An activity aimed at A-Level Biology students. This activity involves a series of statements that can be given to a class at the start of a lesson with the instruction that they draw the phosphorous cycle based on this information. Students should initially do this in pairs but can then be teamed up in larger groups to show, discuss and explain their own diagrammatic interpretations of the phosphorus cycle. Finally, the whole class can be brought together to discuss the best way of joining these statements together into an agreed phosphorous cycle. Key words: Phosphorous, cycle, ATP, NADP, weathering, phosphates, fertilisers, glycolysis, kinase, phosphorylation

A resource suitable for post-16 year old students, this worksheet explores the reasons why fertilisers are necessary for healthy plant growth and the advantages/disadvantages of natural and artificial fertilisers. Key words: Natural, artificial, fertiliser

A worksheet resource that could be used by either 14-16 or 16-18 year old biology students, this resource provides an 'active video' task on the history of thalidomide with a series of question prompts that students complete while watching the video clip. the video clip can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0QpnqjKGJo The video clip provides an overview of the thalidomide tragedy and how the United States stood their ground in refusing a drug licence while the disaster played out across the rest of the world. This is a good activity to set the scene for any topic on how drugs are developed and the importance of drug testing and clinical trials. Key words: Thalidomide, disaster, focomelia, drugs, clinical trials, pharmaceutical, USA, regulations

A starter worksheet aimed at 14-16 year old biology students, this resource provides a recap of binary fission in bacterial cells. The worksheet covers several areas including the conditions necessary for optimal growth of bacteria, calculation of how many bacteria will be produced after a given time period, aseptic technique and a final challenge question requiring students to calculate magnification of a bacterial cell diagram. An ideal resource to recap several different concepts and skills in the topic of microbiology. Key words: microbiology, bacteria, agar, aseptic, colonies, binary fission

A starter activity aimed at GCSE biology students, this resource consists of four questions that recap the idea of barriers and phagocytosis as a means of defence against pathogens. The activity has both closed and open questions, with the final question requiring students to describe and explain an illustration of phagocytosis in their own words. Key words: phagocytosis, barriers, pathogens, defence, immune system

A starter worksheet aimed at GCSE Biology students, this resource provides five questions that recap basic definitions and the concept of magnification. The final questions require students to make measurements of the bacterial cell diagram and calculate magnification of the image (converting millimetres to micrometeres in the process). A useful resource to use in order to reinforce some of the basic ideas on the topic of bacterial/prokaryotic cells. Key words: AQA, biology, bacterial cells, magnification, micrometres, prokaryotic

A resource aimed at GCSE biology students, this worksheet provides a brief review of basic key terms (e.g. antibody, antigen, phagocyte, lymphocyte) followed by more open ended and challenging questions that require students to fully explain the principles of active immunity in their own words. Key words: active, immunity, phagocyte, lymphocyte, vaccination, antibody, antigen

A resource aimed at GCSE biology students, this worksheet provides a quick review quiz on the basics of the specific immune response followed by a more in-depth focus on the difference between primary and secondary responses with reference to the classic graph showing changes to plasma antibody levels over time. This is an ideal resource to use in order to probe student's understanding of this complex topic and ensure they have properly grasped the essential information. Key words: Immune, vaccination, lymphocyte, primary, secondary, antibody, antigen, pathogen

A starter activity aimed at GCSE Biology students, this worksheet provides eight questions that probe student's understanding of what antibiotics are and how their effects can be seen in the laboratory. The worksheet includes reference to an image of an agar plate with zones of inhibition around different types of antibiotics - ideal as a starter/preparation for a lesson involving this practical activity. Key words: antibiotics, bacteria, Alexander Fleming, zone of inhibition, efficacy, incubation

This is a personal learning checklist (PLC) tailored for the first year of the new AQA Biology Advanced Level specification. This is an excel spreadsheet with five worksheets in total, each one covering specification references: 3.1 Biological molecules 3.2 Cells 3.3 Organisms exchange materials 3.4 Genetic information 6.1-6.5 Mathematical requirements Each worksheet contains the full list of statements/learning outcomes taken directly from the specification, along with a grid for students to RAG rate their confidence as well as space to write notes and set targets. The worksheets have been formatted to allow easy printing of each worksheet. Each worksheet can be printed and collated with others to form a full checklist for the entire year. This is an essential resource for anyone teaching the new biology advanced level specification. Key words: personal learning checklist (PLC), self assessment, targets, AQA, biology

A worksheet aimed at A-Level Biology students that asks students to apply their knowledge of ecology to that of conservation. The worksheet focuses on how our knowledge of succession can be used to conserve moorland and native bird species in the UK. Full answers are provided on the second page of the worksheet. Key words: Succession, conservation, moorland, birds, ecology, ecosystem, habitat

A worksheet aimed at A-Level Biology students which begins with a quiz on key word definitions (e.g. habitat, population, community, ecosystem, biotic factor, abiotic factor) and then moves on to the concept of diversity. The worksheet includes an exercise on calculating diversity index for two habitats and subsequent interpretation of results. Keywords: Biodiversity, habitat, population, biotic, abiotic, ecosystem, community, population, diversity index

A resource aimed at either GCSE (14-16 year olds) or Advanced (16 -19 year olds) biology students, this worksheet provides a diagram of a typical prokaryotic (bacterial) cell. The task involves labelling the diagram to identify each organelle, followed by a mix and match task to describe the function of each organelle. This resource is ideal for use as either a starter activity to recap previous learning or as a plenary exercise following a lesson on this topic. Key words: prokaryotic, cell, organelle, capsule, membrane, cytoplasm, ribosomes, nucleoid, chromosome

A worksheet starter task aimed at GCSE (14-16 year old) biology students. The worksheet consists of six questions related to the topic of mitosis whereby students are required to sort diagrams showing different stages of cell division and describe key events.

This resource is aimed at GCSE (14-16 year old) biology students and consists of two worksheets. The first worksheet is an introduction to the concept of cells, tissues, organs and organ systems and involves a mix and match task to sort key definitions. The worksheet also has a table to fill in with specific examples of cells, tissues, organs and organ systems. The second worksheet consists of eleven questions that are related to an online video that neatly (in the space of 3-4 minutes) introduces the topic of the digestive system. Students watch the video (link to the video is provided on the worksheet) and answer the questions as they go. This is ideal to use as a starter task for a lesson on the digestive system.

This resource consists of two 'active video' worksheets linked to online Youtube videos (links provided on the worksheet). Each video consists of a three to four minute video clip showing some engaging applications of diffusion. The first video clip shows a team of scientists testing shark repellent under water and the second shows a skunk spraying musk as a defense mechanism. Each worksheet provides simple questions that students answer while watching the video - providing the opportunity to then commence a full lesson on the topic of diffusion.

A worksheet aimed at GCSE (14-16 year old) students, this resource is ideal as a starter activity following a lesson on the principles of osmosis. The worksheet includes several questions that probe understanding of what osmosis is, how we can use knowledge of osmosis to predict water movement into and out of cells and finally a challenge question on how salt can be used to kill slugs by dessicating them. Keywords: osmosis, water, hypertonic, hypotonic, isotonic, concentration, turgid, flaccid, plasmolysed, slug, salt

A resource aimed at GCSE (14-16 year old) biology students, this worksheet consists of nine questions that probe understanding of the process of osmosis. This resource is ideal to use as a starter activity following the classic practical investigation into how different concentrations of salt or sugar solution affect the mass of a potato chip. Key words: osmosis, mass, percentage change, water, concentration

A resource aimed at GCSE (14-16) biology students, this activity requires students to construct a model of cells at different stages of division in order to learn how chromosomes behave during mitosis. The worksheet includes images of cells at different stages of division to assist students and also some questions that should be completed at each stage of the process.