Develop students’ Working Scientifically (AO3) skills and confidence with GCSE practical-based exam questions through this comprehensive bundle of SIX fully planned and resourced lessons.

Originally developed to complement the AQA GCSE Combined Science: Synergy specification, these lessons are also suitable for students following other GCSE Science specifications, including AQA Trilogy and separate sciences, Edexcel and OCR.

Each lesson uses familiar practical methods and scientific contexts to develop students’ ability to analyse data, interpret results, evaluate experimental methods and apply scientific knowledge – with a particular emphasis on Assessment Objective 3 (AO3).

What’s included?

Six fully planned and resourced lessons covering:

1. Density – Applying scientific methods and calculations to investigate density.
2. Osmosis (Model Cells) – Investigating osmosis using model cells and interpreting experimental results.
3. Waves – Developing practical skills and applying scientific understanding to wave investigations.
4. Reaction Times – Investigating human reaction times and analysing experimental data.
5. Rates of Photosynthesis – Investigating factors affecting photosynthesis and evaluating experimental methods.
6. Evaluating Scientific Methods – Developing the skills required to critically evaluate investigations, identify limitations and suggest improvements.

Why use these resources?

Working Scientifically and AO3 questions can be particularly challenging for GCSE students, especially when they are required to apply their understanding to unfamiliar practical contexts.

These lessons provide opportunities to develop transferable scientific skills, including:
• Identifying independent, dependent and control variables.
• Understanding experimental design and the importance of controlling variables.
• Processing, presenting and interpreting experimental data.
• Identifying anomalies and drawing valid conclusions.
• Evaluating the accuracy, precision, repeatability and reproducibility of results.
• Identifying limitations and suggesting justified improvements to scientific methods.
• Applying scientific knowledge to practical and exam-style contexts.

Flexible teaching opportunities

The resources can be used in several ways:

• Within existing schemes of work – Reinforce Working Scientifically skills alongside relevant GCSE topics.
• As a dedicated teaching sequence – Deliver all six lessons to systematically develop practical and analytical skills.
• For GCSE revision – Revisit common practical methods and strengthen students’ confidence with AO3 exam questions.
• For targeted intervention – Support students who struggle with data analysis, experimental design and evaluation.

Suitable for:
• GCSE Combined Science and Separate Sciences
• AQA Synergy, AQA Trilogy and other GCSE Science specifications
• Years 10 and 11
• Classroom teaching, revision and intervention