Three days left. Paper 2 covers respiration and growth, how the human body stays alive, and evolution. Every question opens with a real-world scenario, so you need to apply your knowledge, not just recall it. Here's the plan.
One focus per day, building to a timed run. Work it in order.
Ranked from analysed past papers. Start at the top: if you run out of time, you will have covered the most-tested ground.
Comparing the two types of respiration, including conditions, inputs, outputs and relative ATP yield, is core B4 content that appears across Breadth and Depth papers at both tiers.
The nervous system underpins B5 'staying alive' content and is tested through the reflex arc pathway and synapse function on nearly every sitting.
Insulin and glucagon control of blood glucose, and how this can go wrong in diabetes, is one of the most reliable sources of multi-mark questions in the B5 human body content.
Understanding hormones as chemical messengers, and how the endocrine system compares with the nervous system, underpins several other questions in B5.
Almost always tested using an unfamiliar example organism in B6. You need to apply Darwin's theory to the specific example given, not just define natural selection.
How DNA analysis has changed classification systems, plus biodiversity threats and conservation, are consistently tested in the Life on Earth content.
Kidney function and ADH's role in controlling water balance is tested at both Foundation and Higher tier, with more mechanistic detail expected at Higher.
The cell cycle and the difference between mitosis and meiosis, plus stem cell uses and ethics, are reliably tested, often alongside a 'should we...?' evaluation question.
PrepWise has a one-page Knowledge Organiser for every topic above. In your final 3 days, use them the same way each time: cover the page, try to recall everything from memory, uncover and check what you missed, then repeat that topic again tomorrow.
Rules specific to Paper 2. On this paper, structure earns as many marks as knowledge.
OCR B never asks bare recall questions. Read the context carefully first, identify which topic it's really testing, then apply what you know. This matters most on B5, where scenarios often involve a medical condition or a specific patient case.
If you're sitting a Depth paper, expect one asterisked extended-writing question marked against level descriptors. Write in continuous prose covering the process in a logical order, not bullet points, since examiner reports consistently flag bullet-point answers losing the top level.
Your answer must reference that organism's specific variation and advantage, in order: variation exists, it gives a survival or reproductive advantage, more individuals with that allele survive to reproduce. A generic definition alone loses marks.
Stem cell use is a common OCR B evaluation topic. Give a specific scientific reason for and against, then reach a justified conclusion. A one-sided opinion or a vague answer loses marks.
The errors examiners see most on this paper. Each one is an easy mark you already know how to keep.
Mixing up the products of aerobic and anaerobic respiration → Aerobic respiration needs oxygen and produces carbon dioxide and water, releasing far more ATP. Anaerobic respiration in humans produces lactic acid and does not need oxygen, but releases much less ATP. Keep the yield comparison in your answer, not just the equation.
Saying insulin 'makes' glucose or 'creates' glycogen → Insulin causes the liver to convert glucose into glycogen for storage, lowering blood glucose. It doesn't create the glucose itself. Be precise about what the hormone actually does.
Writing 'survival of the fittest' as the whole answer on natural selection → That phrase alone earns no marks. You need the full chain: variation exists, some variants have an advantage, those individuals are more likely to survive and reproduce, so the allele becomes more common over generations.
Confusing mitosis and meiosis → Mitosis produces two genetically identical cells for growth and repair. Meiosis produces four genetically different gametes with half the chromosome number. If the question mentions gametes or fertilisation, it's meiosis.
Reversing answers in a true/false table under time pressure → Slow down on true/false tables specifically. It's easy to tick the wrong column when working quickly, and this is flagged as a common, avoidable error in OCR B examiner reports.
The 60 minutes before you walk in. Review what you know and settle your nerves.
Reading this plan is not the same as being able to do it. Answer exam-style Biology questions in PrepWise, get them marked in seconds, and find the gaps while you still have time to fix them.
Open the Biology Knowledge Organisers, quiz every priority topic and walk in ready. Free during alpha.
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