I am a passionate science teacher with a specialism in biology.
I have over 16 years of teaching experience and have experience working and as Co-director of key stage 4 and head of biology.
I am a passionate science teacher with a specialism in biology.
I have over 16 years of teaching experience and have experience working and as Co-director of key stage 4 and head of biology.
Here is a powerpoint presentatation and exam questions ( on 6.1 cellular control) suitable for OCR A-level biology A specification and most post-16 specifications.
Topics include:
mutations and their effects
lac operon
Homeobox genes and apoptosis
Please leave a review, and check out all my other A-level biology resources!
Suitable for the OCR A-level biology A specification and other specifications.
Includes:
*All lesson plans and related exam questions ( new specification and old specification)
end of unit test
personal learning content sheet - includes a learning outcome check-list.
Compatible with the OCR A-level biology A specification and many more!
includes all lesson powerpoint presentations, all the relevant exam questions from the old and new spec and many more activities!
There are fantastic extended exam questions on cell cycle,mitosis and meiosis , comparison questions between meiosis and mitosis, research and cut-sort activities and end of topic exam questions!
This bundle also includes and end of unit test!
lessons include:
cell cycle and mitsosis
meiosis
animal diversity e.g. specialised cells and tissues
plant diversity e.g. specialised cells and tissues
100% suitable for OCR A-level biology A specification, 100% suitable for other specifications with slight tweaks!
Are your students struggling with those difficult practical skills questions? Do you want to give your students some much needed practice on skills based questions on practicals, and want to identify specific areas of weaknesses?
Then look no further! I have made resources which have had amazing feed back from both students AND teachers:
I have made:
*two practical skills tests ( a short test and a long test)
These tests address all the module 1 assessment requirements, covering areas such as: Planning, analysis, interpreting data, evaluation.
two booklets of ALL spec A and spec B experimental questions
other smaller practical skills test packs
A ‘practical skills assessed’ hand book which outlines all the requirements for module 1, including a check list for planning an experiment!
UPDATE!!* I have uploaded a ‘key skills in biology’ powerpoint, this includes the differences between accuracy, precision, repeatabillity, reproducibility and validity. Also, this includes annotated practical skills questions which will help students practice essential exam skills, plus there are student exemplar answers which have been marked by examiners.
Students are given examples of experimental methods in many of the questions, and are asked on many occasions to identify limitations and improvements - these questions are very common for the new specification!
As head of A-level biology, I have seen a huge improvement in our students’ responses to practical skills questions after assessing them with this test!
Good luck!
All you need to effectively teach the plant responses unit for the new OCR A-level biology A-specification! Also compatible with other specifications!
I have spent a great deal of time to make this dull topic interesting!
You will find a very colourful, informative and engaging power point presentation including everything from the specification.
Every lesson includes learning outcomes, key words, starters, plenaries and exam questions!
Additionally, there is a plant responses end of unit test ( with mark scheme) and challenging Auxin experimental exam questions ( with mark scheme).
Topics include:
phototropism, geotropism, chemotropism, thigmotropism
experiments on Auxin,
plant hormones and cell signalling,
uses and actions of: Gibberellins, Cytokinins, Abscisic acid (ABA), Ethene,
The experimental evidence for the role of auxins in the control of apical dominance
The experimental evidence for the role of gibberellin in the control of stem elongation and seed germination
practical investigations into the effect of plant hormones on growth
Updated resources:
A 17 mark exam question taking from Cambridge A-level biology specification on how increasing the concentration of GA affects seed germination. This also included relevant experimental questions, Including a 7 mark question on writing a method,
Animal and plant responses end of unit test
Check my animal responses unit bundle for all other 5.5 resources.
This resource bundle contains all the lessons for the 2.4 Enzymes unit. It is completely compatible for the new OCR A-level biology A specification and other specifications with slight modifications.
This unit bundle contains all the powerpoint presentations for 9 lessons, including exam questions and activities for every lesson. Additionally there is a personal learning content summary sheet ( student-friendly checklist) and also an end of unit test. Additionally, this bundle contains those tricky, new-spec practical skills questions!
Lessons includes topics such as:
cofactors and coenzymes, enzyme action, activation energy, effects of Ph, temperature, substrate and enzyme concentration, inhibitors and metabolic inhibitors and poisons.
Two powerpoint presentations that help students work through 6 mark questions on the cardiac cycle and double and single circulatory systems.
There are differentiated 6 mark questions, on a 6 mark question framework, enabling students to plan out their answers. The framework. The framework includes a key word box, command words section, plan section and assessment criteria boxes. The higher ability students would need to come up with their own assessment critiera, however the lower ability students can use the assessment criteria provided.
This is suitable for for the new OCR gateway 9-1 specification, IGCSE and many other specifications!
The powerpoint presentation shows how you can use these assessments as a peer-assessment or self assessment tool! For example, for the cardiac cycle question, there are exam answers for students to assess themselves using the assessment critieria.
*UPDATED WITH MORE RESOURCES
This resource bundle contains ALL you need to effectively teach the 5.1 Homeostasis and communication unit, which is completely compatible with the new OCR A-level biology A specification and other specifications ( slight adaptations may be needed).
This contains powerpoint presentations for ALL the lessons, including lots of exam questions, and excellent synoptic questions with markschemes within the actual powerpoint presentation.
Additionally, this package contains a seperate document that contains all the exam questions from the old spec and the new spec past/practice papers.
Lastly an end of unit test is included also
There are 4 lessons on topics such as:
how communication systems work, including cell signalling
2 ) homeostasis - negative and positive feedback
Ectotherms and their adaptations
endotherms and their adaptations
Please leave a review, any feedback is welcome!
hope your students benefit from this resource!
Resource completely compatible for the new OCR A-level A biology spec and others if adapted slightly.
Resource bundle includes seperate lesson powerpoints for every lesson and ALL exam questions from the old spec AND new spec. There are also legacy specification questions.
Lesson content:
Lesson 1 and 2: The need for transport systems in plants + strucure and function of specialised cells and tissues in plants ( xylem, phloem, vascular bundles in roots and stems etc.
lesson 3: movement of water through plant ( osmosis, apoplast,symplast and vacuoular pathways)
lesson 4 part 1 and 2: Transpiration, potometer, transpiration stream, transpiration pull, pathway through endodermis etc
lesson 5: translocation
lesson 6: adaptation of xerophytes
This respiraiton bundle is completely compatible with OCR A-level biology A, equipped with detailed powerpoint presentations for every lesson on the unit and exam questions.
This is suitable for most exam specifications if adapted slightly.
There are 3 extended syntoptic/application exam questions taken from the new specification papers, including markschemes.
This bundle is completely suitable for OCR Gateway triple biology and mostly suitable for IGCSE.
This bundle contains powerpoint presentations, exam questions on dialysis and how the nephron works and 6 mark questions on the kidneys.
The 6 mark question is embedded in a student-friendly framework, which helps students plan out their answer and obtain maximum marks.
One 6 mark question is differentiated for higher and lower ability students. Additionally, the 6 mark question comes with its own powerpoint presentation to help guide students through it.
6 mark questions are on:
negative feedback mechanism and ADH,
processes in the kidney tublues,
how alcohol and water can affect the concentration of urine - taken from the old gateway specification.
good luck!
This resource bundles is completely compatible with the OCR A-level biology A specification.
This power point presentation includes ALL the lessons on animal responses, every slide is colourful with eye-catching imagery to ensure students do not get bored!
These lessons are informative, engaging with questions, starters and plenaries! Every lesson has relevant learning outcomes, key words and activities!
There are new spec exam questions and old, and a 5.5 end of unit test!
This is a big bundle which covers 5 lessons over 69 slides, at a very affordable price! You will not need to print anything as all the activities and questions are embedded into the presentation.
Suitable completely for AQA, but can be adapted for other specifications.
Every lesson includes starters, activities, questions, AQA exam questions and answers and plenaries.
This covers the AQA combined trilogy specification 4.3.1.1-4.3.1.5 this covers:
What communicable diseases are and the types of pathogens that cause them
What symptoms each of diseases cause, how the infection is spread and prevented
Viral diseases such as HIV, measles and tobacco mosaic virus.
Bacterial diseases such as Salmonella and Gonorrhoea
Fungal diseases such as Black rose spot
Protist diseases such as malaria
This bundle has EVERYTHING your A-level biology department needs to successfully implement the practical endorsement component of the A-level specification! I say everything- as everything in this bundle was highly recommended by an OCR official during a monitoring visit!
It consists of:
Student-friendly check lists for every PAG + additional ones we have made in order for the students to meet the skills
a summarised, student-friendly document of the OCR practical document showing the criteria used to assess biological drawings, graphs and table of results.
moderation activity sheets for staff to fill in
scanned examples of students work to use for moderation, to ensure staff are confident with assessing particular skills. Additionally, this allows departments to work collaboratively and collectively come to an agreement about how to assess the skills.
Staff questionairre of the flexi-tracker- this was a fantastic way for me to assess which areas students needed training on, I was able to see their confidence level at the start of the training session and at the end!
Analysis of questionairre document
Additional PAG activities for students to complete incase they have performed poorly on biological drawings, graph skills or research skills. Note- you will need to add these PAGS to the flexi-tracker and add/ update the skills.
NEW: Powerpoint presentation on PAG skills e.g. biological drawings, graphs etc.
Having had a scary OCR monitoring visit, we were highly advised to make PAG check lists for every PAG!
This has been a FANTASTIC way of documenting which skills students have met, and if not - why they did not meet a particular skill. It Also allows the monitoring visitor to see whether a student re-met the skill on a later date, therefore showing the examiner you are not freely giving away ‘mets’!
Not only has this allowed us to track student’s progress, but it allows students to clearly see which criteria they need to meet, and why they have not met it, thus allowing them to use formative feedback to improve their skills.
The checklists also has relevant maths skills, and a section where students can.
The moderation documents are essential and will help develop consistency in marking, for all biologists in a particular department. My staff were very pleased with the moderation activities, and honestly said how much it benefited them and improved their confidence in assessing the skills.
I truly hope this helps, it truly helped us as we were awarded with a pass for the practical endorsement- phewwww!
please leave a review!
UPDATE: End of unit test with markscheme added + new mixed revision questions added.
Contains detailed powerpoint presentations with starters and exam questions, including excellent exam question packs for all the lessons on:
Ecosystems
Food chains and pyramid of number and biomass, and manipulating conditions to improve net primary productivity and secondary productivity
Recycling in ecosystems - including the Nitrogen and carbon cycle
Studying ecosystems- using quadrats, types of sampling, using Transects ( line and belt- including continuous and interrupted)
please leave feedback!
All you need to teach Natural selection and Evolution for any specification!
Here you have power point presentations and exam questions, all relevant to the new A-level OCR biology specification!
Powerpoint presentations are very detailed, including topics such as variation, natural selection, adaptations, evidence for natural selection, and many example questions on natural selection!
Check the 4.2 Exam pack, it is packed with lots of relevant evolution questions ( with classification questions also), with mark schemes also!
This is an absolutely amazing deal, and will save you hours worth of work! This is becaus this superb Photosynthesis unit bundle contains - I repeat contains EVERYTHING you need to effectively teach the unit to your A-level biology students!
This bundle is completely compatible for the new OCR A-level biology A specification and includes:
*** Detailed and informative lesson presentations on all the topics
exam questions on literally all the topics - all in seperate word documents so you can print it bit-by-bit as you teach
a fantastic practical photosynthesis exam question pack - have endured the painstaking process of extracting ALL- yes ALL the experimental questions on photosynthesis into one booklet! **
** There is an pair-activity on cyclic and non-cyclic photophosphorylation, whereby students use the grid to assess each other’s understanding on both of these processes. Students need to verbally recall or draw diagrams, while the other person acts as the assessor.**
there is a fantastic, challenging synoptic extended question where students are required to compare photophosphorylation and oxidative phosphorylation, students can use the fantastic diagrams provided.
Topics include:
The interrelationship between respiration and photosynthesis - includes a challenging synoptic question!
Chloroplast and photosynthetic pigments structure and function
The light dependent stage
the light independent stage
photophosphorylation
factors affecting the rate of photosynthesis
This resource is useful for most post-16 courses and completely compatible with the new OCR A-level biology A specification.
This resource pack contains:
- detailed powerpoint presentation with questions and activities
- experimental section on the evidence on semi-conservative replication - including challenging exam questions
- exam question packs
- end of unit test
- learning content summary sheet - contains learning outcomes, how science work and maths skills students need to know and demonstrate all in a colourful and student-friendly, self assessment sheet
lesson content:
Structure of DNA
DNA replication and experimental evidence
protein synthesis ( transcription and translation)
Please leave a review!
A fantastic A-level Biology resource pack, completely compatible with the new OCR A-level A biology specification, and the OCR endorsed text-book.
SEVEN carefully planned lessons on Manipulating genomes unit! it will really save you a lot of time planning for this unit!
This pack contains power point presentations for each lessons and challenging exam questions to help prepare students for their exams.
Exam questions are mainly from the legacy specification and previous specification- will save you hours, without the need to trail through all exam papers!
** UPDATED**
I have added an updated a glucose colorimetry powerpoint with challenging exam questions.
New food test summary table for students to complete
9 mark OCR exam questions on biological molecules
New short mini test ****
New revision lesson included- used in formal observation, rated outstanding!
This resource pack is 100% suitable for the new OCR A A-level biology specification and all others ( with slight amendments)
This resource bundle includes:
*powerpoint presentations on all the topics such as carbohydrates ( monosaccharide,disaccharide and polysaccharides), proteins, fats, food tests and glucose colorimetry,
*Exam questions from the new and old specification witthevery lesson
*PAG check lists for the food test and glucose colorimetry
*Personalised learning content summary sheet - this is a colour-coded, student-friendly check-list which includes learning outcomes, and other requirements from OCR specification.
End of unit and mid unit tests
Revision lesson - can be used for a formal observation, differentiation / challenging questions included.