REVISION OVERVIEW – BIOLOGY
Topic
Cells and Cell Functions
Nutrition
Movement
Reproduction
Details
Reviewed Revised
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
The definitions of cells, tissues, organs and organ systems
The functions of chloroplasts, cell walls and vacuoles in plant
cells and the functions of the cell membrane, cytoplasm,
mitochondria and nucleus in both plant and animal cells
How to use a microscope to observe plant and animal cells
and how to prepare a temporary microscope slide, e.g. using
methylene blue as a stain for nuclei
How ciliated epithelial cells, sperm, ova, and root-hair cells are
adapted to their function
How fertilisation in humans occurs
How fertilisation in plants occurs.
How cells and cell functions relate to life processes in a variety
of organisms
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
How the following are used and their food sources;
carbohydrates (glucose and starch), proteins, fats, minerals,
vitamins, fibre and water
The effects on humans of a lack vitamin C (vitamin) and
calcium (mineral)and the dangers of eating too much fat,
How to carry out the iodine test for starch
The definition of digestion
How enzymes help break down food substances into soluble
substances capable of being absorbed across the lining of the
intestine into the bloodstream.
The function of the enzyme amylase
How the products of digestion cross the villi in the small
intestine into the bloodstream and the waste products are
egested (not excreted) through the anus
How digestion is involved in respiration
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
The role of the skeleton
The principle of antagonistic muscle pairs [e.g. biceps and
triceps] in movement
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
The physical and emotional changes that take place during
adolescence
How genes carry the characteristics of the mother and father
The terms gamete, zygote and fetus
The relative sizes and numbers of eggs and sperm and
their roles
The structure and functions of the human reproductive
system and how sperm and egg are brought together
the menstrual cycle [in outline only]
The role of the amniotic sac and fluid
How the placenta nourishes the fetus and how waste
products are eliminated
REVISION OVERVIEW – BIOLOGY
Topic
Breathing
Respiration
Health
Plants
Variation, classification
and inheritance
Details
Reviewed Revised
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
The role of the lungs and how they are adapted to their
function
The effect of smoking on the lungs and associated problems
The difference between respiration and breathing
The word equation for respiration
The test for carbon dioxide using limewater
Where oxygen and carbon dioxide are carried in the blood
Where and how gas exchange occurs between the blood and
alveoli
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
How alcohol, solvents and other drugs can affect health
The positive effects of exercise and healthy eating
An example of a bacterial disease
An example of a viral disease
How the body’s natural defences may be enhanced by
medicines
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
The word equation for photosynthesis
The global importance of photosynthesis in producing food
and maintaining the composition of the atmosphere
An experiment to show gas production during photosynthesis
in, e.g. Elodea
How to perform a controlled experiment to show that light is
needed for starch production (stored glucose showing
photosynthesis has taken place) by a potted plant, e.g.
Pelargonium
How nitrogen (found in nitrates) are needed for healthy
growth and that magnesium is needed for chlorophyll
How root hairs are adapted to their function
How plants acquire energy via photosynthesis
How the carbon cycle maintains a balance between
respiration and photosynthesis and the effect of this on the
atmosphere
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
The difference between environmental and inherited variation
The difference between discontinuous variation [e.g. blood
group] and continuous variation [e.g. height] and examples
How to detect and describe variation within and between
species and suggest possible causes
How to classify living things into the major taxonomic groups
The characteristic features of the animal and plant kingdoms
and why fungi are not included with plants
The diagnostic features of: single-celled organisms, fungi,
arthropods (knowing the difference between insects and
spiders), fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals and
flowering plants
REVISION OVERVIEW – BIOLOGY
Topic
Adaptation and
competition
Feeding relationships
Details
Reviewed Revised
How to use a simple key to identify the group to which a
specimen belongs
How selective breeding can lead to new varieties and an
example e.g. dogs
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
The definition of sustainable development
How the resources of the Earth are limited and need to be
managed and the ways in which living things and the
environment can be protected
How habitats support a diversity of plants and animals that
are interdependent with one example [e.g. hedgerow]
The habitat of at least one animal and one plant,
understanding how they are adapted to the conditions in their
natural habitats at different times of the day, and in different
seasons of the year;
How to measure at least one physical factor, e.g. temperature,
light intensity in a habitat
Simple methods of estimating the population size of one type
of organism by means of a quadrat
How population size is affected by predation and competition
for resources
Pupils should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
One simple food chain in one of the habitats studied
The difference between a food chain and a food web
How toxic materials can accumulate in food chains [e.g. DDT]
MY Key equations and tests to learn
Respiration
Glucose + Oxygen
Carbon dioxide + Water +
Energy
Photosynthesis
light
Carbon dioxide + Water
Glucose + Oxygen
Test for carbon dioxide
Bubble carbon dioxide through (limewater. If carbon dioxide is present then
the limewater will from clear to cloudy.