Quiz Topics
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1.1 Characteristics of living organisms
Specific Competence: Students will be able to explain the basic actions and processes that show something is alive. Learning Activities: Students will learn to describe: (a) movement as an action by an organism or part of an organism causing a change of position or place; (b) respiration as the chemical reactions in cells that break down nutrient molecules and release energy for body functions; (c) sensitivity as the ability to detect and respond to changes in the internal or external environment; (d) growth as a permanent increase in size and dry mass; (e) reproduction as the processes that make more of the same kind of organism; (f) excretion as the removal of waste products from body processes and substances in excess of requirements; and (g) nutrition as the taking in of materials for energy, growth, and development. Expected Standard: Students should be able to clearly define and give examples for each of the seven characteristics that define living organisms.
1.2 Concept and uses of classification systems
Specific Competence: Students will understand why and how living things are sorted into groups. Learning Activities: Students will learn to: state that organisms can be classified into groups by the features they share; describe a species as a group of organisms that can reproduce to produce fertile offspring; describe the binomial system of naming species as a worldwide scientific naming system where the scientific name of an organism is made up of two parts showing its genus and species; construct and use dichotomous keys (tools with pairs of choices to identify unknown organisms based on their visible traits); explain that classification systems aim to reflect evolutionary relationships; explain that the sequences of building blocks in DNA (called bases) are used as a means of classification; and explain that groups of organisms which share a more recent ancestor have base sequences in DNA that are more similar than those that share only a distant ancestor. Expected Standard: Students should be able to explain the purpose of classification, define a species, use the scientific naming system, and use identification keys. They should also understand how evolution and DNA relate to classification.
1.3 Features of organisms
Specific Competence: Students will be able to identify the key features used to place organisms into major groups and specific examples within those groups. Learning Activities: Students will learn to: state the main features used to place animals and plants into the appropriate kingdoms; state the main features used to place organisms into groups within the animal kingdom, limited to: (a) the main groups of vertebrates (mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish – animals with backbones); (b) the main groups of arthropods (myriapods, insects, arachnids, crustaceans – animals with external skeletons and jointed legs); classify organisms using these features; state the main features used to place all organisms into one of the five kingdoms (Animal, Plant, Fungus, Prokaryote – simple single-celled organisms, Protoctist – diverse single-celled or simple multi-celled organisms); state the main features used to place organisms into groups within the plant kingdom, limited to ferns and flowering plants (dicotyledons and monocotyledons); classify organisms using these features; and state the features of viruses (tiny infectious agents), limited to a protein coat and genetic material. Expected Standard: Students should be able to identify specific features for classifying organisms into kingdoms, major animal groups (like vertebrates and arthropods), and plant groups, and correctly classify given organisms based on these features. They should also know basic features of viruses.
2.1 Cell structure
Specific Competence: Describe and compare the basic parts of plant, animal, and bacterial cells, including the cell wall, cell membrane, nucleus, cytoplasm, chloroplasts, ribosomes, mitochondria, and vacuoles. For bacterial cells, also include circular DNA and plasmids. Identify these cell parts in diagrams and pictures. Describe what each of these cell parts does. State that new cells are made when existing cells divide. State that cells that have special jobs (specialised cells) do specific tasks, such as ciliated cells moving mucus, root hair cells absorbing water, palisade cells making food, neurones sending electrical signals, red blood cells carrying oxygen, and sperm and egg cells for reproduction. Describe the meaning of a cell, tissue, organ, organ system, and organism. Learning Activities: Identify cell structures in diagrams and images. Connect specialised cells to their specific functions using given examples. Use examples to explain the meaning of cell, tissue, organ, organ system, and organism. Expected Standard: Students can compare the structures of plant, animal, and bacterial cells. Students can explain what each part of these cells does. Students understand that new cells are formed from existing cells. Students understand that cells with special roles perform specific tasks in the body. Students can define a cell, tissue, organ, organ system, and organism and provide examples for each.
2.2 Size of specimens
Specific Competence: State and use the formula: magnification = image size ÷ actual size. Calculate how much an image is magnified and the actual size of biological items using millimetres (mm). Convert measurements between millimetres (mm) and micrometres (μm). Learning Activities: Use the magnification formula to calculate magnification or actual size from given measurements. Practice converting units of measurement between millimetres and micrometres. Expected Standard: Students can correctly use the magnification formula. Students can calculate the magnification of a biological specimen and its actual size in millimetres. Students can change measurements from millimetres to micrometres and vice versa.
3.1 Diffusion
Specific Competence: Describe diffusion as the overall movement of particles from an area where there are many of them to an area where there are fewer of them (moving down a concentration gradient), because the particles are moving randomly. State that the energy for diffusion comes from the natural movement (kinetic energy) of molecules and ions. State that some substances move into and out of cells through the cell membrane by diffusion. Describe why the diffusion of gases and dissolved substances is important for living organisms. Investigate the factors that affect diffusion. Learning Activities: Experiment to find out how factors like the size of the surface, temperature, how much the concentration changes, and the distance particles need to travel affect diffusion. Expected Standard: Students can explain how particles spread out from a crowded area to a less crowded area. Students understand that the particles' own energy causes this movement. Students know that cells use diffusion to take in and release substances. Students can explain why diffusion is essential for living things. Students can identify and explain the factors that influence the speed of diffusion.
3.2 Osmosis
Specific Competence: Describe water's role as a dissolving agent (solvent) in living things, specifically in digestion, getting rid of waste (excretion), and moving substances around (transport). State that water moves through special membranes that only let some things pass (partially permeable membranes) by osmosis. State that water moves into and out of cells through their cell membrane by osmosis. Investigate osmosis using materials like dialysis tubing. Investigate and describe what happens to plant tissues when they are placed in solutions with different concentrations. State that plants stay firm because the water pressure inside their cells pushes outwards on the cell wall. Describe osmosis as the overall movement of water molecules from an area with a lot of free water (higher water potential or dilute solution) to an area with less free water (lower water potential or concentrated solution), through a partially permeable membrane. Explain what happens to plant cells when they are placed in solutions of different strengths, using terms like turgid, turgor pressure, plasmolysis, and flaccid. Explain why water potential and osmosis are important for how living things take in and lose water. Learning Activities: Conduct experiments using materials like dialysis tubing to observe osmosis. Perform experiments to see and describe the effects of different solution concentrations on plant tissues. Expected Standard: Students understand how water helps in digestion, waste removal, and transport in living things. Students can explain how water moves across cell membranes. Students can describe the changes that occur in plant tissues when they are in solutions of different strengths. Students understand how water pressure helps plants stay upright. Students can explain the effects on plant cells in different solutions using correct terms. Students can explain the importance of water movement for living organisms.
3.3 Active transport
Specific Competence: Describe active transport as the movement of particles through a cell membrane from an area where there are fewer particles to an area where there are more particles (against a concentration gradient), which requires energy from respiration. Explain why active transport is important for moving molecules or ions across membranes, including how plant root hairs take in ions. State that special proteins in the membrane (protein carriers) help move molecules or ions during active transport. Learning Activities: Relate the process of active transport to real-world examples, such as how plant roots absorb mineral ions from the soil. Expected Standard: Students can explain how cells move substances from a less crowded area to a more crowded area using energy. Students understand the significance of this process for cells and organisms. Students know that specific proteins are involved in moving substances during active transport.
4 BIOLOGICAL MOLECULES
Specific Competence: Understand the basic chemical makeup of important living molecules and how to identify them. Learning Activities: Students will list the elements found in carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. They will learn that large molecules are built from smaller ones (like starch from glucose, proteins from amino acids, and fats from fatty acids and glycerol). They will describe and carry out chemical tests to find starch, sugars, proteins, fats, and vitamin C. They will also describe the basic structure of DNA (two coiled strands, with specific chemicals called bases pairing up A with T, and C with G). Expected Standard: Students can correctly name the elements in carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. They can explain how starch, proteins, and fats are formed from smaller units. They can accurately describe and perform tests for these molecules and vitamin C. They can also describe the main features of a DNA molecule.
5 ENZYMES
Specific Competence: Understand how enzymes speed up chemical reactions in living things and what affects their activity. Learning Activities: Students will describe what a catalyst is (a substance that speeds up a reaction without being used up) and how enzymes act as biological catalysts (proteins that speed up reactions in living organisms). They will explain why enzymes are vital for life. They will describe how enzymes work, focusing on their specific shape matching a substance (substrate). Students will investigate how changes in heat and acidity (pH) affect enzyme activity, including the best conditions (optimum) and when enzymes are damaged (denaturation). Expected Standard: Students can define a catalyst and an enzyme. They can explain the importance of enzymes for life. They can describe how an enzyme's shape helps it work with a specific substance. They can investigate and explain how heat and pH changes affect enzyme activity, including the best conditions and denaturation.
6.1 PHOTOSYNTHESIS
Specific Competence: Understand the process by which plants convert light energy into food. Learning Activities: Students will describe photosynthesis as the way plants make carbohydrates from simple materials using light energy. They will state the word and chemical equations for photosynthesis. They will explain the role of chlorophyll (the green pigment in plants that captures light energy). Students will outline how plants use and store the food they make (e.g., starch for energy, cellulose for cell walls). They will explain why nitrate and magnesium ions are important for plant growth. They will carry out experiments to show what plants need for photosynthesis and how light, carbon dioxide, and temperature affect its speed. They will also investigate gas exchange in aquatic plants. Expected Standard: Students can define photosynthesis and provide its word and chemical equations. They can explain chlorophyll's function. They can describe how carbohydrates are used and stored. They can explain the importance of specific mineral ions. They can design and interpret experiments demonstrating the requirements and limiting factors of photosynthesis.
6.2 LEAF STRUCTURE
Specific Competence: Understand how the different parts of a leaf are designed to carry out photosynthesis efficiently. Learning Activities: Students will state that leaves have a large surface area and are thin, and explain how these features help with photosynthesis. They will identify key structures in leaf diagrams, such as chloroplasts, cuticle, guard cells, stomata, upper and lower epidermis, palisade mesophyll, spongy mesophyll, air spaces, and vascular bundles (xylem and phloem). They will explain how each of these structures is suited for photosynthesis. Expected Standard: Students can explain the adaptations of a leaf for photosynthesis. They can accurately identify and label the main parts of a leaf in a diagram. They can explain how each leaf part helps the plant make food.
7.1 Diet
Specific Competence: Students will understand what a balanced diet is, identify main food sources (carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins C and D, calcium, iron, fibre, water), explain their importance, and state the causes of scurvy and rickets. Learning Activities: Students will learn to define a balanced diet. They will identify specific foods that provide essential nutrients. They will explain why each nutrient is needed for a healthy body. Students will also learn the causes of certain health problems related to diet. Expected Standard: Students will be able to describe a balanced diet. They will clearly state the sources and importance of key nutrients. They will identify the causes of scurvy and rickets.
7.2 Digestive system
Specific Competence: Students will identify the main organs of the digestive system (mouth, oesophagus, stomach, small and large intestines, salivary glands, pancreas, liver, gall bladder) and describe their functions in ingestion, digestion, absorption, assimilation, and egestion. Learning Activities: Students will locate and name digestive organs using diagrams. They will learn how food enters the body, breaks down, nutrients move into the blood, cells use nutrients, and waste is removed. Expected Standard: Students will correctly identify all major digestive organs. They will clearly explain the role of each organ and the five key steps of food processing in the body.
7.3 Physical digestion
Specific Competence: Students will describe physical digestion as breaking food into smaller pieces without changing its chemicals. They will explain how this increases surface area for enzymes. Students will identify types of human teeth, describe their structure and functions, and explain the stomach's role in physical digestion. They will also outline how bile helps break down fats. Learning Activities: Students will learn how food is broken down physically. They will identify and describe different human teeth and their uses. Students will learn how the stomach and bile contribute to breaking food into smaller parts. Expected Standard: Students will clearly explain physical digestion and its benefits. They will correctly identify tooth types and describe their structure and function. They will explain how the stomach and bile aid in physical food breakdown.
7.4 Chemical digestion
Specific Competence: Students will describe chemical digestion as breaking large food molecules into small, absorbable ones. They will describe the functions of amylase (starch), proteases (protein), and lipase (fats), including where they are secreted and act. Students will also describe the roles of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and how bile neutralizes acid for enzyme action. They will explain the digestion of starch and protein in detail. Learning Activities: Students will learn how food chemicals are broken down. They will identify specific enzymes, what they digest, and where they work. Students will understand the role of stomach acid and how bile prepares the small intestine for enzyme activity. They will trace the breakdown of starch and protein. Expected Standard: Students will clearly explain chemical digestion and its importance. They will correctly identify and describe the action of key digestive enzymes. They will explain the functions of hydrochloric acid and bile in chemical digestion, and detail the breakdown pathways for starch and protein.
7.5 Absorption
Specific Competence: Students will state that the small intestine is the main place for nutrient absorption and that most water is absorbed there, with some in the colon. They will explain how villi and microvilli increase the surface area for absorption, describe the structure of a villus, and explain the roles of capillaries and lacteals within them. Learning Activities: Students will learn where nutrients and water enter the bloodstream. They will understand how the small intestine's unique structure helps absorb food efficiently. Students will identify the parts of a villus and how they transport absorbed nutrients. Expected Standard: Students will correctly name the main sites of nutrient and water absorption. They will explain how villi and microvilli improve absorption. Students will describe the structure of a villus and the functions of capillaries and lacteals.
8.1 XYLEM AND PHLOEM
Specific Competence: Students should be able to identify and explain the jobs of xylem and phloem tubes in plants, and understand how xylem's structure helps it do its job. Learning Activities: Looking at pictures and diagrams of plant parts to find xylem and phloem. Expected Standard: Students should state what xylem does (carries water and minerals, gives support) and what phloem does (carries sugar and amino acids). They should also show where these tubes are in roots, stems, and leaves. For xylem, they should connect its structure (thick walls with lignin for strength, no cell contents inside, cells joined end-to-end to form a long, continuous tube) to its job of moving water.
8.2 WATER UPTAKE
Specific Competence: Students should be able to explain how plants absorb water and mineral ions through their roots and trace the path of water through the plant. Learning Activities: Identifying root hair cells (specialized cells on roots for absorption) in diagrams. Doing experiments to see the path water takes through plant parts using a special stain. Expected Standard: Students should identify root hair cells and state their job (increasing the surface area to take up more water and mineral ions). They should outline the path water takes, starting from root hair cells, then through root cells, into xylem (water-carrying tubes), and finally to mesophyll cells (cells inside leaves).
8.3 TRANSPIRATION
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe transpiration, explain the factors that change how fast it happens, and understand how water moves up the plant. Learning Activities: Experimenting to see how changes in temperature and wind speed affect the rate of transpiration (how fast water is lost). Expected Standard: Students should describe transpiration as the loss of water vapour (water in gas form) from leaves. They should explain that water evaporates from the surface of mesophyll cells into air spaces inside the leaf, and then diffuses out through stomata (tiny pores on the leaf surface). They should investigate and describe how temperature and wind speed affect transpiration. They should also explain how the large internal surface area of air spaces and the size and number of stomata relate to water loss. They should explain the mechanism of water moving upwards in xylem as a 'transpiration pull' (a sucking force) that draws up a column of water molecules held together by attraction. They should explain how temperature, wind speed, and humidity affect transpiration rate, and why wilting (when plants droop) occurs.
8.4 TRANSLOCATION
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe translocation as the movement of sugars and amino acids in plants and identify where these substances are produced and used. Learning Activities: Understanding descriptions of how substances move in plants. Expected Standard: Students should describe translocation as the movement of sucrose (sugar) and amino acids (building blocks for proteins) in phloem (food-carrying tubes) from 'sources' (parts of plants that make or release these substances) to 'sinks' (parts that use or store them). They should also explain why some plant parts can act as both a source and a sink at different times (e.g., a leaf is a source when photosynthesizing, but a sink if it needs stored food).
9.1 CIRCULATORY SYSTEMS
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe the basic structure of a circulatory system and compare different types of circulation. Learning Activities: Understanding descriptions of different circulatory systems. Expected Standard: Students should describe the circulatory system as a network of blood vessels with a pump (the heart) and valves (flaps that ensure one-way flow) to keep blood moving in one direction. They should describe the single circulation found in fish (blood goes through the heart once per circuit) and the double circulation found in mammals (blood goes through the heart twice per circuit). They should also explain the benefits of a double circulation.
9.2 HEART
Specific Competence: Students should be able to identify the structures of the mammalian heart, understand its function, and describe common heart diseases and how to reduce their risk. Learning Activities: Identifying heart structures in diagrams and images. Monitoring heart activity using an ECG (a test that checks the heart's electrical activity), pulse rate, and by listening to heart valve sounds. Investigating how physical activity affects heart rate. Expected Standard: Students should identify major mammalian heart structures including the muscular wall, septum (wall dividing the heart), left and right ventricles (lower chambers), left and right atria (upper chambers), one-way valves, and coronary arteries (blood vessels supplying the heart muscle). They should state that arteries carry blood away from the heart and veins bring blood back. They should know how heart activity can be monitored and investigate how physical activity changes heart rate. They should describe coronary heart disease (blockage of coronary arteries) and its possible risk factors, such as diet, lack of exercise, stress, smoking, family history (genetic predisposition), age, and sex. They should discuss how diet and exercise can reduce the risk of this disease. Students should also identify atrioventricular and semilunar valves, explain why the muscle walls of different heart chambers have different thicknesses, explain the septum's importance in separating oxygen-rich and oxygen-poor blood, describe how the heart functions through muscle contractions and valve actions, and explain the effect of physical activity on heart rate.
9.3 BLOOD VESSELS
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe the structure and function of arteries, veins, and capillaries, and identify major blood vessels in the body. Learning Activities: Identifying blood vessels in diagrams and images. Expected Standard: Students should describe the structure of arteries, veins, and capillaries (limited to their wall thickness, the diameter of their lumen (the inside space), and the presence of valves in veins). They should state the jobs of capillaries (tiny blood vessels where exchange of substances happens). They should identify the main blood vessels going to and from the heart (vena cava, aorta, pulmonary artery, pulmonary vein), lungs (pulmonary artery, pulmonary vein), and kidney (renal artery, renal vein). They should also explain how the structure of arteries and veins is suited to the blood pressure they carry, how capillary structure helps their functions, and identify the main blood vessels to and from the liver (hepatic artery, hepatic veins, and hepatic portal vein).
9.4 BLOOD
Specific Competence: Students should be able to list and describe the components of blood and their functions, including how blood clots. Learning Activities: Identifying red and white blood cells (and specific types like lymphocytes and phagocytes) in microscope pictures and diagrams. Expected Standard: Students should list the parts of blood: red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets (small cell fragments for clotting), and plasma (the liquid part). They should identify red and white blood cells in pictures. They should state the jobs of: red blood cells (carrying oxygen, involving haemoglobin, a protein that binds oxygen), white blood cells (fighting infection through phagocytosis, which is engulfing germs, and making antibodies), platelets (helping blood clot), and plasma (carrying blood cells, ions, nutrients, waste like urea, hormones, and carbon dioxide). They should state that blood clotting stops blood loss and prevents germs from entering the body. They should also identify lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell that makes antibodies) and phagocytes (a type of white blood cell that engulfs germs) in pictures, state their functions, and describe the process of clotting as fibrinogen (a protein) changing into fibrin to form a mesh (net) that traps blood cells.
10.1 DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Specific Competence: Students should be able to define pathogens and transmissible diseases, describe how diseases spread and how the body defends itself, explain prevention methods, and understand different types of immunity and vaccination. They should also understand a specific example of a transmissible disease. Learning Activities: Understanding descriptions and explanations of diseases, body defenses, and immunity. Expected Standard: Students should describe a pathogen as an organism that causes disease. They should describe a transmissible disease as one where the pathogen can be passed from one person (host) to another. They should state that pathogens are spread by direct contact (e.g., through blood or body fluids) and indirectly (e.g., from dirty surfaces, food, animals, or air). They should describe the body's defenses: skin, hairs in the nose, mucus, stomach acid, and white blood cells. They should explain why clean water, hygienic food preparation, good personal hygiene, proper waste disposal, and sewage treatment are important in stopping disease spread. They should also describe active immunity as the body defending itself by making its own antibodies (special proteins that fight germs). They should state that each pathogen has unique antigens (markers on its surface) with specific shapes. They should describe antibodies as proteins that attach to antigens, either directly destroying pathogens or marking them for destruction by phagocytes (engulfing white blood cells). They should state that specific antibodies have shapes that fit specific antigens. They should explain that active immunity is gained after getting an infection or through vaccination. They should outline vaccination: weakened pathogens or their antigens are put into the body, which makes lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell) produce antibodies, and then memory cells (cells that remember the pathogen) are produced, giving long-term protection. They should explain how vaccination helps control disease spread. They should explain that passive immunity is a short-term defense using antibodies from another individual (e.g., from a mother to a baby across the placenta or in breast milk). They should explain why breast-feeding is important for developing passive immunity in babies and state that memory cells are not made in passive immunity. Finally, they should describe cholera as a disease caused by bacteria spread in contaminated water, and explain that the cholera bacteria produce a toxin (poison) that causes chloride ions to be secreted into the small intestine, leading to water moving into the gut, causing severe diarrhoea, dehydration, and loss of ions from the blood.
11.1 GAS EXCHANGE IN HUMANS
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe the features of human gas exchange surfaces, identify parts of the breathing system, explain how breathing works, and understand factors affecting breathing rate and protective mechanisms. Learning Activities: Identifying parts of the breathing system in diagrams and images. Experimenting to find differences between inhaled and exhaled air using limewater (a chemical that turns cloudy with carbon dioxide). Experimenting to see how physical activity affects how fast and deeply someone breathes. Expected Standard: Students should describe the features of gas exchange surfaces in humans (like the alveoli in lungs): a large surface area, a very thin surface, a good blood supply, and good ventilation with air. They should identify the following parts of the breathing system in diagrams: lungs, diaphragm (a muscle for breathing), ribs, intercostal muscles (muscles between ribs), larynx (voice box), trachea (windpipe), bronchi (tubes leading to lungs), bronchioles (smaller tubes in lungs), alveoli (tiny air sacs for gas exchange), and the capillaries (tiny blood vessels) around them. They should investigate and describe the differences in the composition of inspired (inhaled) and expired (exhaled) air, specifically regarding oxygen, carbon dioxide, and water vapour. They should investigate and describe how physical activity affects the rate and depth of breathing. They should also identify the internal and external intercostal muscles in diagrams. They should state the function of cartilage (strong, flexible tissue) in the trachea (keeping it open). They should explain how the ribs, intercostal muscles, and diaphragm work together to change the volume and pressure in the chest (thorax), leading to air moving in and out of the lungs (ventilation). They should explain the differences in the composition of inspired and expired air. They should explain the link between physical activity and breathing rate/depth: increased carbon dioxide in the blood is detected by the brain, leading to faster and deeper breathing. Finally, they should explain the role of goblet cells (cells that make mucus), mucus (a sticky substance), and ciliated cells (cells with tiny hairs that move mucus) in protecting the breathing system from germs and particles.
12. Respiration
Specific Competence: Students should be able to state how living things use energy for body functions like muscle movement, making proteins, and keeping warm. They should also investigate how temperature affects yeast respiration. Students must describe aerobic respiration as using oxygen to break down food for energy, and anaerobic respiration as breaking down food without oxygen, releasing less energy. They should state the simple word equations for both types of respiration, including for yeast and muscles (lactic acid), and explain how the body removes "oxygen debt" after exercise. Learning Activities: Students will describe energy uses, conduct an experiment on yeast respiration, define and write equations for aerobic and anaerobic respiration, and explain the oxygen debt process. Expected Standard: Students can explain energy's role in life, distinguish aerobic and anaerobic respiration with their equations, understand oxygen debt, and describe a related experiment.
13. Excretion in Humans
Specific Competence: Students should be able to state that lungs excrete carbon dioxide, and kidneys excrete urea, excess water, and salts. They must identify kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra in diagrams. Students should also outline the structure and function of a nephron, explaining how the glomerulus filters blood and how the nephron reabsorbs useful substances while forming urine. They should describe how the liver converts excess amino acids into urea (deamination) and explain why excretion is important to prevent urea toxicity. Learning Activities: Students will identify excretory organs, describe kidney and nephron functions, and explain urea formation and the importance of excretion. Expected Standard: Students can identify human excretory organs, describe kidney and nephron processes, understand urea production, and explain why waste removal is vital.
14.1 Nervous System and Reflexes
Specific Competence: Students should be able to state that electrical signals travel along nerve cells (neurones). They must describe the human nervous system, differentiating between the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) and the peripheral nervous system (nerves outside CNS). Students should identify sensory, relay, and motor neurones, and describe a simple reflex arc (receptor, neurones, effector). They should explain a reflex action as an automatic, fast response. Students must also describe a synapse (junction between neurones), including its structure (vesicles, neurotransmitters, gap, receptors) and the events of signal transmission across it, noting that signals travel in one direction. Learning Activities: Students will identify nervous system parts and neurone types, describe nerve impulse travel and reflex arcs, and explain synapse structure and function. Expected Standard: Students can describe the nervous system's basic structure, neurone types, reflex arcs, and how signals are transmitted across synapses.
14.2 Sense Organs (The Eye)
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe sense organs as groups of cells that respond to specific stimuli like light or sound. They must identify parts of the eye (cornea, iris, pupil, lens, retina, optic nerve, blind spot) in diagrams and describe their functions (e.g., cornea refracts light, retina contains light receptors). Students should explain the pupil reflex (pupil size changes with light) and accommodation (focusing on near/distant objects) by describing muscle actions and lens changes. They should also describe the distribution and function of rods (night vision) and cones (color vision) in the retina, and identify the fovea. Learning Activities: Students will identify eye parts, describe their functions, explain eye reflexes (pupil, accommodation), and differentiate rod and cone roles. Expected Standard: Students can identify and explain the structure and function of the human eye, including how it responds to light, focuses images, and detects colors.
14.3 Hormonal Control
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe a hormone as a chemical made by a gland, carried by blood, that changes target organ activity. They must identify specific endocrine glands (e.g., adrenal, pancreas, testes, ovaries) and the hormones they secrete (e.g., adrenaline, insulin, testosterone, oestrogen). Students should describe adrenaline's role in "fight or flight" situations, listing its effects like increased breathing and heart rate. They should also compare nervous and hormonal control based on action speed and effect duration. Learning Activities: Students will define hormones, identify glands and their hormones, describe adrenaline's effects, and compare nervous versus hormonal control. Expected Standard: Students can define hormones, identify key endocrine glands and their hormones, explain adrenaline's role in stress, and compare hormonal and nervous control characteristics.
14.4 Homeostasis
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe homeostasis as maintaining a constant internal body environment. They must state that insulin lowers blood glucose. Students should explain homeostatic control using negative feedback, referencing a "set point." They should describe how the liver controls blood glucose with insulin and glucagon, and outline Type 1 diabetes treatment. Students must also identify skin structures (hairs, sweat glands, blood vessels) in diagrams. They should describe how mammals maintain constant body temperature through insulation, sweating, shivering, and the brain's role, as well as vasodilation and vasoconstriction of skin blood vessels. Learning Activities: Students will define homeostasis, describe blood glucose regulation, outline diabetes treatment, identify skin parts, and explain thermoregulation in mammals. Expected Standard: Students can define homeostasis, explain blood glucose regulation and diabetes treatment, and describe the mechanisms mammals use to maintain a constant body temperature.
14.5 Plant Tropic Responses
Specific Competence: Students should be able to describe gravitropism (growth towards/away from gravity) and phototropism (growth towards/away from light) in plants. They must investigate and describe these responses in plant shoots and roots. Students should explain how these tropisms in shoots are examples of chemical control of plant growth. They should also explain auxin's role in controlling shoot growth: where it's made (shoot tip), how it spreads, how it's unevenly distributed by light and gravity, and how it stimulates cell lengthening. Learning Activities: Students will define tropisms, conduct experiments to observe them, and explain auxin's role in plant growth. Expected Standard: Students can define and describe plant tropisms (gravitropism, phototropism), investigate them, and explain the chemical control of plant growth, focusing on auxin's function.
15.1 Drugs
Specific Competence: Students will be able to understand what drugs are, how antibiotics work, and the problem of antibiotic resistance. Learning Activities: Students will describe drugs and antibiotic uses, state facts about resistance and viruses, and explain ways to limit resistance. Expected Standard: Students will know the definition of a drug, the role of antibiotics in treating bacterial infections, how bacteria can become resistant to antibiotics, that antibiotics do not affect viruses, and how to prevent the development of resistant bacteria.
16.1 Asexual reproduction
Specific Competence: Students will be able to describe and identify asexual reproduction and discuss its benefits and drawbacks. Learning Activities: Students will describe asexual reproduction, identify examples from diagrams or information, and discuss its advantages and disadvantages for species in the wild and for crops. Expected Standard: Students will understand asexual reproduction as producing identical offspring from one parent, recognize examples, and know the pros and cons for both natural populations and farming.
16.2 Sexual reproduction
Specific Competence: Students will be able to describe sexual reproduction, fertilisation, and the genetic makeup of gametes and zygotes, as well as discuss its advantages and disadvantages. Learning Activities: Students will describe sexual reproduction and fertilisation, state the ploidy of gametes and zygotes, and discuss the advantages and disadvantages for species in the wild and for crops. Expected Standard: Students will understand sexual reproduction involves two gametes fusing to form a zygote, resulting in varied offspring. They will know fertilisation is the fusion of gamete nuclei, that gametes are haploid and zygotes are diploid, and the benefits and drawbacks for natural populations and farming.
16.3 Sexual reproduction in plants
Specific Competence: Students will be able to identify and describe plant reproductive structures, processes like pollination and fertilisation, and factors affecting seed germination. Learning Activities: Students will identify and draw flower parts, state their functions, describe different types of flowers and pollen, describe pollination and fertilisation, investigate seed germination conditions, and discuss the effects of different pollination methods. Expected Standard: Students will know the parts and functions of insect-pollinated flowers, how wind-pollinated flowers differ, the process of pollination (self and cross) and fertilisation, the structural features of different flower types, and the necessary conditions for seeds to germinate. They will also understand the implications of different pollination methods for plant populations.
16.4 Sexual reproduction in humans
Specific Competence: Students will be able to identify human reproductive organs, describe fertilisation and fetal development, and explain the roles of different structures and gamete adaptations. Learning Activities: Students will identify and state the functions of male and female reproductive parts, describe fertilisation, explain the special features of sperm and egg cells, compare gametes, state the process of early development and identify the structures involved in fetal development, and describe the functions of the placenta and umbilical cord. Expected Standard: Students will know the parts and functions of the male and female reproductive systems, the process of human fertilisation, the special characteristics of sperm and egg cells, the differences between male and female gametes, how a zygote develops into an embryo and implants, and the roles of the umbilical cord, placenta, amniotic sac, and amniotic fluid in supporting the fetus. They will also understand how substances are exchanged via the placenta and that some harmful substances can cross it.
16.5 Sex hormones in humans
Specific Competence: Students will be able to describe the roles of sex hormones in human development and the menstrual cycle. Learning Activities: Students will describe the functions of testosterone and oestrogen during puberty, describe the changes that occur during the menstrual cycle, and explain how hormones control this cycle and pregnancy. Expected Standard: Students will understand the effects of testosterone and oestrogen on secondary sexual characteristics during puberty, know the stages and changes of the menstrual cycle in the ovaries and uterus, and understand the roles of hormones like FSH, LH, oestrogen, and progesterone in controlling these processes and pregnancy.
16.6 Sexually transmitted infections
Specific Competence: Students will be able to define sexually transmitted infections, understand HIV/AIDS, and explain how to prevent their spread. Learning Activities: Students will describe what an STI is, state facts about HIV and AIDS, describe how HIV is transmitted, and explain how STIs can be controlled. Expected Standard: Students will know the definition of a sexually transmitted infection, that HIV causes an STI which can lead to AIDS, the ways HIV is spread, and methods to prevent the spread of STIs.
17.1 Chromosomes, genes and proteins
Specific Competence: Students will be able to describe the basic structure of genetic material, how genes code for proteins, and the difference between haploid and diploid cells. Learning Activities: Students will state what chromosomes, genes, and alleles are, describe how sex is inherited, describe haploid and diploid nuclei, and explain how DNA controls cell function by making proteins. Expected Standard: Students will understand that chromosomes are made of DNA containing genes, that genes are segments of DNA coding for proteins, and that alleles are different versions of a gene. They will know how sex is determined in humans, the process of protein synthesis from DNA, why cells express only certain genes, and the difference between haploid (single set) and diploid (two sets) chromosomes, including the number in human cells.
17.2 Mitosis
Specific Competence: Students will be able to describe mitosis and its importance in growth, repair, and asexual reproduction, and understand the role of stem cells. Learning Activities: Students will describe mitosis, state its various roles in the body, state what happens to chromosomes before and during mitosis, and describe stem cells. Expected Standard: Students will know that mitosis is a type of cell division that produces two identical cells. They will understand its importance for growth, repairing damaged tissues, replacing old cells, and in asexual reproduction. They will also understand that chromosomes are copied before mitosis and then evenly divided, and what stem cells are.
17.3 Meiosis
Specific Competence: Students will be able to describe meiosis and its role in producing gametes with half the chromosome number. Learning Activities: Students will state the purpose of meiosis and describe it as a reduction division process. Expected Standard: Students will understand that meiosis is a special type of cell division that creates gametes (sex cells). They will know that it halves the number of chromosomes, changing cells from diploid to haploid, and results in genetically different cells.
17.4 Monohybrid inheritance
Specific Competence: Students will be able to understand and apply fundamental concepts of inheritance, including genotypes, phenotypes, alleles, and predict inheritance patterns using diagrams. Learning Activities: Students will describe inheritance terms like genotype, phenotype, homozygous, heterozygous, dominant, and recessive; interpret pedigree diagrams; use genetic diagrams and Punnett squares to predict outcomes of crosses; explain test crosses, codominance, ABO blood group inheritance, and sex-linked characteristics. Expected Standard: Students will know how genetic information is passed down. They will understand and use terms like genotype, phenotype, homozygous, heterozygous, dominant, and recessive alleles. They will be able to read family trees (pedigree diagrams) and use genetic diagrams and Punnett squares to predict how traits are inherited in simple crosses, including cases of codominance and sex linkage like red-green colour blindness, and calculate the expected ratios of offspring. They will also understand how to use a test cross.
18.0 VARIATION, ADAPTATION AND SELECTION
Specific Competence: Students will understand how living things vary, how these differences arise through genetic changes (mutation), and how organisms develop features (adaptations) to survive. They will explain how natural forces (natural selection) and human actions (selective breeding) change populations over time. Learning Activities: Students will describe continuous and discontinuous variation with examples. They will define mutation and list factors that cause it. They will describe adaptive features and interpret information about them. They will explain the steps of natural selection and describe how selective breeding improves crops and animals. Expected Standard: Students will clearly distinguish between continuous and discontinuous variation, giving specific examples like body length, body mass, and ABO blood groups. They will explain mutation and state that ionising radiation and some chemicals increase its rate. They will identify and explain adaptive features, including those of hydrophytes and xerophytes. They will accurately describe natural selection and selective breeding, using examples like antibiotic resistant bacteria.
19.0 ECOSYSTEMS AND INTERDEPENDENCE
Specific Competence: Students will understand how energy moves through living systems and how essential nutrients are recycled. They will describe the feeding relationships between organisms and how populations grow and interact within their environment. Learning Activities: Students will identify the Sun as the main energy source and describe how energy flows. They will build and understand food chains and webs, identifying different types of organisms (producers, consumers, decomposers) and their roles. They will draw and interpret pyramids of numbers, biomass, and energy. They will describe the carbon and nitrogen cycles, including the roles of microorganisms. They will define populations, communities, and ecosystems, and identify factors affecting population growth. Expected Standard: Students will accurately trace energy flow and identify trophic levels in food chains and webs. They will interpret and draw ecological pyramids, explaining the advantages of biomass and energy pyramids. They will describe the main steps of the carbon and nitrogen cycles and the roles of microorganisms. They will define key ecological terms and explain factors influencing population growth and its different phases.
20.0 HUMAN INFLUENCES AND CONSERVATION
Specific Competence: Students will explain how human activities impact ecosystems, covering food production, habitat destruction, and pollution. They will also describe ways to protect biodiversity and manage natural resources sustainably. Learning Activities: Students will describe methods humans use to increase food production (e.g., machinery, fertilisers, pesticides, selective breeding) and discuss the pros and cons of large-scale farming and intensive animal farming. They will identify causes of habitat destruction (e.g., housing, resource extraction, pollution) and explain the negative effects of deforestation. They will describe the impacts of pollution from sewage, fertilisers, plastics, methane, and carbon dioxide, including eutrophication and climate change. They will define sustainable resources and explain why species become endangered. They will describe conservation methods (e.g., monitoring, education, captive breeding, seed banks, protected areas). Expected Standard: Students will clearly outline human methods for increasing food supply and discuss their impacts. They will explain the causes and consequences of habitat destruction and pollution, with specific examples. They will define sustainable resources and accurately describe various approaches to conserving endangered species and managing resources like forests and fish stocks, explaining the reasons for conservation.
21.0 BIOTECHNOLOGY AND GENETIC MODIFICATION
Specific Competence: Students will understand how biotechnology uses living organisms, especially microorganisms, for practical purposes, and the basics of changing an organism's genetic material (genetic modification), including its uses and considerations. Learning Activities: Students will state why bacteria are useful in biotechnology (e.g., fast reproduction, making complex molecules, few ethical concerns, plasmids). They will describe how yeast is used to make ethanol and bread. They will describe the use of pectinase in fruit juice and enzymes in washing powders. They will explain how lactase makes lactose-free milk and how large containers (fermenters) are used to make products like insulin, penicillin, and mycoprotein, including controlling conditions like temperature and pH. They will define genetic modification and explain its process using bacterial production of human protein as an example. They will list examples of genetically modified crops and discuss their advantages and disadvantages. Expected Standard: Students will explain the usefulness of microorganisms in biotechnology. They will accurately describe various biotechnological applications, including industrial processes and enzyme uses, and the controlled conditions in fermenters. They will define genetic modification, outline its key steps, and provide specific examples of its application. They will discuss the benefits and drawbacks of genetically modified crops.