discussed and their potential for use in regenerative medicine is explored. Understanding checks through exam-based questions are embedded throughout the lesson (as well as the answers) to allow students to assess their current understanding and to address any gaps immediately. There are also prior knowledge checks so students can link to other topics from the specification and there is a maths in biology question so their mathematical skills are challenged in line with that element of the course.
This lesson describes how epigenetic changes like DNA methylation and histone modification can modify the activation of certain genes. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been planned to cover points 3.14 ii & iii of the Pearson Edexcel A-level biology (Salters-Nuffield) specification.
The lesson begins by introducing the prefix epi- as meaning on or above in Greek to allow students to recognise that epigenetics refers to changes in gene function due to factors beyond the genetic code. Moving forwards, they will learn that DNA methylation involves the attachment of a methyl group to cytosine and will come to understand how this inhibits transcription. They are challenged to recognise the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis through a variety of tasks before reading through a source detailing the results of a study between this cardiovascular condition and DNA methylation.
The remainder of the lesson considers how the acetylation of histone proteins affects the expression of genes.
Understanding and prior knowledge checks are embedded throughout the lesson (along with the answers) to allow the students to assess their progress on this topic and to encourage them to make links to the content of topics 1 - 2.
This detailed lesson describes the processes of PCR and electrophoresis to allow students to understand how gene sequencing can be used. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been planned to cover the content of point 7.1 of the Edexcel A-level biology B specification.
The lesson begins by comparing the number of genes in the genome with the number of base pairs, to allow students to learn that the bases in the genes only accounts for about 1.5% of the genome. This challenges them to recall that most is non-coding DNA, and the importance and usefulness of these sections are explored during the lesson. Moving forward, a step-by-step guide describes the key steps in the polymerase chain reaction, and time is taken at each step to qualify the fine details such as the use of Taq polymerase instead of human DNA polymerase.
The remainder of the lesson focuses on the various uses of these DNA samples once they’ve been amplified by the PCR. The steps of the electrophoresis process are described and students will see how DNA profiling can be used in forensic science to identify criminals and for paternity tests.
Understanding and prior knowledge checks are found throughout the lesson, along with the answers, to allow students to assess their grasp of the current topic as well as their ability to identify the links with previously covered topics.
This lesson guides the students through the stages of the Krebs cycle, describing how ATP and reduced NAD are produced and carbon dioxide released. The PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been planned to cover the content of topic 3 point [c] of A2 unit 3 as set out in the WJEC A-level biology specification.
As shown on the cover image, the lessons starts with a challenge, where students are tasked with recognising that the connection is biological cycles. A prior knowledge check is used to challenge their recall of the mitochondria as the site of aerobic respiration and then to identify the matrix as the site for this particular stage. Moving forwards, the 6 steps of the cycle are explored, and time is taken to consider how dehydrogenation and decarboxylation lead to the reduction of NAD and the release of carbon dioxide, and how ATP is produced by substrate-level phosphorylation. A series of exam-style questions check their understanding, and this includes a link to the next stage and the electron transport system. The answers to all knowledge checks are embedded into the PowerPoint to allow the students to assess their progress.
This bundle contains 11 detailed lesson PowerPoints and the variety of tasks that are contained within these slides and the accompanying resources will engage and motivate the students whilst covering the following specification points within topic 1 of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification:
The importance of water as a solvent in transport
The difference between monosaccharides, disaccharides and polysaccharides
The relationship between the structure and function of monosaccharides
The formation and breakdown of disaccharides
The relationship between the structure and function of glycogen, amylose and amylopectin
The synthesis of triglycerides
The differences between saturated and unsaturated lipids
The relationship between the structure of capillaries, arteries and veins and their functions
Atrial systole, ventricular systole and cardiac diastole as the three stages of the cardiac cycle
The operation of the mammalian heart and the major blood vessels
The role of haemoglobin in the transport of oxygen and carbon dioxide
The oxygen dissociation curve for foetal haemoglobin and during the Bohr effect
The course of events that lead to atherosclerosis
The blood clotting process
If you want to sample the quality of this bundle, then download the glycogen, amylose and amylopectin, cardiac cycle and blood clotting lessons as these have been uploaded for free
This fully-resourced lesson describes the action of enzymes as biological catalysts and explains how their specificity is related to their 3D structure. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points 2.10 (i) and (ii) of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A specification but also introduces some examples of intracellular and extracellular enzymes to prepare students for the next lesson which covers 2.10 (iii).
The lesson has been specifically planned to tie in with related topics that were previously covered such as protein structure, globular proteins and intracellular enzymes. This prior knowledge is tested through a series of exam-style questions along with current understanding and mark schemes are included in the PowerPoint so that students can assess their answers.
Students will learn that enzymes are large globular proteins which contain an active site that consists of a small number of amino acids. Emil Fischer’s lock and key hypothesis is introduced to enable students to recognise that their specificity is the result of an active site that is complementary in shape to a single type of substrate. Time is taken to discuss key details such as the control of the shape of the active site by the tertiary structure of the protein. The induced-fit model is described so students can understand how the enzyme-susbtrate complex is stabilised and then students are challenged to order the sequence of events in an enzyme-controlled reaction.
The lesson finishes with a focus on ATP synthase and DNA polymerase so that students are aware of these important intracellular enzymes when learning about the details of respiration and DNA replication.
This lesson describes how enzymes can be immobilised in calcium alginate and compares their activity against enzymes that are free in solution. The PowerPoint and the accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 3.2 (d) of the CIE A-level Biology specification.
The lesson has been planned to challenge the students on their ability to apply knowledge to a potentially unfamiliar situation. A series of exam-style questions which include “suggest” and “describe and explain” questions are used throughout the lesson and these will allow the students to recognise the advantages and disadvantages of a particular method. Although the alginate method is the only one referenced in this specification point, the adsorption and covalent bonding methods are introduced and then briefly analysed to allow students to understand that a matrix doesn’t involve these bonds which could disrupt the active site. The remainder of the lesson introduces some actual examples of the use of immobilised enzymes with the aim of increasing the relevance.
Please note that this lesson has been written to explain the effect of immobilisation on enzyme activity. The practical element of carrying out the investigation is described in a separate lesson.
This lesson explains how the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is used to amplify DNA. The PowerPoint has been designed to cover point 6.17 of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification.
A quick quiz competition is used to introduce the PCR abbreviation before students are encouraged to discuss the identity of the enzyme involved and to recall the action of this enzyme. Students will learn that this reaction involves cyclical heating and cooling to a range of temperatures so the next part of this lesson looks at these particular temperatures so the important parts of each of the steps can be understood. Time is taken to examine the key points in detail, such as the specific DNA polymerase that is used and how it is not denatured at the high temperature as well as the involvement of the primers.
This bundle contains 20 lesson PowerPoints which are highly detailed to ensure that the topic 7 content is covered at the depth required for A-level Biology. The lessons have been intricately planned to contain a wide variety of tasks that will engage and motivate the students whilst covering the current material and to make links to other lessons in this topic as well as to the previous 6 topics.
The tasks, which include exam-style questions with mark schemes, guided discussion time and quick quiz competitions, cover the following points in the respiration, muscles and the internal environment topic of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification:
The overall reaction of aerobic respiration
The many steps of respiration are controlled and catalysed by a specific intracellular enzyme
The roles of glycolysis in aerobic and anaerobic respiration
The role of the link reaction and the Krebs cycle in the complete oxidation of glucose
The synthesis of ATP by oxidative phosphorylation
The respiratory quotient
Know the way in which muscles, tendons, the skeleton and ligaments interact in movement
The contraction of skeletal muscle in terms of the sliding filament theory
The myogenic nature of cardiac muscle
The coordination of the heartbeat
The use of ECGs in the diagnosis of abnormal heart rhythms
The calculation of cardiac output
The control of heart rate and ventilation rate by the cardiovascular control centre and the ventilation centre in the medulle oblongata
The role of adrenaline in the fight or flight response
The principle of negative feedback in maintaining systems within narrow limits
The meaning of homeostasis and the maintenance of a dynamic equilibrium in exercise
The gross and microscopic structure of the mammalian kidney
Selective reabsorption in the proximal tubule
Water reabsorption in the loop of Henle
The control of mammalian plasma concentration
Switching genes on and off by DNA transcription factors and the roles of peptide and steroid hormones
Due to the detail included in this lesson bundle, it is estimated that it will take in excess of 2 months of allocated A-level teaching time to cover the content
If you would like to sample the quality of the lessons in the bundle, then download the skeletal muscle, coordination of the heartbeat, role of adrenaline and control of mammalian plasma concentration lessons as these have been uploaded for free
The “negative and positive feedback” and “skeletal muscle” lessons are also uploaded on TES for free but haven’t been included in this bundle as the resource limit has been reached
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 is a fully-resourced lesson bundle, where the detailed and engaging PowerPoints and accompanying worksheets have been designed to cover the details of topic 6 of the CIE International A-level Biology specification which concerns the nucleic acids and protein synthesis. All 7 of the lessons include differentiated tasks to cater for all abilities of students whilst containing the detail to push them to the next level.
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
Genes and polypeptides
Gene mutations
Sickle cell anaemia
Transcription and translation
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 and gene mutation lessons as these have been shared for free
This detailed lesson describes how the movement of water between solutions and cells has differing effects on animal and plant cells. Both the PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover specification points 4.2 (a) and (f) as detailed in the CIE International A-level Biology specification.
It’s likely that students will have used the term concentration in their osmosis definitions at GCSE, so the aim of the starter task is to introduce water potential to allow students to begin to recognise osmosis as the movement of water molecules from a high water potential to a lower potential, with the water potential gradient. Time is taken to describe the finer details of water potential to enable students to understand that 0 is the highest value (pure water) and that this becomes negative once solutes are dissolved. Exam-style questions are used throughout the lesson to check on current understanding as well as prior knowledge checks which make links to previously covered topics such as the lipid bilayer of the cell membrane. The remainder of the lesson focuses on the movement of water when animal and plant cells are suspended in hypotonic, hypertonic or isotonic solutions and the final appearance of these cells is described, including any issues this may cause.
This lesson describes the function of transcription factors in eukaryotes and uses the lac operon to explain the control of protein production in a prokaryote. The detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points 16.3 (b, c & d) as detailed in the CIE A-level Biology specification and also includes a description of how gibberellin breaks down DELLA protein repressors, allowing transcription to be promoted.
This is one of the more difficult concepts in this A-level course and therefore key points are reiterated throughout this lesson to increase the likelihood of student understanding and to support them when trying to make links to actual biological examples in living organisms. There is a clear connection to transcription and translation as covered in topic 6, so the lesson begins by reminding students that in addition to the structural gene in a transcription unit, there is the promoter region where RNA polymerase binds. Students are introduced to the idea of transcription factors and will understand how these molecules can activate or repress transcription by enabling or preventing the binding of the enzyme. At this point, students are challenged on their current understanding with a series of questions about DELLA proteins so they can see how these molecules prevent the binding of RNA polymerase. Their understanding is then tested again with another example with oestrogen and the ER receptor. The final and main section of the lesson focuses on the lac operon and immediately an opportunity is taken to challenge their knowledge of biological molecules with a task where they have to spot the errors in a passage describing the formation and breakdown of this disaccharide. Students will be able to visualise the different structures that are found in this operon and time is taken to go through the individual functions. A step by step guide is used to walk students through the sequence of events that occur when lactose is absent and when it is present before they are challenged to apply their understanding to an exam question.
This lesson describes the relationship between the specialised features of the mammalian egg and sperm and their functions. The PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 3.11 of the Edexcel International A-level Biology specification and includes a focus on the acrosome in the head of the sperm and the zona pellucida in the egg
The lessons at the start of topic 3 (Cell structure, Reproduction and Development) described the ultrastructure of eukaryotic cells, so this knowledge is referenced throughout the lesson and the students are challenged on their recall and understanding through a range of prior knowledge checks. For example, two of the exam-style questions that are included in the resources challenge the students to explain why a sperm cell is classified as an eukaryotic cell and to recognise the centrioles and the nucleus from structural descriptions. Along with the mitochondria, time is then taken to discuss and to describe the role of these organelles in relation to the function of the sperm cell. When considering the fusion of the haploid nuclei to form a diploid nucleus in the nucleus, links are made to the upcoming topic of mitosis and the significance of this form of nuclear division. The importance of the enzymes that are found inside the acrosome is emphasised and this leads into the second half of the lesson where the layers surrounding the plasma membrane of the egg cell (corona radiata and zona pellucida) are examined
The final part of this lesson has been specifically planned to prepare the students for the next lesson in topic 3, where the acrosome reaction, cortical reaction and the fusion of nuclei that are involved in fertilisation are described
An engaging and informative lesson presentation (30 slides) that looks at some of the uses of stem cells in medicine. The lesson begins by challenging the students to define some key terms such as undifferentiated which are associated with these cells. Moving forwards, students will look at the uses of embryonic stem cells including in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease and for tests in drug trials. Students are challenged to consider for homework why the uses of these cells remains controversial.
This lesson is designed for GCSE students
