Combined Science

Plant cells vs animal cells: key similarities and differences

Prokaryotic cells vs eukaryotic cells

Cell organelles and their functions

Using a light microscope safely and correctly

Preparing slides and using stains to improve contrast

Calculating magnification and image size

Comparing light and electron micrographs (what each can show)

The role of DNA in cells (genetic material as a code)

Proteins as biological molecules with specific functions

Enzymes as biological catalysts

Lock-and-key model and enzyme specificity

Factors affecting enzyme activity: temperature, pH, substrate concentration

Aerobic respiration: word equation and key ideas

Anaerobic respiration in muscles

Anaerobic respiration in microorganisms (fermentation basics)

Comparing aerobic vs anaerobic respiration (energy release)

Respiration as an enzyme-controlled process

Using respiration ideas to explain exercise and recovery

Interpreting simple data about respiration rate

The word equation and what it means

Chloroplasts and chlorophyll: where photosynthesis happens

How light intensity affects photosynthesis

How carbon dioxide concentration affects photosynthesis

How temperature affects photosynthesis

Limiting factors and predicting the rate-limiting factor

Using glucose made in photosynthesis (storage and transport)

Linking photosynthesis and respiration in ecosystems

Osmosis: movement of water and partially permeable membranes

Active transport: moving substances against a concentration gradient

Comparing diffusion, osmosis and active transport

From cells to tissues to organs to organ systems

Mitosis as cell division for growth and repair

Stem cells: what they are and why they matter

Exchange surfaces: what makes them efficient

Plant transport tissues: xylem and phloem (what they carry)

Transpiration basics and why plants lose water

Diffusion distance and exchange efficiency

Why multicellular organisms need transport systems

The human circulatory system: overview and purpose

Double circulatory system in mammals

The heart: chambers, valves and blood vessels

Arteries, veins and capillaries: structure and function

Blood components: plasma, red cells, white cells and platelets

Gas exchange in the lungs: structure and function of alveoli

Interpreting circulatory/gas exchange data in exam-style questions

Stimulus–response pathways and survival value

Reflex actions and reflex arcs

Synapses (simple model) and neurotransmitters

The endocrine system and hormone signalling

Comparing nervous vs hormonal control

Homeostasis: maintaining stable internal conditions

Thermoregulation: sweating, shivering and blood flow changes

Blood glucose control: insulin and glucagon

Diabetes (type 1 and type 2 at GCSE level)

Kidneys and osmoregulation (water balance)

Negative feedback as a control mechanism

Levels of organisation: organism to community to ecosystem

Food chains and trophic levels

Food webs and interdependence

Competition and predator–prey relationships

Pyramids of number, biomass and energy

Decomposers and nutrient recycling

The carbon cycle

The water cycle

Biodiversity: what it means and why it matters

Human impacts on ecosystems (habitat loss, pollution)

Genetic terms: genotype, phenotype and alleles

Dominant and recessive inheritance

Monohybrid crosses using Punnett squares

Inherited disorders (using clear examples)

Sex determination (XX/XY) and inheritance patterns

Variation: genetic vs environmental

Mutation as a source of new variation

Natural selection: how it works, step by step

Evolution and adaptation (linking to survival and reproduction)

Selective breeding: process, benefits and drawbacks

Antibiotic resistance as an example of evolution in action

Pollution and biodiversity: causes and consequences

Food security: why feeding humans is challenging

Increasing food production: farming methods and trade-offs

Fertilisers and eutrophication (cause → effect chains)

Genetic modification in crops: potential benefits and concerns

Health and disease: what the terms mean

Communicable vs non-communicable diseases

Pathogens (virus, bacteria, protist, fungi) and how disease spreads

Plant diseases and human infections (named examples)

Reducing spread: hygiene, isolation, plant control measures

White blood cells and platelets: how they protect the body

Non-specific defences (skin, mucus, stomach acid)

Vaccination: how vaccines work and why they’re used

Antibiotics, antivirals and antiseptics (what each is for)

Developing new medicines: preclinical and clinical testing

Lifestyle factors and disease risk (smoking, diet, exercise, alcohol)

Explaining density using particles

Explaining diffusion using particles

Gas pressure in terms of particle collisions

Changes of state and heating/cooling curves

Internal energy and temperature (what changes and why)

Atomic structure: protons, neutrons and electrons

Isotopes and relative atomic mass

Electronic structure (simple shell model)

The Periodic Table: periods and groups

Metals vs non-metals: typical physical properties

Using atomic structure to explain simple reactivity patterns

Pure substances and impurities

Filtration, crystallisation and simple distillation

Fractional distillation (separating liquids)

Paper/TLC chromatography: how separation works

Reading chromatograms and calculating Rf values

Choosing the best separation technique for a substance

Ionic bonding: electron transfer and ion formation

Covalent bonding: sharing electrons and molecules

Metallic bonding: why metals conduct and are malleable

Giant ionic structures vs simple molecular substances

Polymers: repeating units and basic properties

Materials: ceramics, polymers, composites and alloys (uses)

Conservation of mass (reactants vs products)

Exothermic and endothermic reactions

Reaction profiles (energy changes)

Acids and alkalis: pH and neutralisation

Making salts (including crystallisation of a soluble salt)

Reactivity series of metals (patterns and uses)

Displacement reactions (metal and halogen examples)

Oxidation and reduction (electron/oxygen ideas at GCSE level)

Electrolysis: what it is and why ions matter

Electrolysis of molten ionic compounds (products at electrodes)

Electrolysis of aqueous solutions (how products are chosen)

Group 1 metals: reaction patterns (water and oxygen)

Group 7 halogens: reaction patterns and displacement

Noble gases: why they’re unreactive

Naming key compounds from formulas (basic GCSE set)

Identifying ions with flame tests and simple precipitation tests

Identifying gases (hydrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, chlorine)

Using tests to identify unknown substances in exam questions

Using observations to infer reaction type

Measuring rate: gas volume, mass change, precipitation

Factors affecting rate: temperature, concentration, surface area

Catalysts and enzymes (comparing role as catalysts)

Interpreting rate graphs (tangent/gradient ideas)

Reversible reactions and dynamic equilibrium

Le Chatelier’s principle (temperature, pressure, concentration)

Equilibrium in industrial processes (Haber process context)

Yield, atom economy and sustainability links

Life-cycle assessments: what they include and why they matter

Recycling: benefits, limitations and real-world trade-offs

Crude oil as a resource and why it’s useful

Fractional distillation of crude oil: fractions and uses

Cracking hydrocarbons: conditions and products

Alkanes and the homologous series (patterns in formulas)

Polymer production and environmental impacts

Earth’s atmosphere: changes over time (GCSE narrative)

Greenhouse effect vs climate change (separating ideas clearly)

Human activity and atmospheric composition (evidence-based links)

Potable water production and wastewater treatment (core stages)

Density: measuring, calculating, and interpreting results

Pressure in fluids (qualitative + simple calculations)

Moments and turning effect in everyday contexts (if assessed in suite questions)

Changes of state: melting, boiling, evaporation, condensation

Latent heat and why temperature stays constant during change of state

Heating curves: reading and sketching from data

Gas pressure and temperature/volume trends (basic model)

Using distance–time graphs

Velocity and acceleration (what they mean)

Using velocity–time graphs (including distance from area)

Calculating acceleration from data/graphs

Newton’s first law: inertia and balanced forces

Newton’s second law: force, mass and acceleration

Newton’s third law: action–reaction pairs

Weight, mass and gravitational field strength

Friction, drag and terminal velocity

Stopping distance: thinking and braking distance factors

Hooke’s law and spring extension

Work done by a force and energy transfer in motion

Current as rate of flow of charge

Potential difference and what it represents

Series circuits: current, potential difference and resistance rules

Parallel circuits: current splitting and shared potential difference

Resistance and the I = V/R relationship

Measuring current and potential difference correctly

I–V characteristics for ohmic conductors and non-ohmic components

Power in electrical devices (power, energy and time links)

Mains electricity safety: live, neutral, earth, fuses

Magnets and magnetic fields (field lines and poles)

Electromagnets: making and strengthening them

Using electromagnets in real devices (relays, motors context)

Describing waves: amplitude, wavelength, frequency, period

The wave equation and basic calculations

Reflection and refraction (ray ideas and wave speed changes)

Sound waves: pitch, volume and oscilloscopes (core interpretation)

Electromagnetic spectrum: order and key uses

Hazards and safety with different EM waves

Radioactivity: what it is and why nuclei are unstable

Alpha, beta and gamma: properties and penetration

Irradiation vs contamination

Half-life (interpreting graphs and simple calculations)

Background radiation and risk

Conservation of energy and Sankey diagrams

Work done as energy transferred

Kinetic and gravitational potential energy calculations

Elastic potential energy in springs (GCSE calculation focus)

Power: what it means and how to calculate it

Efficiency and why no process is 100% efficient

Ways to improve efficiency in everyday systems

Energy resources: comparing reliability and environmental impact

Reducing unwanted energy transfers in vehicles

Braking and safety features explained with forces/energy ideas

Powering Earth: how electricity is generated

Non-renewable vs renewable resources: pros and cons

National and local issues: demand, reliability and cost

Transformers (core idea: stepping voltage up/down)

Transmission efficiency and why high voltage is used

Storing energy from renewables (batteries, pumped storage context)

Writing a clear method that can be repeated

Identifying independent, dependent and control variables

Accuracy, precision, repeatability and reproducibility

Estimating uncertainty and spotting anomalous results

Recording data in suitable tables (headings, units, resolution)

Drawing graphs correctly (scales, labels, best-fit lines)

Interpreting gradients and areas where relevant

Sampling techniques and using means appropriately

Required apparatus and techniques

Planning and evaluating practical investigations (improvements and limitations)

Linking practical methods to exam questions (methods, variables, calculations, conclusions)