POWERED BY THE SUN · SOLAR BIO-DOME ALERT: Several growth chambers are producing less oxygen and little stored starch. The hardware is online, so the failure may be in the biological inputs. Trace the energy system from sunlight into the chloroplast, test the greenhouse controls and work out which change is limiting the output.
ACTIVE OBJECTIVEPOWERED BY THE SUN · SOLAR BIO-DOME ALERT: Several growth chambers are producing less oxygen and little stored starch. The hardware is online, so the failure may be in the biological inputs. Trace the energy system from sunlight into the chloroplast, test the greenhouse controls and work out which change is limiting the output.
WORLDSYSTEMS LAB
SEQUENCE01 / 08
REWARDGAME BREAK
BEFORE YOU START
Get set for this mission.
You can complete the essential lesson on this page. You do not need to print anything.
YOU NEED
Required: a device with this page open.
Optional: headphones for video or read-aloud.
Optional: pen + paper for rough working if that helps you think.
HOW TO DO IT
Read or listen to the Briefing + Learn.
Do the interactive mission.
Use the reading and maths/data evidence.
Make your decision and add the Project HQ step.
Play the weekly game if you want, then complete Check-in.
WORK YOUR WAY
Short bursts are fine. Use Learning Tools for easier reading, read-aloud, less on screen, stronger contrast, no-rush and quieter-screen options.
If a question feels hard, go back to the worked teaching, use the hint/feedback, and try one step at a time.
SCIENCE SAFETY: The science investigations in this Senior mission are designed as virtual/screen-based activities unless the page clearly says otherwise. Do not improvise mains electricity, heating or chemical experiments at home.
PROJECT NOTE: Your project can stay digital. Physical making is optional unless you choose that format.
MISSION BRIEFING
POWERED BY THE SUN · SOLAR BIO-DOME ALERT: Several growth chambers are producing less oxygen and little stored starch. The hardware is online, so the failure may be in the biological inputs. Trace the energy system from sunlight into the chloroplast, test the greenhouse controls and work out which change is limiting the output.
✓Identify the main inputs and products of photosynthesis and locate the process in chloroplasts containing chlorophyll.
✓Explain that light energy is transferred into chemical energy stored in glucose and that plants can use or store the products they make.
✓Distinguish photosynthesis from respiration and explain that plants carry out both processes.
✓Design a fair virtual comparison by changing one main variable while keeping other relevant conditions consistent.
✓Use data to explain how changing one input can alter outputs across a biological system.
MISSION MEDIA · Amoeba Sisters
Photosynthesis
Follow the inputs, process and products of photosynthesis before operating the Bio-Dome.
Captions are controlled inside the YouTube player. If the embed is unavailable, use the YouTube link.
LEARN
LIGHT → GLUCOSE → RESPIRATION → ENERGY
Photosynthesis is a system for capturing light energy. In a simplified model, CARBON DIOXIDE + WATER → GLUCOSE + OXYGEN, with light energy captured by chlorophyll in chloroplasts. The glucose stores chemical energy and can be used to build materials, stored, or broken down during RESPIRATION to release usable energy for life processes. Plants photosynthesise and respire. To investigate one factor fairly, identify the INDEPENDENT VARIABLE you change, the DEPENDENT VARIABLE you measure and the relevant CONTROLLED VARIABLES you keep consistent. Use INPUT → PROCESS → OUTPUT → EVIDENCE.
Photosynthesis is a system for capturing light energy. In a simplified model, CARBON DIOXIDE + WATER → GLUCOSE + OXYGEN, with light energy captured by chlorophyll in chloroplasts. The glucose stores chemical energy and can be used to build materials, stored, or broken down during RESPIRATION to release usable energy for life processes. Plants photosynthesise and respire. To investigate one factor fairly, identify the INDEPENDENT VARIABLE you change, the DEPENDENT VARIABLE you measure and the relevant CONTROLLED VARIABLES you keep consistent. Use INPUT → PROCESS → OUTPUT → EVIDENCE.
LEARNING BUILD
Refresh → Teach → Worked example → We do → You try
Build the idea before you enter the specialist lab. The point is to understand the reasoning, not just get through the buttons.
English / communication:Process explanation, cause/effect and evidence-based scientific reasoning.
Maths / data:Tables, controlled variables, change and graph interpretation.
Topic knowledge:Photosynthesis, chloroplasts/chlorophyll, respiration, inputs/outputs, fair testing and energy in living systems.
This week’s first target:Identify the main inputs and products of photosynthesis and locate the process in chloroplasts containing chlorophyll.
Quick evidence refresh: which source is a defensible starting point?
Choose a source that can directly support part of the investigation. More than one source may be useful, but start with evidence that does not outrun its support.
TEACH 1 · CORE MODEL
Photosynthesis is a system for capturing light energy. In a simplified model, CARBON DIOXIDE + WATER → GLUCOSE + OXYGEN, with light energy captured by chlorophyll in chloroplasts. The glucose stores chemical energy and can be used to build materials, stored, or broken down during RESPIRATION to release usable energy for life processes. Plants photosynthesise and respire. To investigate one factor fairly, identify the INDEPENDENT VARIABLE you change, the DEPENDENT VARIABLE you measure and the relevant CONTROLLED VARIABLES you keep consistent. Use INPUT → PROCESS → OUTPUT → EVIDENCE.
TEACH 2 · WHAT TO NOTICE
Identify the main inputs and products of photosynthesis and locate the process in chloroplasts containing chlorophyll.Explain that light energy is transferred into chemical energy stored in glucose and that plants can use or store the products they make.
TEACH 3 · CONNECT + TRANSFER
Distinguish photosynthesis from respiration and explain that plants carry out both processes. Design a fair virtual comparison by changing one main variable while keeping other relevant conditions consistent. Use data to explain how changing one input can alter outputs across a biological system.
WORKED EXAMPLE · EVIDENCE
BIO-DOME BASELINE
In the fictional chamber model, medium light with correct water and normal carbon dioxide produces a positive starch test and 10 oxygen units per minute.
Reasoning: Start with exactly what the source establishes. Connect it to the relevant concept, then stop before the claim becomes broader than the evidence. Now compare it with SOIL CLAIM: A fictional post says “plants get all their energy from soil”. Soil can supply water and mineral ions, but the claim confuses material inputs with the light-energy source captured during photosynthesis.
Why caution still matters:This item is weak evidence for a broad conclusion: its claim or implication reaches beyond what the available support can establish.
WORKED EXAMPLE · MATHS / DATA ROUTE
A light-response table records oxygen output of 4, 8, 12, 15 and 16 units per minute at 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100% light. Which conclusion best fits the data?
This week’s maths/data focus:Tables, controlled variables, change and graph interpretation.
Name the variable or relationship, keep the units visible, calculate or compare, then interpret the result as evidence about the system. A result can support an explanation without proving every possible cause.
Worked solution:Read the successive changes: +4, +4, +3, then +1 unit per minute. Output keeps rising, but each increase becomes smaller at the highest light levels.Answer check:Oxygen output rises, but the increases become smaller at the highest light levels.. Now return the result to the question and state what it means in context.
WE DO · GUIDED PRACTICE
Which source needs the most caution before it is used to support a broad conclusion?
Choose any source whose claim outruns its support.
YOU TRY · INDEPENDENT PRACTICE
For Powered by the Sun, explain one core idea in your own words. Use one named source or observation from this page, then add one sentence saying what that evidence does NOT prove.
Write at least 18 words. Name the evidence or data you are using and keep the claim inside what it can support.
MISCONCEPTION CHECK
SOIL CLAIM:A fictional post says “plants get all their energy from soil”. Soil can supply water and mineral ions, but the claim confuses material inputs with the light-energy source captured during photosynthesis.
This item is weak evidence for a broad conclusion: its claim or implication reaches beyond what the available support can establish.
HELP
Try: “The system part/variable ___ changes ___. The evidence is ___. This suggests ___. One limit is ___.”
STRETCH · OPTIONAL
Add a second source, data point or test. Explain whether it strengthens, weakens or qualifies your first conclusion.
SOLAR BIO-DOME · ENERGY CONTROL☀
POWERED BY THE SUN
Trace the energy. Find the missing input.
Rebuild photosynthesis, run the greenhouse controls, prove a fair test and connect stored glucose to respiration.
PROCESS REPAIR · PHOTOSYNTHESIS
Which word equation correctly represents photosynthesis?
VIRTUAL GREENHOUSE · CHAMBER 02
Adjust the inputs, predict what will happen, then run the chamber.
This is a teaching model. Run at least three scenarios. To prove a fair light test, compare two different light levels while water stays CORRECT and CO₂ stays NORMAL.
FAIR TEST AUDIT
You want to test whether light affects photosynthesis. Which design is strongest?
PHOTOSYNTHESIS ≠ RESPIRATION
Which statement is scientifically useful?
SYSTEM ZOOM-OUT
In a simple Sun → plant → herbivore → predator chain, where did the stored energy originally enter the system?
Complete the process repair, run three greenhouse scenarios including a two-level fair light comparison, then pass the fair-test, respiration and energy checks.
OPEN THE WEEK 2 EVIDENCE FILES
SOURCE 1
BIO-DOME BASELINE
In the fictional chamber model, medium light with correct water and normal carbon dioxide produces a positive starch test and 10 oxygen units per minute.
SOURCE 2
LOW LIGHT RUN
With water and carbon dioxide unchanged, low light produces 5 oxygen units per minute in the teaching model.
SOURCE 3
HIGH LIGHT RUN
With water and carbon dioxide unchanged, high light produces 15 oxygen units per minute. The model is simplified and should not be treated as a prediction for every real plant.
SOURCE 4
RESPIRATION FILE
Plants also carry out cellular respiration. Photosynthesis stores energy in glucose; respiration can release usable energy from glucose for cell processes.
SOURCE 5
SOIL CLAIM
A fictional post says “plants get all their energy from soil”. Soil can supply water and mineral ions, but the claim confuses material inputs with the light-energy source captured during photosynthesis.
INVESTIGATE + ENGLISH · EVIDENCE CASE
Energy enters the living system as light
Inside a leaf, chloroplasts contain chlorophyll that absorbs light. During photosynthesis, that captured energy is used in a process that forms glucose from carbon dioxide and water, while oxygen is produced. The glucose stores chemical energy. A plant may use sugars to build other materials, store them, or break them down during respiration to release usable energy. This is why a plant is not simply “making oxygen”: it is part of a larger energy system. If light, water or carbon dioxide becomes limiting, the outputs of the system can change. A fair investigation changes one main factor at a time so the evidence is easier to interpret.
MAKE THE CALL
Three fictional Bio-Dome chambers are failing. Use the input readings and outputs to identify which factor is most likely limiting each chamber, then explain what extra evidence you would collect before claiming a single cause in a real plant system.
BUILD YOUR CASE CONCLUSION1. Make the call. 2. Use at least two relevant pieces of evidence. 3. Explain one limitation or uncertainty. 4. Finish with what can responsibly be concluded.Strong structure: My judgement is… The strongest evidence is… However, we still do not know… Therefore…
CASE CONCLUSION: Write 170–230 words explaining the Solar Bio-Dome as an energy system. Include the photosynthesis word equation, the role of chloroplasts/chlorophyll, what happens to glucose, how respiration differs from photosynthesis, and one fair-test result from the greenhouse model. Finish by explaining why reducing one input can affect the wider system.
0/170 words minimum for this writing mission.
CLAIMEVIDENCELIMITATIONCONCLUSION
MATHS + DATA LAB
Check the numbers.
HOW TO SUCCEEDRead the situation first. Estimate what a sensible answer should look like, choose an efficient calculation, then use the feedback to check your reasoning.For data questions, explain what the number shows — and what it does not prove.
A light-response table records oxygen output of 4, 8, 12, 15 and 16 units per minute at 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100% light. Which conclusion best fits the data?
Estimate first, then choose the answer.
MISSION 05 · MATHS + DATA LAB
DATA TRAINING
FRACTIONS + PERCENT · YEAR 7 CORE
6 PROBLEMS
QUICK METHODFRACTIONS + PERCENT
Convert between fractions, decimals and percentages, then calculate from the whole.
GUIDED · Q01–Q03Use the quick method, then check the explanation.
Q01
What is 25% of 200?
25% of 200 = 0.25 × 200 = 50.
Q02
Which fraction equals 50%?
50% means 50 out of 100, which simplifies to 1/2.
Q03
0.25 as a percentage is…
Multiply a decimal by 100 to convert it to a percentage: 25%.
INDEPENDENT · Q04
Which is largest?
0.6 = 60%, which is larger than 55%, 50% and 45%.
INDEPENDENT · Q05
A $80 item is reduced by 25%. What is the discount?
25% is one quarter; one quarter of $80 is $20.
INDEPENDENT · Q06
After a 25% discount on $80, what is the new price?
$80 − $20 discount = $60.
OPTIONAL CHALLENGE · OPEN RESPONSE
Create a real-life problem that uses a percentage and solve it.
0 words · optional
KEEP YOUR SKILLS SHARP
YOUR WEEKLY TRAINING
Four short sessions to spread across your week. Each has six problems and a reasoning mission. Allow about 10–15 minutes per session, and take longer when you need it.
Use paper for working. Enter numbers only; units are shown beside each answer. These are fictional practice scenarios.
0 / 24 correctSESSION 1 · NUMBER CHECK0 / 6
LEARN THE METHOD
Use brackets first, then powers, multiplication/division, and addition/subtraction. For fractions, use a common denominator.
WORKED EXAMPLE
18 + 4 × 3 = 18 + 12 = 30. But (18 + 4) × 3 = 66.
Use a hint
Multiply first: 8 × 3 = 24; add 85 to get 109.
Use a hint
Brackets first: 93 × 3 = 279.
Check the method after trying
8² = 64; subtract 3.
Check the method after trying
One quarter is 82; multiply by 3.
Check the method after trying
1/2 = 2/4, so 2/4 + 1/4 = 3/4 = 0.75.
Check the method after trying
(683 − 3) ÷ 8 = 85.
Compare your reasoning after trying
Multiplication is done before addition unless brackets change the order. For example, 2 + 3 × 4 = 14, but (2 + 3) × 4 = 20.
Your example may differ. Check your calculations and whether you explained why.
SESSION 2 · RULE DECODER0 / 6
LEARN THE METHOD
A letter stands for a number. Substitute its value; multiplication comes before addition. To solve, undo operations in reverse order on both sides.
WORKED EXAMPLE
3x + 5 = 26. Subtract 5 on both sides: 3x = 21. Divide by 3: x = 7. Check: 3 × 7 + 5 = 26.
Use a hint
Subtract 3 from both sides.
Use a hint
Divide both sides by 3.
Check the method after trying
Substitute: 4 × 86 + 3 = 347.
Check the method after trying
Add 3 each time.
Check the method after trying
Subtract 3, then divide by 4.
Check the method after trying
Exactly 86 is not greater than 86, so use the otherwise rule.
Compare your reasoning after trying
For example, 2x + 3 = 13 and 3x − 2 = 13 both have x = 5. Substitution checks each solution.
Your example may differ. Check your calculations and whether you explained why.
SESSION 3 · DATA INVESTIGATOR0 / 6
LEARN THE METHOD
Mean = total ÷ count. Median is the middle ordered value (average the middle pair if needed). Mode is most frequent. Range = maximum − minimum.
WORKED EXAMPLE
For 2, 4, 4, 6, 9: mean = 25 ÷ 5 = 5; median = 4; mode = 4; range = 9 − 2 = 7.
Use a hint
Total 360 ÷ 4 = 90.
Use a hint
Ordered: 87, 89, 90, 91, 96; take the middle.
Check the method after trying
95 − 85 = 10.
Check the method after trying
88 occurs three times.
Check the method after trying
Average the middle two: (89 + 93) ÷ 2 = 91.
Check the method after trying
Old total = 348; new total = 455; divide by 5.
Compare your reasoning after trying
A large outlier raises the total and mean. A larger sample can still be biased if it only includes one kind of respondent; selection matters as well as size.
Your example may differ. Check your calculations and whether you explained why.
SESSION 4 · NUMBER CHECK0 / 6
LEARN THE METHOD
Use brackets first, then powers, multiplication/division, and addition/subtraction. For fractions, use a common denominator.
WORKED EXAMPLE
18 + 4 × 3 = 18 + 12 = 30. But (18 + 4) × 3 = 66.
Use a hint
Multiply first: 5 × 2 = 10; add 88 to get 98.
Use a hint
Brackets first: 93 × 2 = 186.
Check the method after trying
5² = 25; subtract 2.
Check the method after trying
One quarter is 85; multiply by 3.
Check the method after trying
1/2 = 2/4, so 2/4 + 1/4 = 3/4 = 0.75.
Check the method after trying
(442 − 2) ÷ 5 = 88.
Compare your reasoning after trying
Multiplication is done before addition unless brackets change the order. For example, 2 + 3 × 4 = 14, but (2 + 3) × 4 = 20.
Your example may differ. Check your calculations and whether you explained why.
Answers and reasoning save on this device when browser storage is available.
PROJECT HQ · TERM 3
PROJECT HQ · PROJECT FILE 02
RESEARCH — identify science knowledge needed.
Start something real. Build an idea, test it, improve it, and share it. Make your move.
MAP the inputs and outputs of your chosen Resilient System. Identify one dependency, then predict what could happen if that input or dependency is reduced, delayed or removed.
01BRIEF
02LEARN
03INVESTIGATE
05DECIDE
07PROJECT
08CHECK-IN