Biology respiration worksheet and revision notes, AQA GCSE biology and intro to A-level

I’ve found respiration is one of the most important things for students to get right studying biology. The equations are so important, but many GCSE and even some weaker A-level biology students can’t instantly give them. I explain to students that they’re an instant grade boost.

Here’s a worksheet and set of notes on one page on the most common respiration questions. There’s the word equations, a guide through the standard question about how your heart and breathing rate change with exercise, and there’s links to some recommended videos. Versions included for colour and black and white printing. Full mark scheme included with the worksheet.

Remembering the equations for respiration is one of the last things I always go over with students just before their exams, because it’s such a morale booster to instantly get full marks on one of these questions. I will never forget what one student told me in 2021: “It came up! Exactly what you said, it came up!”

Although this worksheet and set of notes works for students taking any exam board and A-level students who need a recap, it was particularly written with an eye to AQA 9-1 GCSE mark schemes. Questions consulted included:

• 8461/1H 2021, question 7
• 8461/1F 2020, question 4
• 8461/2F 2018, questions 7 and 11
• BL2HP 2017, question 5

I’ve got a separate set of notes for Edexcel iGCSE which uses the term “lactate” instead of lactic acid.