OCR A A-level Biology

Hi, Im also starting OCR A Biology in September!
Has your school given you transition work? My school gave me loads and it was basically just a review of triple content with a few extra bits and loooooaaads of questions! As I did triple and got a 9 in was quite easy but there were some interesting research tasks so if your school didnt set any then maybe search up one from a random school and do that to prepare
Ive also been working through the CGP headstart book for Biology and making flashcards on any new topics so I can get into the rhythm of making them and finding what work for me before term starts. Im personally finding this very helpful and its got practice questions too but I haven’t done them yet as I want to pace the content and not burn myself out so Ill start questions once Ive learnt everything I think.
One of my friends who is also doing Biology has been using the Seneca a level prep Biology courses which hes found a few of and is finding them helpful. He did combined so is also looking through Cognito and Seneca and doing all the triple content so he's caught up and ready to start in September. The Seneca courses do look really good and I would recommend them if you like the platform, I personally dont so haven’t used them.
Sorry I cant give tips on the actual course, will watch the thread though because I’d like some too 🙂 best of luck with next year!

Hi,
I am in summer of year 11 and im trying to prepare for my alevels and was wondering if I could get tips on how to study a-level biology and how to achieve the highest grade possible.
Thank you.

hi, finished y13 this year with an A* in ocr a level bio. from the beginning of y12 i would make BRIEF summary notes from the textbook after each lesson and following along with the spec. i say brief because the textbooks have lots of unnecessary info - this is where the spec comes in handy,
although it is pretty vague. this helps to consolidate understanding of the content. then the most important part is converting these notes into anki flashcards. i swear by anki, as bio is so content heavy you just need to memorise loads of info and anki is the best way to do it. don’t worry about doing anything now, enjoy the rest of your summer, and don’t stress too much about year 12 - it may seem overwhelming at first but you get into the swing of things quickly and you learn to enjoy it.

What resources did u use like for example websites or youtubers

for textbooks i mainly used the oxford one but also the pearson one sometimes (just search a level ocr biology textbook, should come up)
physics and maths tutor for exam questions, they also have summary notes mindmaps etc which can be useful
the only youtuber i ever watched occasionally was biorach, very concise useful videos esp for processes like the immune response, krebs cycle etc

Hi,
I am in summer of year 11 and im trying to prepare for my alevels and was wondering if I could get tips on how to study a-level biology and how to achieve the highest grade possible.
Thank you.

hi, im going into year13 in september, and i recommend using anki for bio. Don't copy notes word for word, and don't be too generic either in ur note-taking. highlight key words and definitions and make sure you have them memorised as soon as you can. I know this is kind of weird to say but try to be creative with it. i mean, personally for me, i enjoy drawing out what i learn in biology because its easier for me to understand what's going on. for example, i make small comic books based off the topic im learning- especially if its a difficult topic. learning a topic visually helps A LOT. try to make it fun- for example, try writing raps and songs, or create a storyline with what you've learnt. As someone who takes Biology, chemistry AND physics alevels, this helps so so much. the more silly it is, the easier it is to remember lol.
also watch youtube videos for topics that you've learnt- I recommend Mr Murray and Miss Estruch. You can also watch freesciencelessons, but personally for me, I don't really freesciencelessons that much bcuz he airbrushes a lot of the content- if you want to understand the topic in depth, mr murray is the best one. after ur done going over a topic, use physicsandmaths to work thru questions on the topic you've just learnt. it doesn't necessarily need to be from ur exam board only- the more exposure you have from different exam boards including ur own, the better it is. (just make sure it's questions from the topic ur learning obvs). and yeah, that's pretty much all i have to say. alevel bio isn't as hard as people make it seem, the only thing that's hard about it is the content. but if ur good at memorisation, n u do a lot of practice questions, you'll be fine