Badger Post-16 Science
How Science Works
BIOLOGY
Lizzie Platt & Ruth Richards
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circumstances, prior written consent must be obtained from
the publisher.
Badger
Publishing
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
1 CLASSIFICATION – Teacher notes & Copymaster
2 THE FIVE KINGDOMS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
3 DARWIN’S FOUR OBSERVATIONS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
4 CAN YOU DISPROVE EVOLUTION? A DEBATE – Teacher notes & Copymaster
5 DIVERSITY – Teacher notes & Copymaster
6 SIMPSON’S DIVERSITY INDEX – Teacher notes & Copymaster
7 ADAPTATIONS OF ORGANISMS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
8 CALCULATING THE SIZE OF A CELL (1) – Teacher notes & Copymaster
9 CALCULATING THE SIZE OF A CELL (2) – Teacher notes & Copymaster
10 CELL ULTRASTRUCTURE – Teacher notes & Copymaster
11 PROKARYOTES AND EUKARYOTES CELLS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
12 TISSUES, ORGANS AND ORGAN SYSTEMS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
13 CELL DIVISION BINGO – Teacher notes & Copymaster
14 GETTING IN AND OUT OF CELLS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
15 THE PLASMA MEMBRANE – Teacher notes & Copymaster
16 INVESTIGATING MEMBRANE PERMEABILITY – Teacher notes & Copymaster
17 WATER POTENTIAL – Teacher notes & Copymaster
18 USING WATER POTENTIAL – Teacher notes & Copymaster
19 SURFACE AREA TO VOLUME RATIO – Teacher notes & Copymaster
20 ESSENTIAL AMINO ACIDS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
21 CHROMATOGRAPHY OF AMINO ACIDS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
22 PROPERTIES OF CARBOHYDRATES – Teacher notes & Copymaster
23 INVESTIGATING THE EFFECT OF PECTINASE – Teacher notes & Copymaster
24 THERE’S MORE TO LEAVES THAN YOU THINK (1) – Teacher notes & Copymaster
25 THERE’S MORE TO LEAVES THAN YOU THINK (2) – Teacher notes & Copymaster
26 THE CHI SQUARED TEST – Teacher notes & Copymaster
27 HARDY-WEINBERG PRACTICAL ACTIVITY (1) – Teacher notes & Copymaster
28 HARDY-WEINBERG PRACTICAL ACTIVITY (2) – Teacher notes & Copymaster
29 USING THE HARDY-WEINBERG THEORY – Teacher notes & Copymaster
30 IT’S NOT MY FAULT I DON’T LIKE CABBAGE! – Teacher notes & Copymaster
31 EVOLUTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES – Teacher notes & Copymaster
32 FAUNA IN DIFFERENT TYPES OF COMPOST – Teacher notes & Copymaster
33 THE DISTRIBUTION OF SNAILS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
34 YEAST POPULATION NUMBERS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
35 NERVE IMPULSES – Teacher notes & Copymaster
36 KIDNEY AND BLOOD COMPOSITION – Teacher notes & Copymaster
37 ORGAN DONATION, OPT IN OR OUT? – Teacher notes & Copymaster
38 DNA – HISTORY OF OUR KNOWLEDGE – Teacher notes & Copymaster
39 PROTEIN SYNTHESIS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
40 CANCER – Teacher notes & Copymaster
41 STEM CELL RESEARCH – A DEBATE – Teacher notes & Copymaster
42 MICROORGANISMS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
43 REPRODUCTIVE ISOLATION – Teacher notes & Copymaster
44 PHOTOSYNTHESIS: TRENDS AND PATTERNS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
45 PHOTOSYNTHESIS: LIMITING FACTORS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
46 CO2 LEVELS AND THEIR EFFECT ON GP AND RUBP – Teacher notes & Copymaster
47 ISOLATION OF CHLOROPLASTS FROM SPINACH – Teacher notes & Copymaster
48 STUDYING THE REACTIONS OF CHLOROPLASTS – Teacher notes & Copymaster
49 CITRIC ACID CYCLE – Teacher notes & Copymaster
50 THE ELECTRON TRANSPORT CHAIN – Teacher notes & Copymaster
INTRODUCTION
About these resources
This resource is part of a series of Post-sixteen, How Science Works resources. All post-sixteen
science specifications in England, Northern Ireland and Wales include Assessment
Objectives addressing How Science Works1:
AO1: Knowledge and understanding of science and of How science works
Candidates should be able to:
a) recognise, recall and show understanding of scientific knowledge
b) select, organise and communicate relevant information in a variety of forms.
AO2: Application of knowledge and understanding of science and of How
science works
Candidates should be able to:
a) analyse and evaluate scientific knowledge and processes
b) apply scientific knowledge and processes to unfamiliar situations including those
related to issues
c) assess the validity, reliability and credibility of scientific information.
AO3: How science works – biology, chemistry, physics, geology, electronics
and environmental science
Candidates should be able to:
a) demonstrate and describe ethical, safe and skilful practical techniques and processes,
selecting appropriate qualitative and quantitative methods
b) make, record and communicate reliable and valid observations and measurements with
appropriate precision and accuracy
c) analyse, interpret, explain and evaluate the methodology, results and impact of their
own and others’ experimental and investigative activities in a variety of ways.
The resources in this pack are mapped against the Assessment Objectives in the table
overleaf:
1
QCA (2006) GCE AS and A level subject criteria for science, available at:
http://www.qca.org.uk/libraryAssets/media/qca-06-2864_science.pdf
How Science Works Statements
statement
Use theories, models and ideas to develop and modify
scientific explanations.
Use knowledge and understanding to pose scientific
questions, define scientific problems, present scientific
arguments and scientific ideas.
Use appropriate methodology, including ICT, to
answer scientific questions and solve scientific
problems.
Carry out experimental and investigative activities,
including appropriate risk management, in a range of
contexts.
Analyse and interpret data to provide evidence,
recognising correlations and causal relationships.
starter
1, 8
Evaluate methodology, evidence and data, and
resolve conflicting evidence.
Appreciate the tentative nature of scientific
knowledge.
Communicate information and ideas in appropriate
ways using appropriate terminology.
28,
Consider applications and implications of science and
appreciate their associated benefits and risks.
Consider ethical issues in the treatment of humans,
other organisms and the environment.
40, 41,
12
Appreciate the role of the scientific community in
validating new knowledge and ensuring integrity.
Appreciate the ways in which society uses science to
inform decision making.
30, 44
37
21
1, 2, 8,
28
31
17, 20
31
main
2, 4, 5,
24
23, 24,
43, 46,
36
10, 15,
22, 36,
46
11, 16,
25, 27,
29, 41
4, 5, 13,
16, 29
22, 23,
35
26, 39,
48
3, 11,
16, 25,
33, 34,
43
9, 40, 41
14, 33,
34, 39,
49, 50
26,27,
39, 49
33, 34,
49, 50
plenary
23
38, 42,
15
36, 42
1, 6,7,
32, 35,
37
39
35, 37,
45, 47
18, 13
19
HOW TO USE THESE RESOURCES
Rather than seeing How Science Works as a bolt-on we see it as being most effective when
delivered as an integral part of the topic being taught and as such we hope that by
matching the materials to the GCE AS and A level subject criteria2 they will fit naturally
into existing schemes of work.
We have included resources which can be divided into three main categories: starter,
plenary and main lesson. The subject coverage is mapped in the table below.
Whilst we have suggested when activities may be used as a starter, plenary or main lesson
we hope that colleagues will feel free to use each activity in a way that best meets the
learning objectives of their lesson.
Alongside each activity you will find brief teacher notes which will help the activity be
integrated, slowly, into the subject knowledge.
2
QCA (2006) GCE AS and A level subject criteria for science, available at:
http://www.qca.org.uk/libraryAssets/media/qca-06-2864_science.pdf
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING STATEMENTS
The 2006 Qualifications and Curriculum Authority publication GCE AS and A level subject
criteria for science sets out the knowledge and understanding to be integrated into the
mandatory content of all Physics specifications. These statements are mapped against the
resources in this pack in the table below, A2 only topics are shown in bold:
statement
starter
main
plenary
1.3 Biodiversity
a) The variety of life, both past and present, is extensive, but the
biochemical basis of life is similar for all living things
b) Biodiversity refers to the variety and complexity of life and may
be considered at different levels
c) Biodiversity can be measured, for example within a habitat or
at the genetic level
d) Classification is a means of organising the variety of life based
on relationships between organisms and is built around the
concept of species
e) Originally classification systems were based on observable
features but more recent approaches draw on a wider range of
evidence to clarify relationships between organisms
f) Adaptations of organisms to their environments can be
behavioural or physiological as well as anatomical
g) Adaptation and selection are major components of evolution
and make a significant contribution to the diversity of living
organisms
1, 2
3, 4, 5,
6, 7
1, 2
1.4 Exchange and transport
a) Organisms need to exchange substances selectively with their
environment and this takes place at exchange surfaces
b) Factors such as size or metabolic rate affect the requirements
of organisms and this takes place at exchange surfaces
c) Substances are exchanged by passive or active transport
across exchange surfaces
d) The structure of the plasma membrane enables control of the
passage of substances in and out of cells
14, 18
15, 16,
17, 19
14, 18
1.5 Cells
a) Organisms usually consist of one or more cells
b) Prokaryotic an eukaryotic cells can be distinguished on the
basis of their structure and ultrastructure
c) In complex multicellular organisms cells are organised into
tissues, tissues into organs and organs into systems
d) During the cell cycle genetic information is copied an passed
to daughter cells
e) Daughter cells formed during mitosis have identical copies of
genes while cells produced as a result of meiosis are not
genetically identical
8, 9, 11,
8, 9,
8, 9, 11,
13
10, 12
13
1.6 Biological molecules
a) Biological molecules are often polymer and are based on a
small number of chemical elements
b) In living organisms nucleic acids (SNA and RNA),
carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, inorganic ions and water all
have important roles an functions related to their properties
c) Enzymes are proteins with a mechanism of action and other
properties determined by their tertiary structure
d) Enzymes catalyse a wide range of intracellular reactions as
well as extra cellular ones
20, 21,
21, 23,
20, 21, 47
47
24, 25
1.7 Ecosystems
a) Ecosystems range in size from the very large to the very
small
b) Energy flows through ecosystems and the efficiency of
transfer through different trophic levels can be measured
c) Micro-organisms play a keen role in recycling chemical
elements
d) Ecosystems are dynamic systems, usually moving from
colonisation to climax communities in a process known
as succession
e) The dynamic equilibrium of populations is affected by a
range of factors
f) Humans are part of the ecological balance and their
activities affect it both directly and indirectly
g) Sustainability of resources depends on effective
management of the conflict between human needs and
conservation
30, 32,
26, 27,
30, 32,
33, 34
28, 29,
33, 34
1.8 Control systems
a) Homeostasis is the maintenance of a constant internal
environment
b) Negative feedback helps maintain an optimal internal state
in the context of a dynamic equilibrium. Positive feedback
also occurs
c) Stimuli, both internal and external, are detected leading to
responses
d) Coordination may be chemical or electrical in nature
36
31, 33,
34
35, 37
36
1.9 Cellular control
a) The sequence of bases in the DNA molecule determines
the structure of proteins, including enzymes
b) Enzymes catalyse the reactions that determine structures
and functions from cellular to whole-organism level
c) Transfer of genetic information from one generation to the
next can ensure continuity of species or lead to variation
within a species and eventual formation of new species
d) Reproductive isolation can lead to accumulation of
different genetic information in populations potentially
leading to formation of new species
e) Sequencing projects have read the genomes of organisms
ranging from microbes and plants to humans. This allows
the sequences of the proteins that derive from the genetic
code to be predicted
f) Gene technologies allow study and alteration of gene
function in order to better understand organism function
and to design new industrial an medical processes
38, 39,
38, 40,
43
41, 42,
1.10 Energy for biological processes
a) ATP provides the immediate source of energy for
biological processes
b) In cellular respiration, glycolysis takes place in the
cytoplasm an the remaining steps are in the mitochondria
c) ATP synthesis is associated with the electron transfer
chain in the membranes of mitochondria and chloroplasts
d) In photosynthesis energy is transferred to ATP in the
light-dependent stage and the ATP is utilised during
synthesis in the light-independent stage
45, 47
38, 39, 43
43
44, 46,
45, 47
48, 49,
50
Acknowledgements: The team would like to thank all of those who have helped,
directly and indirectly, to develop these activities. These include the subject knowledge
enhancement students of physics and chemistry and PGCE trainee teachers at Nottingham
Trent University, the team at Badger Publishing and of course our families:
Andy, Catie and Barney Platt
Graeme and Isaac Richards
1
TEACHER NOTES:
C LASSIFICATION
WHY CLASSIFY?
Linnaean taxonomy
The internet is a good way to gain information quickly about classification.
Some questions you could pose for the students are:
•
•
•
•
What is a type specimen?
Why are type specimens important?
How could Linnaeus ensure that ‘like’ specimens were related?
What is the domain system and how does this link to the Linnaean system? (Woese et
al. 1990).
Domain
Eukarya
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
(Subphylum)
Vertebrata
Class
Mammalia
Order
Primates
Family
Hominidae
Genus
Homo
Species
sapiens
You can use the mnemonic to represent the order in which the system is ranked.
K – P – Crisps – Only – Fry – Good – Spuds
HOW S CIENCE W ORKS – B IOLOGY : T EACHER NOTES
1
COPYMASTER:
C LASSIFICATION
WHY CLASSIFY?
Living things are grouped together on the basis of the features that they have in
common. These features may be morphological, or based upon their
relationships, for example their behaviour. A combination of these factors leads
to the concept of speciation.
Read the following information about Linnaean taxonomy. Discuss in groups how
Linnaeus completed his research and how this differs from ideas today.
Linnaean taxonomy
Linnaeus’ work was called the Systema Naturae, of which he published 12
editions in his lifetime. He formulated three divisions known as kingdoms:
mineral, vegetable and animal. He set up five different ranks to use within
this framework: class, order, genus, species and variety.
He formulated the binomial nomenclature method of naming organisms,
using the genus and species together, like a name. An example is Vespula
vulgaris, the common wasp. This was an attempt to simplify the long descriptive
terms that accompanied individual organisms. He formulated a scientific
name for every species he encountered and he abolished some names as they
were repetitions of organisms already described. Non specific names were
still retained particularly for some plants.
The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature and the International Code
of Biological Nomenclature were established much later and are a set of rules
and regulations about naming animals and plants.
The classification system for humans is given in the table below. Complete the
table below, using the terms provided.
Class
Kingdom
Chordata
Primates
Domain
Family
Species
Homo
Vertebrata
Eukarya
Animalia
Phylum
(Subphylum)
Mammalia
Order
Hominidae
Genus
sapiens
HOW S CIENCE W ORKS – B IOLOGY : C OPYMASTER
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2
TEACHER NOTES:
T HE F IVE K INGDOMS
Card matches are grouped together in the correct order reading left to right.
Fungi
Protoctista
Prokaryotae
Eukaryotic cells which may be
unicellular (yeast) or
multicellular (mushrooms)
Have a cell wall
made of chitin
Heterotrophic – may be
parasitic or saprophytic
May have thread like hyphae
or may reproduce by budding
Unicellular or multicellular
eukaryotic organisms
Examples are Plasmodium and
Amoeba
Probably not related to each
other, just placed together for
convenience
May have characteristics of
both plant and animal cells
May be true bacteria or
ancient bacteria
One example is Mycobacterium
Has naked DNA and small
(70s) ribosomes
Plantae
Animalia
Has a cell wall made of
Murein
Autotrophic as they have
chloroplasts and carry out the
process of photosynthesis
Eukaryotic cells
Examples include conifers,
mosses and liverworts
Has a cell wall made
of Cellulose
Heterotrophic only and
eukaryotic
Examples of phyla are
Vertebrata and Arthropoda
Have centrioles
There are no cell
walls present
HOW S CIENCE W ORKS – B IOLOGY : T EACHER NOTES
2
COPYMASTER A:
T HE F IVE K INGDOMS
For each of the five kingdoms, match the term to the four correct statements.
Fungi
Protoctista
Prokaryotae
Probably not related to
each other, just placed
together for
convenience
May be true bacteria or
ancient bacteria
One example is
Mycobacterium
Heterotrophic – may be
parasitic or saprophytic
Eukaryotic cells which
may be unicellular
(yeast) or multicellular
(mushrooms)
Has naked DNA and
small (70s) ribosomes
There are no cell
walls present
Has a cell wall made
of Cellulose
Examples are
Plasmodium and
Amoeba
Examples of phyla are
Vertebrata and
Arthropoda
May have
characteristics of both
plant and animal cells
Have centrioles
HOW S CIENCE W ORKS – B IOLOGY : C OPYMASTER
 BADGER PUBLISHING LTD
2
COPYMASTER B:
T HE F IVE K INGDOMS
Plantae
Animalia
Have a cell wall
made of chitin
May have thread like
hyphae or may
reproduce by budding
Autotrophic as they
have chloroplasts and
carry out the process of
photosynthesis
Eukaryotic cells
Heterotrophic only and
eukaryotic
Has a cell wall made
of Murein
Unicellular or
multicellular eukaryotic
organisms
Examples include
conifers, mosses and
liverworts
HOW S CIENCE W ORKS – B IOLOGY : C OPYMASTER
 BADGER PUBLISHING LTD