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AQA A2 biology: writing the synoptic essay
Writing the Synoptic Essay, the first ever book handing you everything you need in order to gain the maximum marks in this most challenging part of the AQA Biology A-Level exam. Comes complete with 20 sample essays, an account of what's expected, advice on choosing the right essay. How to plan and organise your essay. What to do if you get stuck and help on getting your essay timing right.
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| Subject(s) | Science |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | Robert Mitchell |
| Age | 16-19 |
| Published | 2010 |
| Published by | or to post comments |
| Shelf reference | 570.71 MIT |
| ISN/ISBN | 9781907769009 |
| Direct URL |
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How to answer A-level Biology essay questions
The Synoptic essay question on paper 3 of the AQA A-level biology course carries 25 marks, so doing well can make a big difference to your overall grade. The essay encourages you to think across different topics (some call this “synoptic” or “holistic” thinking). This is also valuable for other areas of the exams, particularly the application questions .
Here are a few tips for tackling your A-level biology essay: (As an example, let’s use the title “ The importance of movement in cells and tissues ”)
Think broadly…
Essay titles are deliberately vague to give you the chance to show your knowledge in a variety of topics. To help you to choose what’s most relevant, look out for subjective words like “movement” and “cells”. Think of the possible alternatives. “Cells”, for example, hints that you could discuss plants, animals, single-celled organisms etc. in your essay. “Movement” could mean short distances (across a membrane) or much further (circulation or mass flow) or even the whole tissue moving (phototropism).
Visualize and catastrophize!
If you can’t think of enough topics for an “importance” essay, flip the question around – what would happen if movement in cells suddenly ground to a halt? Or if ATP suddenly vanished, or our cells were robbed of their ions? Sometimes catastrophizing in this way frees up thoughts, and helps you see what is really important. Another way is to picture every diagram in your notes or textbook that features the thing-that’s-important-in-the-question. If it’s in a diagram, it could go in your essay.
Pick your strongest topics
It’s possible to drop marks on the essay for scientific errors. With that in mind, even if you have lots of ideas for things to include, always pick the topics you can write confidently about. For bonus marks, try to order them in a way that “flows” like a story. Take care to use A-level (and not GCSE) language too.
Keep an eye on the question
While you’re writing, keep asking yourself “Where am I placing the emphasis?”. If the essay is about movement, perhaps you don’t need a whole page about nervous responses, only the bits where movement is involved – sodium ions flowing through channels, waves of depolarisation etc. Movement is the focus of the essay, after all, not neurons. Always ask yourself “Does this sentence fit with the title of the essay?”
Use outside knowledge
The top marks for the essay are reserved for displaying “evidence of reading beyond specification requirements”. Often you can drop recent scientific research or news into your writing – how vaccines tackle COVID might work in an essay about viruses, for example. I often encourage students to have a quick look at the news pages of New Scientist pages (eg https://www.newscientist.com/subject/health/ ) before paper 3 for inspiration – you don’t need to spend ages doing this, just long enough to have one or two ideas up your sleeve…
Good luck with your essay!
If you’d like to work through some A-level biology describe and explain
If you’d like to work through some example essay questions, please get in touch with me at Woolton Tutors (or Woolton Biology) and we can set up some online biology tutoring sessions.
Best wishes,
Dr John Ankers
Specialist online A-level biology tutor
www.wooltontutors.co.uk
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AQA Synoptic Essay (Paper 3)
Subject: Biology
Age range: 16+
Resource type: Other
Last updated
21 May 2019
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An introduction to the synoptic essay on paper 3 of the AQA Biology A-level. Lesson includes the following…
- choose topics relevant to the essay title
- understand the mark scheme and why essays are awarded each band of marks.
- Explore ways in which we can link topics to the main theme of the question ie the importance of (this is what students find hardest to do and what they need to be able to do gain the top 2 bands of marks)
I designed this ppt to introduce essays to my year 12s at the end of the AS course. Topics relevant to the essay titles from year 13 could certainly be added if you were using this year 13 students.
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A bit short for a fiver....it's one 15 slide PPT. The description of how marks are awarded is pretty much the same as the AQA resources and, of course, it's limited to the Y12 content (as you describe) but it means that a full discussion of 'the importance of.....' part of the question is rther threadbare.
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AQA SYNOPTIC ESSAY PLAN
****DISCLAIMER*****
THESE ARE NOT MY NOTES AND I DID NOT MAKE THEM AT ALL !!!! THESE ARE NOTES THAT I FOUND ON THE INTERNET THAT ARE VERRY GOOD AND ALSO VERY USEFULL THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WILL OTHER WHO ARE IN NEED
- Created by: Mmmm
- Created on: 18-11-14 11:58
- Biological molecules, organic chemistry and biochemistry
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AQA Biology - synoptic essays
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The essay is a synoptic exercise • As with the legacy specification BIOL5 paper, Paper 3 has a free response essay addressing a theme in a title, with a choice from two titles. • The essay is designed to assess whether students can bring together material from a range of topics to illustrate and explain an important concept or idea.
f amylose and amylopectin. Amylose is a long chain of glucose monomers, joined by 1-4 glycosidic bonds whereas amylopectin is made up of shorter branche. chains of glucose monomers. Starch is stored in c. loroplasts as starch grains. It is used, in green plants, as the carbohydrate whic.
2 AQA A2 Biology : Writing the synoptic essay ESSAY 01: THE DIFFERENT WAYS IN WHICH ORGANISMS USE INORGANIC IONS Inorganic ions are charged particles that do not contain carbon atoms bonded together. While organisms are mainly built from carbon-containing molecules, their functions rely on inorganic ions such as nitrate, hydrogen and calcium. ...
synoptic essay plan which structure can be applied across all essays in biology sample essays and suggested plans for content the process of diffusion and its. Skip to document. University; High School. Books; Discovery. ... synoptic essay plan which structure can be applied across all essays in biology. Subject. biology a level. 660 Documents.
Advice for the essay. The levels scheme states that more than two A-level topics need to be addressed to get higher than 10 marks. A minimum of four topics is required to get higher than 15 marks. A topic area is a numbered sub-section in the specification. For example, for the 2017 'diffusion' essay, gas exchange (3.3.2) was a topic area.
Write an essay about cycles in biology 2010 10 a Carbon dioxide may affect organisms directly or indirectly. Describe and explain these effects. AQA Education (AQA) is a registered charity (number 1073334) and a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales (number 3644723). Our registered address is AQA, Devas Street, Manchester ...
I have been working with some tutees to improve their approach to the AQA Paper 3 Extended Essay - so here are a few tips, and all of the essay titles (and markschemes) since 2007. A Few Points Raised By The Exam Boards Feedback. The essay is designed to assess whether you can bring together material from a range of topics to illustrate and ...
Writing the Synoptic Essay, the first ever book handing you everything you need in order to gain the maximum marks in this most challenging part of the AQA Biology A-Level exam. Comes complete with 20 sample essays, an account of what's expected, advice on choosing the right essay. How to plan and organise your essay.
For those sitting Paper 3, writing a synoptic essay, under timed exam conditions can be daunting! ... AQA AS & A-level Biology (2016 specification). 25 Mark synoptic essay introduction & examples. Subject: Biology. ... While first attempting essay plans, I offer the option for students to use 'The Essay' handout, as this contains a list of all ...
Books. AQA Biology Synoptic Essays: For the New Exam Starting 2016. Al Waters. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, Nov 15, 2016 - Education - 144 pages. ** Both essay titles for both the 2017 and 2018 exams were covered in this book **The only book written for the new (first sitting 2017) AQA Biology exam.
The importance of shapes fitting together in cells and organisms. 1) Enzyme properties and digestion. 2) Protein structure. 3) Plasma membrane structure and cell transport. 4) Antigens, antibodies, B cells & T cells. 5) Vaccines. 6) Structure of DNA. 7) DNA Replication (not PCR) 8) Transcription & translation.
2. Haemoglobin. 3. Chemoreceptors and heart rate. 4. Water regulation and ADH. 5. Cohesion-tension theory. Study with Quizlet and memorise flashcards containing terms like Cycles, Responding to internal and external environment, Receptors and others.
Control in Cells & Organisms. ctice Exam QuestionsExtract from AQA guidelinesYo. should realise that:KEY ADVICE. It is essential that you PLAN your essay carefully. This will take aro. nd 5 minutes. Bullet point or jot down key words, diagrams or a construct a. ind map. Include a brief introduction and a conclusion to summarize the main points ...
The Synoptic essay questions in paper 3 of the AQA A-level biology course carries 25 marks, so can make a big difference to your overall grade. The essay encourages you to think across different topics (some call this "synoptic" or "holistic" thinking). This is also valuable for other areas of the exams, particularly the application.
Synoptic essay plans. SAY PLAN. Course. Biology (BIO 130) 20 Documents. Students shared 20 documents in this course. University Brigham Young University. Academic year: 2022/2023. ... importance in biology. Condensation is a chemical process by which 2 molecules are joined together to make a larger, more complex, molecule, with the loss of ...
Essay A-level Biology Synoptic Essay Plans and Questions 7401/7402. 4 reviews 2180 views 25 purchases. Module; Unit 1 BIOL1 - Biology and disease; Institution; AQA; This document contains sample questions and plans of topics you can talk about in your essay. This can be used for practice purposes for Paper 3 in Biology A-level 7401/7402. ...
14 AQA A2 Biology: Writing the synoptic essay. ESSAY 07: HOW THE STRUCTURE OF PROTEINS IS RELATED TO THEIR FUNCTION. Proteins are polymers of amino acids joined by strong peptide bonds. The combination of any of the twenty plus amino acids in any length and sequence allows an almost infinite number of possible structures and functions.
The control of processes in cells and the importance of these controls. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like The importance of proteins in the control of processes and responses in organisms, The importance of interactions between cells and between organisms, How nucleotides, molecules derived from nucleotides and ...
Age range: 16+. Resource type: Other. File previews. pptx, 451.3 KB. An introduction to the synoptic essay on paper 3 of the AQA Biology A-level. Lesson includes the following…. choose topics relevant to the essay title. understand the mark scheme and why essays are awarded each band of marks. Explore ways in which we can link topics to the ...
Module. Synoptic Essays. Institution. AQA. Book. AQA Biology A Level Student Book. Essay plans for all past essay questions on the new A-Level Syllabus. Written by a recent A* student.
Created by: Mmmm. Created on: 18-11-14 11:58. AQA SYNOPTIC ESSAY PLAN Word Document 1.9 Mb. Biology. Biological molecules, organic chemistry and biochemistry. A2/A-level. AQA. Download. Save to favourites.
Hydrogen Bonds and their importance in living organisms. •H-bonds determine shape of enzymes in tertiary structure- responsible for complementary structures. •Transpiration pull up xylem. Study with Quizlet and memorise flashcards containing terms like The importance of shapes fitting together in cells and organisms, How bacteria can affect ...
Unit 8, AQA biology has a massive synoptic essay question at the end of it, and i'm really struggling with them - I'm going to post a couple (of mediocre) essays that i've already done, and HOPEFULLY. More will post and we'll build up a nice load of essays to revise from. That is the plan!