This fully-resourced lesson explains how a combination of hydrostatic pressure and oncotic pressure results in the formation of tissue fluid from plasma. The detailed PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover point 3.1.2 (d) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification and includes a section on the differences between blood, tissue fluid and lymph The lesson begins with an introduction to the arteriole and venule end of a capillary as these will need to be considered as separate entities when describing the formation of tissue fluid. A quick quiz competition introduces a value for the hydrostatic pressure at the arteriole end and students are challenged to first predict some parts of the blood will move out of the capillary as a result of the push from the hydrostatic pressure and this allows oncotic pressure to be initially explored. The main part of the lesson uses a step by step guide to describe how the net movement is outwards at the arteriole end before students will use this guidance to describe what happens at the venule end. In the concluding part of the lesson, students will come to recognise oedema as a condition where tissue fluid accumulates and they again are challenged to explain how this occurs before they finally learn how the fluid is returned to the circulatory system as lymph This lesson has been written to tie in with the other uploaded lessons from module 3.1.2 (Transport in animals)

This engaging lesson describes the key features of viruses and therefore explains why these microorganisms are non-cellular. The PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been designed to cover specification point 1.2 (f) of the CIE International A-level Biology specification and also includes details of HIV so that students are prepared for this lesson later in topic 10. Details of the COVID-19 epidemic are included in the lesson to increase relevance and to help students to understand this biological topic in greater depth. They will understand that the lack of cell structures results in an non-cellular classification and the fact that it is unable to reproduce without a host is one of the additional reasons that renders it as non-living. The main focus of the lesson is the nucleic acid, the capsid and the attachment proteins that are present in these microorganisms and time is taken to explain how these structures are involved in the infection of a host cell. The lipid membrane is also introduced and links are made to the previous lessons on eukaryotic cells. The final section uses a version of BBC 1’s POINTLESS to introduce a number of viral diseases in animals and the use of a glycoprotein by HIV to attach to helper T cells is briefly introduced.

This fully-resourced lesson describes the relationship between the structure and function of the structures that are found in eukaryotic cells. The engaging and detailed PowerPoint and accompanying exam-question worksheets (which are all differentiated) have been designed to cover the first part of specification point 2.1.1 of the AQA A-level Biology specification and focuses on those structures found in animal cells. The additional structures, which are found in plant cells, are described in the next lesson uploaded under the title “Structure of eukaryotic (plant) cells”. 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 AQA course and intricate planning has ensured that these links to previously covered topics as well as upcoming ones are made throughout the lesson. A wide range of activities, that include exam-style questions, class discussion points and quick quiz competitions, will maintain motivation and engagement whilst covering the finer details of the following structures: nucleus nucleolus ribosomes rough endoplasmic reticulum Golgi apparatus lysosomes smooth endoplasmic reticulum mitochondria cell surface membrane As mentioned above, 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 cover the work

This resource contains a detailed and engaging PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets, all of which have been designed to cover points 2.5 (a & b) of the WJEC GCSE Biology specification. This specification point states that students should be able to apply their knowledge and understanding of sense organs responding to specific stimuli and the CNS and nerves forming the nervous system. The lesson begins by introducing the term stimuli and then a quick quiz is used to get their competitive juices flowing as they have to react 1st to recognise the 5 different stimuli. Students will learn that sense organs are groups of receptor cells that respond to one or a few of these stimuli and they will form sentences to describe this role. Moving forwards, the link is made to the nervous system and how electrical impulses conducted on neurones allows communication between these receptors and the CNS and between the CNS and the effectors. At this point, students are challenged on their understanding of the functions of the structures in a nervous reaction as they have to put them into the correct order. They are given a quick and easy way to recognise the difference between a sensory and motor neurone on a diagram and how to use the function to show the direction of conduction. Time is taken to look at the role of a synapse in a reaction. The main task challenges the students to apply their knowledge to the example of a fly being flicked off the arm by forming a full description. This lesson contains a wide range of activities which include quiz competitions to introduce key terms in a fun and memorable way as well as understanding and prior knowledge checks so that students can assess their grasp of the critical content. It has been written for students studying the WJEC GCSE Biology course but is also suitable for younger students looking at the nervous system or A-level students who need to recall the key details and structures

This detailed and engaging lesson describes the movement of water molecules by osmosis and this is explained in terms of water potential. Both the PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover the third part of specification point 2.3 as detailed in the AQA A-level Biology specification and they also describe the impact of solutions of different water potentials on suspended animal and plant cells. 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 has been specifically written to tie in with the previous two lessons in topic 2.3 that cover the cell membrane and diffusion as well as an upcoming lesson on active transport and co-transport.

This detailed and engaging lesson describes how the roles of hydrogen, iron, sodium and phosphate ions are based on their properties. The PowerPoint and accompanying worksheet have been designed to cover point 1.8 of the AQA A-level Biology specification. The lesson begins with a made-up round of POINTLESS where students have to use their prior knowledge of topic 1 to identify four biological molecules. All four of these molecules are connected by a phosphate group and this acts to remind students that phosphate ions are a component of both DNA and ATP. Moving forwards, the rest of the lesson explores the role of hydrogen ions in pH, iron in haemoglobin and sodium in the co-transport of glucose and amino acids. The lesson has been written so that links can be made to upcoming topics including the regulation of heart rate, transport of oxygen and selective reabsorption in the nephron of the kidney.

This is a highly detailed and engaging lesson that covers the detail of specification point 5.1.1 © of the OCR A-level Biology A specification which states that students should be able to demonstrate and apply an understanding of the generation and transmission of nerve impulses in mammals. This topic is commonly assessed in the terminal exams so a lot of time has been taken to design this resource to include a wide range of activities that motivate the students whilst ensuring that the content is covered in the depth of detail that will allow them to have a real understanding. Interspersed within the activities are understanding checks and prior knowledge checks to enable the students to not only assess their progress against the current topic but also to challenge themselves on the links to earlier topics such as methods of movements across cell membranes and saltatory conduction. There are also a number of quiz competitions which are used to introduce key terms and values in a fun and memorable way and discussion points to encourage the students to consider why a particular process or mechanism occurs. Over the course of the lesson, the students will learn and discover how the movement of ions across the membrane causes the membrane potential to change. They will see how the resting potential is maintained through the use of the sodium/potassium pump and potassium ion leakage. There is a real focus on depolarisation to allow students to understand how generator potentials can combine and if the resulting depolarisation then exceeds the threshold potential, a full depolarisation will occur. At this point in the lesson students will discover how the all or nothing response explains that action potentials have the same magnitude and that instead a stronger stimulus is linked to an increase in the frequency of the transmission. The rest of the lesson challenges the students to apply their knowledge to explain how repolarisation and hyperpolarisation result and to suggest advantages of the refractory period for nerve cells. This lesson has been designed for students studying the OCR A-level Biology course and ties in nicely with other uploaded lessons on mammalian sensory receptors and the structures and functions of the neurones.

This fully-resourced lesson describes the key steps in the blood clotting process, including the roles of thromboplastin, thrombin and fibrin. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying worksheets have been primarily designed to cover the content detailed in point 1.11 of the Edexcel A-level International specification but time has been taken to look at haemophilia as a sex-linked disease so that students are prepared for when this is covered in greater detail in topic 3. The lesson begins with the introduction of clotting factors as integral parts of the blood clotting process and explains that factor III, thromboplastin, needs to recalled as well as the events that immediately precede and follows its release. Students will learn how damage to the lining and the exposure of collagen triggers the release of this factor and how a cascade of events then results. Quick quiz rounds and tasks are used to introduce the names of the other substances involved which are prothrombin, thrombin, fibrinogen and fibrin. In a link to the upcoming topic of proteins, students will understand how the insolubility of fibrin enables this mesh of fibres to trap platelets and red blood cells and to form the permanent clot. In the previous lessons, students described the events in atherosclerosis and a link is made to the role of blood clotting in CVD. The final part of the lesson introduces haemophilia as a sex-linked disease and students are challenged to apply their knowledge to an unfamiliar situation as they have to write genotypes and determine phenotypes before explaining why men are more likely to suffer from this disease than women.

This fully-resourced lesson explores how glucose as well as the other respiratory substrates, such as lipids and proteins, can enter the respiratory pathway and therefore can be respired to produce molecules of ATP. The engaging PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to cover points 5.2.2 (j) and (k) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification which states that students should know the difference in the relative energy values of carbohydrates, lipids and proteins and be able to use and interpret the respiratory quotient. This lesson has been written to challenge current understanding as well as the knowledge of glycolysis, the link reaction and Krebs cycle and so contains regular prior knowledge checks which come in a range of forms. Students will learn that lipids and proteins can be used as respiratory substrates and will recognise the different ways that they enter the respiratory pathway. A quick quiz competition is used to introduce the mean energy value for carbohydrates and students are challenged to predict how the values for lipids and proteins will compare. As a result, students will recognise that a greater number of hydrogen atoms results in a greater availability of protons to form the chemiosmotic gradient to fuel the production of ATP. The rest of the lesson focuses on the calculation of the respiratory quotient and time is taken to look at how the result can be interpreted to determine which substrates were respired.

This detailed lesson looks at the structural organisation of the mammalian nervous system into the CNS and the PNS as detailed in point 5.1.5 (g) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification. Students will see how the PNS is divided into the sensory and motor systems and then further divided into the somatic and autonomic nervous systems. Prior knowledge checks are included throughout the lesson to make links to earlier topics such as the structure of neurones and the function of the hypothalamus in thermoregulation and osmoregulation. This lesson has been designed to tie in with the uploaded lesson on the autonomic nervous system which is also covered in specification point 5.1.5 (g)

This detailed lesson has been written to cover the part of specification point 6.4.3 of the AQA A-level Biology specification which states that students should be able to describe how the structure of the nephron allows for the formation of glomerular filtrate. The aim of the design was to give the students the opportunity to discover the function of ultrafiltration and to be able to explain how the mechanisms found in the glomerulus and the Bowman’s capsule control the movement of small molecules out of the blood plasma. Key terminology is used throughout and students will learn how the combination of the capillary endothelium and the podocytes creates filtration slits that allow glucose, water, urea and ions through into the Bowman’s capsule but ensure that blood cells and plasma proteins remain in the bloodstream. A number of quiz competitions are used to introduce key terms and values in a fun and memorable way whilst understanding and prior knowledge checks allow the students to assess their understanding of the current topic and to challenge themselves to make links to earlier topics. The final task of the lesson challenges the students to apply their knowledge by recognising substances found in a urine sample that shouldn’t be present and to explain why this would cause a problem This lesson has been written for students studying on the AQA A-level course and ties in nicely with the other kidney lessons on the structure of the nephron, selective reabsorption and osmoregulation

A fully-resourced lesson which explores how the release of thyroxine from the thyroid gland regulates the metabolic rate and how a negative feedback loop is used as the final control. This lesson includes an engaging and detailed presentation (19 slides), a crossword and an understanding check task. The lesson begins by challenging the students knowledge of the endocrine system to get them to come up with the letters that form the name, “thyroid gland”. Students will be reminded that this gland releases thyroxine which is involved with the regulation of the metabolic rate. Students will learn that in order for the thyroid gland to release this hormone, it has to be stimulated by TSH from the pituitary gland which in turn was controlled by the hypothalamus. At this point, the students are challenged to put the order of the control mechanism in the right order on their worksheet. This leads them to the word negative which links to how a negative feedback loop is used as the final act in the mechanism. This lesson is designed for GCSE students but is suitable for A-level students too who need to know about this endocrine gland and also negative feedback

This is a highly-detailed revision resource which has been designed to be used over a number of lessons and allows teachers to dip in and out of the material as fits to the requirements of their classes and students. The resource consists of an engaging and detailed powerpoint (135 slides) and worksheets which have been differentiated to allow students of differing abilities to be challenged and access the work. The lesson consists of a wide range of activities which will engage and motivate the students and includes exam questions, quiz competitions and quick tasks. The lesson has been designed to cover as many of the sub-topics within topics 4, 5 and 6 of the OCR Gateway GCSE Biology A specification but the following sub-topics have been given particular attention: Topic B4: Community-level systems Ecological terms Carbon cycle Topic B5: Genes, inheritance and selection The effect of mutations on phenotypes Single-gene crosses Sex determination Genetic terminology Topic B6: Global challenges Communicable diseases Genetic engineering Vaccinations CHD This revision resource can be used in the lead up to mocks or the actual GCSE exams and due to its size, it could be repeatably used to ensure that students develop a deep understanding of these topics.

An engaging lesson presentation (73 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 B5 (Homeostasis and response) of the AQA GCSE Combined Science specification (specification unit B4.5). The topics that are tested within the lesson include: Structure and function of the nervous system Human endocrine system Hormones in human reproduction Contraception The use of hormones to treat infertility Negative feedback Students will be engaged through the numerous activities including quiz rounds like “Take the IVF Hotseat” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need further attention

This is a fully-resourced revision lesson that uses a combination of exam questions, understanding checks, quick differentiated tasks and quiz competitions to enable students to assess their understanding of the content found within Topic 3 (Voice of the Genome) of the Pearson Edexcel A-level Biology A specification. The sub-topics and specification points that are tested within the lesson include: Know the ultrastructure of eukaryotic cells Understand the role of the rER and the Golgi apparatus in protein transport within cells Know the ultrastructure of prokaryotic cells Be able to recognise the organelles of eukaryotic cells from EM images Know that a locus is the location of a gene on a chromosome Understand the linkage of genes on a chromosome and sex linkage Understand the role of meiosis in ensuring genetic variation Understand the role of mitosis and the cell cycle in producing identical daughter cells Understand how gene expression is controlled Understand how phenotype is the result of an interaction between genotype and the environment Know how some phenotypes are affected by multiple alleles as well as the environment and how this shows continuous variation Students will be engaged through the numerous quiz rounds such as “Is your knowledge of the Lac Operon LACKING” and “Can I have a P please Bob” 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 a fully-resourced lesson that covers the content of specification point 6.3 of the AQA A-level Biology specification which states that students should understand how skeletal muscles are stimulated to contract by nerves and act as effectors. The wide range of activities included in the lesson will engage and motivate the students whilst the understanding and previous knowledge checks will not only allow them to assess their progress but also challenge them to make links to other Biology topics. The following content is covered in detail in this lesson: The ultrastructure of a myofibril The roles of actin and myosin in myofibril contraction The need for calcium ions and ATP in myofibril contraction The roles of calcium ions and tropomyosin in cross-bridge formation The roles of ATP and phosphocreatine in muscle contraction This lesson has been designed for students studying the AQA A-level Biology course and ties in nicely with the other uploaded lessons from topic 6 such as synapses and NMJs and nerve impulses

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 2.1.6 (Cell division, cell diversity and cellular organisation) of the OCR A-level Biology A specification. The resource includes a detailed and engaging Powerpoint (75 slides) and an associated worksheet, which has been differentiated to allow students of differing abilities to access that task. 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 main stages of mitosis The cell cycle including the stages of interphase and cytokinesis The significance of meiosis in terms of variation The main stages of meiosis How the cells of animals are specialised to perform particular functions The features of squamous and ciliated epithelium How the cells of plants are specialised to perform particular functions In addition to these topics, some topics from other modules such as organelles and magnification 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.

This revision resource has been designed to include a range of activities such as exam questions, understanding checks and quiz competitions which will motivate the students whilst they assess their understanding of the content found in topic 1.4 (Circulatory system in humans) of the WJEC GCSE Biology specification. The resource includes a detailed and engaging Powerpoint (58 slides) and associated worksheets, some of which have been differentiated to allow all abilities of students 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 structure of a phagocyte and a red blood cell The functions of the plasma and the platelets The structure of arteries and veins and how this relates to their function The role of coronary arteries in supplying oxygenated blood to the heart cells The risk factors and treatments for cardiovascular diseases The structure of the heart and the pathway of blood through the double circulatory system

This revision resource includes exam questions, understanding checks and quiz competitions, all of which have been designed with the aim of motivating and engaging the students whilst they assess their understanding of the content found in topic 1.1 (Cells and movement across cell membranes) of the WJEC GCSE Biology specification. 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: Active transport as an active process The differentiation of cells in animal and plants to become adapted for specific functions Osmosis The functions of the organelles of animal and plant cells Enzymes as proteins which speed up reactions The active site, substrates and enzyme-substrate complexes The effect of pH on enzyme activity Diffusion as a passive process, which allows substances including oxygen and carbon dioxide to pass across a membrane

The engaging Powerpoint and accompanying worksheet which come as part of this lesson resource have been designed to cover specification point 2.5 (k) as detailed in the WJEC GCSE Biology specification which states that students should understand the roles of the effectors in temperature regulation. A wide range of activities which include Biology and Maths tasks and quiz competitions are interspersed with understanding and prior knowledge checks so that students are engaged and motivated whilst learning the key content in a memorable way and checking their progress. Students will learn that the body temperature is maintained at 37 degrees celsius by a homeostatic control system called thermoregulation and will be challenged to recall the topic of enzymes to explain why this is so important. Time is taken to look at the responses brought about the effectors such as vasodilation and shivering and links are made to the structures of the skin such as the involvement of the erector muscles. Students will recognise how these mechanisms lead a decrease or increase in body temperature back to the set point. Links are also made between the Sciences so that there is a deeper understanding of exactly why sweating cools the body down. This lesson has been designed for students studying the WJEC GCSE Biology course but is suitable for older students who are studying Biology at A-level and need to recall the key details of thermoregulation.