I am a secondary school & A-level Science teacher, specialising in Biology. I am also an experienced AQA GCSE Biology Examiner. My resources contain a mix of Biology, Chemistry and Physics lessons aimed at meeting specification points for the new AQA Trilogy GCSE course and KS3 Activate course.
All of my lessons include at least one opportunity for self-assessment, a range of activities to suit students of all abilities, a set of differentiated starter questions and a plenary.
I am a secondary school & A-level Science teacher, specialising in Biology. I am also an experienced AQA GCSE Biology Examiner. My resources contain a mix of Biology, Chemistry and Physics lessons aimed at meeting specification points for the new AQA Trilogy GCSE course and KS3 Activate course.
All of my lessons include at least one opportunity for self-assessment, a range of activities to suit students of all abilities, a set of differentiated starter questions and a plenary.
This task is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Biology GCSE, particularly the ‘Organisation’ SoW.
For more resources designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This activity contains a set of differentiated questions worth 20 marks in total, it also includes additional extra challenge tasks for higher ability students to complete. This worksheet could be used as a homework or as an extension or revision activity in class.
I have included a comprehensive mark scheme for teacher or self-assessment of the work, there are also details of grade boundaries which I use to RAG pupils work against their target grades, a full explanation of how I do this is included.
Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This task is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Biology GCSE, particularly the ‘Organisation’ SoW.
For more resources designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This activity contains a set of differentiated questions worth 20 marks in total, it also includes additional extra challenge tasks for higher ability students to complete. This worksheet could be used as a homework or as an extension or revision activity in class.
I have included a comprehensive mark scheme for teacher or self-assessment of the work, there are also details of grade boundaries which I use to RAG pupils work against their target grades, a full explanation of how I do this is included.
Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This task is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Biology GCSE, particularly the ‘Organisation’ SoW.
For more resources designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This activity contains a set of differentiated questions worth 20 marks in total, it also includes additional extra challenge tasks for higher ability students to complete. This worksheet could be used as a homework or as an extension or revision activity in class.
I have included a comprehensive mark scheme for teacher or self-assessment of the work, there are also details of grade boundaries which I use to RAG pupils work against their target grades, a full explanation of how I do this is included.
Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This task is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Biology GCSE, particularly the ‘Cells’ SoW.
For more resources designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This activity contains a set of differentiated questions worth 20 marks in total, it also includes additional extra challenge tasks for higher ability students to complete. This worksheet could be used as a homework or as an extension or revision activity in class.
I have included a comprehensive mark scheme for teacher or self-assessment of the work, there are also details of grade boundaries which I use to RAG pupils work against their target grades, a full explanation of how I do this is included.
Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This task is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Biology GCSE, particularly the ‘Cells’ SoW.
For more resources designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This activity contains a set of differentiated questions worth 20 marks in total, it also includes additional extra challenge tasks for higher ability students to complete. This worksheet could be used as a homework or as an extension or revision activity in class.
I have included a comprehensive mark scheme for teacher or self-assessment of the work, there are also details of grade boundaries which I use to RAG pupils work against their target grades, a full explanation of how I do this is included.
Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This task is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Biology GCSE, particularly the ‘Cells’ SoW.
For more resources designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This activity contains a set of differentiated questions worth 20 marks in total, it also includes additional extra challenge tasks for higher ability students to complete. This worksheet could be used as a homework or as an extension or revision activity in class.
I have included a comprehensive mark scheme for teacher or self-assessment of the work, there are also details of grade boundaries which I use to RAG pupils work against their target grades, a full explanation of how I do this is included.
Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This task is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Biology GCSE, particularly the ‘Cells’ SoW.
For more resources designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This activity contains a set of differentiated questions worth 20 marks in total, it also includes additional extra challenge tasks for higher ability students to complete. This worksheet could be used as a homework or as an extension or revision activity in class.
I have included a comprehensive mark scheme for teacher or self-assessment of the work, there are also details of grade boundaries which I use to RAG pupils work against their target grades, a full explanation of how I do this is included.
Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This bundle of resources contains 4 whole lessons which meet all learning outcomes for the higher tier, separate science modules within the ‘Inheritance, variation & ecology’ unit for the NEW AQA Biology Specification.
Lessons included:
Cloning
Mendel
Theories of evolution
Evolution & Speciation
The lessons contain a mix of differentiated activities, progress checks, extra challenge questions and exam questions plus more than one opportunity, per lesson, for self/peer red-pen assessment of tasks.
This is a resource which contains all of the learning outcomes for the new AQA Biology ‘Ecology’ SoW.
Pupils should mark whether they feel they very confident (green), a little confident (amber) or not at all confident (red) for their ability to achieve each learning outcome.
This can be used before an end-of-topic test on ‘Ecology’ for pupils to reflect on areas of revision which are most important. It can also be used again after to see whether students have progressed in their understanding of the topic
This is a resource which contains all of the learning outcomes for the new AQA Biology ‘Inheritance, variation & evolution’ SoW.
Pupils should mark whether they feel they very confident (green), a little confident (amber) or not at all confident (red) for their ability to achieve each learning outcome.
This can be used before an end-of-topic test on ‘Inheritance, variation & evolution’ for pupils to reflect on areas of revision which are most important. It can also be used again after to see whether students have progressed in their understanding of the topic
This is a resource which contains all of the learning outcomes for the new AQA Biology ‘Homeostasis’ SoW.
Pupils should mark whether they feel they very confident (green), a little confident (amber) or not at all confident (red) for their ability to achieve each learning outcome.
This can be used before an end-of-topic test on ‘Homeostasis’ for pupils to reflect on areas of revision which are most important. It can also be used again after the test to see whether students have progressed in their understanding of the topic
This is a resource which contains all of the learning outcomes for the new AQA Biology ‘Infection & Response’ SoW.
Pupils should mark whether they feel they very confident (green), a little confident (amber) or not at all confident (red) for their ability to achieve each learning outcome.
This can be used before an end-of-topic test on ‘Infection & Response’ for pupils to reflect on areas of revision which are most important. It can also be used again after to see whether students have progressed in their understanding of the topic.
This lesson is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Chemistry GCSE, particularly the ‘Structure & Bonding’ SoW.
For more lessons designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This lesson begins with a description of the new field of nanoscience and the types of industries where this may be important. Pupils are then given a set of questions which they must complete using a video, once the students have answered the questions they can assess their work using the mark scheme provided.
Pupils will now focus on the importance of surface are to volume ratio when considering nanoparticles, students will calculate the surface area to volume ratio of a cube that is 100cm x 100cm, 10cm x 10cm and 1cm x 1cm. By doing this they can see that the smaller the particle the higher the surface area to volume ratio, this is an important property in nanoparticles - particularly for their use as catalysts. Students are then asked to prove that the same applies for a cube that is 10m x 10m and 0.1cm x 0.1cm. All work from these tasks can be self or peer assessed using the answers provided in the PowerPoint presentation.
The next part of the lesson is a task for pupils to consider the application of nanotechnology, pupils will each be given a card of information describing one application of nanoparticles. They will need to walk around the room and discuss the applications with each other to complete a table in their books.
The last task is for pupils to consider the potential risks involved with the uses of nanoparticles in everyday products, students should think > pair > share their ideas about how the industries using nanoparticles might be posing risks to people and the environment. Once the class has discussed these potential risks you can outline some examples using the PowerPoint presentation.
The plenary is for pupils to pick a task, either write a twitter message or summarise what they learnt in the lesson in three sentences.
All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This lesson is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Chemistry GCSE, particularly the ‘Structure & Bonding’ SoW.
For more lessons designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
The lesson starts with students being introduced to the regular, crystal structure of a metal. To demonstrate the formation of metal crystals pupils can complete a simple practical activity whereby they place a piece of copper wire in silver nitrate solution, a displacement reaction occurs and silver metal crystals begin to form on the surface of the copper. Pupils can complete this task using the set of instructions included on the PowerPoint slide and write down their observations in their books.
The next part of the lesson focuses on linking the structure of a metal to it’s properties, once this has been demonstrated to students using the information and diagrams included in the PowerPoint presentation they can copy and complete a worksheet to assess what they have learned. Once this task is complete students can assess their work using the mark scheme provided.
Now pupils will look at metal alloys, firstly pupils will watch a video and answer a set of questions. Pupils can then self-assess their work using the answers provided.
The last part of the lesson is on the properties of metals and how their properties relates to their uses, each student will be given a card of information describing a property of a metal. Pupils will walk around the room discussing the information they have on their card with others and using each other they should be able to complete a table of properties in their books.
The plenary task requires pupils to come up with three facts, two key words and a question to test their peers on the topic of metallic bonding.
All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This lesson is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Chemistry GCSE, particularly the ‘Structure & Bonding’ SoW.
For more lessons designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
The lessons starts with looking at the way in which we use models to represent the structure of different compounds, models include the 3D ball and stick model, 2D ball and stick model, dot and cross diagrams and displayed formula showing bonds. Pupils are reminded of the limitations of some of these models, this is something they should be able to recount.
Pupils are now shown a diagram to show how intermolecular forces act between simple covalent molecules, pupils should be able to explain the difference between the strong covalent bonds between atoms but the weak intermolecular forces between molecules and how this relates to the the low melting and boiling points of simple covalent molecules.
The next part of the lesson is going to focus on giant covalent structures, firstly pupils will watch a video and answer a set of questions. Their work can be self-assess using the answers provided on the PowerPoint presentation. Students are then introduced to the three main covalent structures - diamond, graphite and silicon dioxide. Students will be given a set of information on these structures which they will need to use to complete their worksheet on giant covalent structures. To assess their knowledge of this topic there is a set of ‘quick check’ questions, pupils of a higher ability may want to complete these questions in the back of their books without discussing with others. The work can be assessed using the mark scheme provided.
The last part of the lesson focuses on fullerenes and graphene - two other giant covalent structures with unique properties. Students are firstly introduced to the structure and uses of these compounds before watching a video and answering questions about them. The work from this task can be self or peer assessed using the answers provided.
The plenary task is for pupils to pretend they are a scientist researching the use of nanotubes, fullerenes and grapehene, they need to come up two ideas of how these materials can be used in future technologies.
All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This lesson is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Chemistry GCSE, particularly the ‘Structure & Bonding’ SoW.
For more lessons designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This lesson starts with a video on covalent bonding, pupils will need to watch the video and answer a set of questions. When pupils are finished their work can be marked using the answers provided. The next activity is a crossword on covalent bonding, this too can be self-assessed using the answers provided on the PowerPoint.
The next part of the lesson focuses on simple covalent molecules, firstly pupils are introduced to the idea that covalent structures are either simple molecules or giant structures. Pupils will be shown dot and cross diagram of a hydrogen molecule and asked to have a go at drawing a dot and cross diagram of a chlorine molecule. Once this work has been checked, pupils are then shown how to draw a dot and cross diagram of a double bond and triple bond (oxygen molecule and nitrogen molecule), it may be beneficial for pupils to draw these diagrams in their books for future reference.
The lesson now focuses on some of the properties of simple covalent molecules, then pupils will be asked to draw a dot and cross diagram to show the structure of water, methane and ammonia. Once this task is complete, students can assess their work using the answers provided on the PowerPoint presentation.
The final task is a true or false task, pupils are given a set of statements about covalent bonding. They will need to identify if true or false, this can be done as a whole class using white-boards or in their books.
The plenary task is for pupils to unscramble anagrams of words relating to the bonding topic.
All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This lesson is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Chemistry GCSE, particularly the ‘Structure & Bonding’ SoW.
For more lessons designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
The lesson starts with a set of questions on ionic compounds, pupils will watch a video and answer these questions. Then pupils will be shown a diagram to demonstrate the structure of a giant ionic compound and will be given a set of melting points for a range of ionic compounds, pupils will need to think > pair > share why they think the melting points of ionic compounds are so high. Once students have considered this, a class discussion can reveal some of the students ideas before the presentation moves on and explains why ionic compounds have high melting and boiling points. Students are now given a place-mat of questions, using information from the lesson so far they will need to complete part of it, for lower-ability students they may need extra support such as a text book to help them answer the questions. Once complete pupils can assess their work using the answers provided.
The next part of the lesson focuses on electrolysis using ionic compounds, students are shown that only ionic compounds that are molten or dissolved in water are able to conduct electricity. The process of electrolysis is demonstrated to students using an animation . Pupils are then asked to thin > pair > share their ideas on why ionic compounds that are solid cannot conduct electricity. Once some ideas have been discuss as a class, the answer can be revealed on the PowerPoint presentation. Pupils will now complete the remainder of their questions on their place-mat and mark them using the answers provided.
Pupils will now be given a set of ions and will need to decide whether they will be found at the positive or negative electrode, this activity can be done as a whole class by pupils holding up answers using whiteboards or in their books. Once completed students can assess their work using the answers provided. The last activity is for pupils to complete a cartoon strip to demonstrate what happens to molten potassium fluoride when it is used to conduct electricity. Part of the cartoon strip is filled in already, pupils just need to add in either diagrams or descriptions, this can also be assessed once complete.
The plenary task is a set of answers, pupils need to come up with a set of questions for these answers.
All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This lesson is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Chemistry GCSE, particularly the ‘Structure & Bonding’ SoW.
For more lessons designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
The lesson starts with a video on ionic bonding, students need to watch the video and answer a set of questions, once complete pupils can self-assess their work. Pupils are then asked to think > pair > share how the group number relates to the charge on the ions formed from that group. Using the PowerPoint presentation you can then demonstrate the link between group number and number of electrons lost/gained by a specific atom, students can use these rules to help work out the charges on ions formed. To assess their knowledge of this, pupils will be asked to copy and complete a table to identify the number of protons, electron, the electronic configuration of an atom and of the ion of that atom, as well as the ion’s charge. Pupils can self or peer assess their work using the answers provided in the PowerPoint presentation.
The next part of the lesson is for pupils to consider the ionic bond formed in calcium chloride, students will first need to draw the electronic configuration of a calcium and chlorine atom and then looking at the structure try and work out how an ionic bond might form between them. Once pupils have had a go you can reveal the answers using the diagrams and descriptions provided in the PowerPoint presentation, for those pupils who were unable to work it out it may be best for them to copy down the diagram in their books.
Pupils will now be asked to draw diagrams to demonstrate the ionic bonds formed between a set of elements - calcium and oxygen, potassium and chlorine, sodium and oxygen, magnesium and chlorine. Once complete they can assess and correct their work using the answers provided in the PowerPoint presentation.
The last activity is an exam-style question which pupils can complete in silence, and at the back of their books if it is a higher ability class. When complete the work can be red-pen assessed using the mark scheme provided.
The plenary activity is for pupils to summarise what they have learnt in the lesson in three sentences, using as many of the key words provided as possible.
All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This lesson is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Chemistry GCSE, particularly the ‘Structure & Bonding’ SoW.
For more lessons designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
The lesson begins with a recap on the differences between elements, compound and mixture, pupils complete a task and self-assess their work. Pupils are then introduced to the idea of covalent bonding and ionic bonding as two forms of bonding and are reminded how to draw the electronic configuration of an atom, including a reminder of the rules around filling energy shells.
Pupils will now watch a video on the formation of ions, whilst watching the video pupils will answer a set of questions and when finished pupils can assess their work using the answers provided in the PowerPoint. Next, pupils will be shown how to draw diagrams to demonstrate the formation of positive and negative ions, they can draw examples in their books for future reference. To assess their knowledge of this topic pupils will complete a set of questions including drawing a diagram to demonstrate the formation of an ionic bond between lithium and fluorine, this can then be self or peer assessed using the answers provided.
The last task is for pupils to use their periodic table to draw the electronic structure of the ions formed from a potassium, oxygen, magnesium and calcium atom. This work will then be assessed using the answers provided.
The plenary involves pupils picking a task, wither write a twitter message about what they have learnt or write a set of quiz questions to test peers on what they have learnt in the lesson.
All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)
This lesson is designed for the NEW AQA Trilogy Chemistry GCSE, particularly the ‘Structure & Bonding’ SoW.
For more lessons designed to meet specification points for the NEW AQA Trilogy specifications for Biology, Chemistry and Physics please see my shop: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience
This lesson begins with a recap on the differences between solids, liquids and gases in terms of the arrangement and movement of particles in each of these states of matter. Pupils complete a card sort activity to assess their knowledge on this topic and they can then self-assess their work using the answers provided.
The next part of the lesson focuses on the transitions between states of matter, pupils are firstly reminding of the definitions of melting point, boiling point and freezing point. They will then watch a video on the the transition between states of matter, they will need to answer a set of questions whilst watching the video. This work can be assessed using the answers provided in the PowerPoint presentation. Using the knowledge from this task pupils can then consider why different substances have different melting/boiling points and why adding impurities to a substance may affect the melting/boiling point of a substance.
The next part of the lesson focuses on energy transfers transfers between states of matter, pupils will firstly label a graph with statements to demonstrate what is happening to a substance as it is heated up over time. Pupils then consider, in depth, what is happening to the particles over this period of time, they can think > pair > share their ideas before the answers are revealed within the PowerPoint presentation using diagrams to illustrate the point. Pupils will then complete a set of questions on energy transfers between states of matter to assess their knowledge on the subject. This work can then be either self or peer assessed using the answers provided.
The last part of the lesson is a task where pupils need to consider the limitations of the particle model of matter, again pupils can discuss in their groups what ideas they have on limitations of the model before some examples are revealed at the end of the presentation.
The plenary task is for pupils to write a twitter message about what they have learnt today, including as many keywords as possible.
All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)