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Reproduction and Variation Lesson 1 Sexual Reproduction
Reproduction and Variation Lesson 1 Sexual Reproduction
Reproduction and Variation Lesson 1 Sexual Reproduction
Reproduction is one of the seven life processes. There are many ways in which organisms reproduce.
One of these is sexual reproduction. Sexual reproduction is the fusing of two gametes (sex cells).
Humans use sexual reproduction to produce their young, to do this the two parents (male and
female) have different organs and reproductive systems to produce the two gametes.
Lesson 2 Fertilisation
When the sperm reach the egg, they try to get through the egg cell membrane. When one gets
through, the membrane of the egg cell changes so that others can’t get in. The tail of the sperm
breaks off outside the egg cell. The nuclei of the sperm and egg cell join together. This is fertilisation.
The fertilised egg cell is called a zygote.
The fertilised egg continues its journey down the oviduct to get the uterus. The egg cell divides as it
goes. Cell divisions increase the number of cells. It can take over a week to get to the uterus, and by
the time it arrives it will have divided lots of times and will have over 300 cells. Once it implants into
the uterus lining, it develops into an embryo.
In the earliest stages of development, a human baby is called an embryo. The embryo needs to get
nutrients and oxygen, and to get rid of waste. It can’t do this for itself until it is born, and so the
mother has to provide all the nutrition and oxygen and get rid of the embryo’s waste (like carbon
dioxide). This is done through the placenta.
28. Name five organs of the digestive system and state their function.
29. How are red blood cells adapted to carry oxygen?
30. What features of the small intestine make it good at getting digested food into the blood
stream?
31. Describe the gas exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide in your lungs.
32. Where is the egg cell fertilised?
33. What is a tissue?
34. Suggest how the mother gets rid of the embryo’s waste.
35. Label the following diagram of an embryo, including definitions with your labels.
The fluid that surrounds the embryo is called amniotic fluid, and one its main purposes is to protect
and cushion the developing embryo. After the first eight weeks of pregnancy, a human embryo is
then called a foetus. At this stage the foetus has all the main features you would expect to see in a
child. The foetus continues to develop and grow inside its mother’s uterus for a total of 40 weeks.
It is not just nutrients and oxygen that can cross the placenta from the mother, drugs (legal and
illegal) can cross the placenta as well. Therefore pregnant women have to be careful with the
medicines they take, as some can affect the embryo. Alcohol and chemicals from cigarettes can cross
the placenta and harm the developing embryo, which is why pregnant women are advised to avoid
alcohol and cigarettes during pregnancy.
This graph shows data for the UK.
Stage 1:
Contractions gradually dilate (open up) the cervix and push the baby down the birth canal.
This is the longest stage of labour and can last from 5 to 15 hours, sometimes as long as 36
hours.
The cervix needs to dilate to 10cm before the woman can
begin to push.
The “waters will break” which means the baby’s head breaks the amnion and the amniotic
fluid will come out.
Stage 2:
This is where the baby is pushed through the birth canal, caused by contractions from the
muscles of the uterus.
Stage 3:
This is where the placenta (sometimes called the after birth) is delivered.
40. How are the sperm and egg adapted for reproduction?
41. Where are the sperm and egg produced?
42. How does an embryo get the oxygen and nutrients it needs?
43. Why do pregnant women need to be careful with the medicines they take?
44. What is one of the effects of smoking on a foetus?
45. Describe the changes that happen during stage 1 of labour
46. Describe how the baby is born. Use the words contraction, uterus, push, cervix, vagina.
47. What happens after the baby is born?
The gestation period is how long an organism is pregnant for. In mammals, usually the higher the
body mass of the adult mammal, the longer the gestation period. However, not all organisms have
gestation periods, because the embryo does not develop inside the body, it develops outside the
body, for example, in an egg.
Puberty is when a child's body begins to develop and change as they become an adult. Girls
develop breasts and start their periods. Boys develop a deeper voice and facial hair will start to
appear. The average age for girls to begin puberty is 11, while for boys the average age is 12. But
it's different for everyone, it's completely normal for puberty to begin at any point from the ages
of 8 to 14. The process can take up to 4 years. These changes can be emotional and can bring
about mood swings. It is important to talk to someone you can trust if you are worried about
puberty.
Girls Boys
First signs - The first sign of puberty in girls is - The first sign of puberty in boys is usually
usually that their breasts begin to that their testicles get bigger and the scrotum
develop. begins to thin and redden
- It's normal for breast buds to - Pubic hair also starts to appear at the base
sometimes be very tender or for one of the penis
breast to start to develop several
months before the other one.
- Pubic hair also starts to grow, and
some girls may notice more hair on
their legs and arms.
Later - Girls' breasts continue to grow and - The penis and testicles grow and the
signs become fuller scrotum gradually becomes darker (read
- Around 2 years after beginning more about penis health)
puberty, girls usually have their first - Pubic hair becomes thicker and curlier
period - Underarm hair starts to grow
- Pubic hair becomes coarser and - Boys start to sweat more
curlier - Breasts can swell slightly temporarily – this
- Underarm hair begins to grow – is normal and not the same as "man-boobs"
some girls also have hair in other - Boys may have "wet dreams" (involuntary
parts of their body, such as their top ejaculations of semen as they sleep)
lip, and this is completely normal - Their voice "breaks" and gets permanently
- Girls start to sweat more deeper – for a while, a boy might find his
- Girls often get acne – a skin voice goes very deep one minute and very
condition that shows up as different high the next
types of spots, including whiteheads, - Boys often develop acne – a skin condition
blackheads and pus-filled spots that shows up as different types of spots,
called pustules including whiteheads, blackheads and pus-
- Girls have a white vaginal discharge filled spots called pustules
- Girls go through a growth spurt – - Boys go through a growth spurt and become
from the time their periods start, taller by an average of 7 to 8cms, or around 3
girls grow 5 to 7.5cm (2 to 3 inches) inches a year, and more muscular
annually over the next year or two,
then reach their adult height
- Most girls gain weight (which is
normal) as their body shape changes
– Girls develop more body fat along
their upper arms, thighs and upper
back; their hips grow rounder and
their waist gets narrower
After - Breasts becomes adult-like - Genitals look like an adult's and pubic hair
about - Pubic hair has spread to the inner has spread to the inner thighs
four years thigh - Facial hair begins to grow and boys may
- Genitals should now be fully start shaving
developed - Boys get taller at a slower rate and stop
- Girls stop growing taller growing completely at around 16 years of age
(but may continue to get more muscular)
- Most boys will have reached full adult
maturity by the age of 18
An important part of puberty for girls is the beginning of their monthly cycle. This is known as the
menstrual cycle. The menstrual cycle involves the preparation of the uterus lining so that it is able to
receive a fertilized egg. If an egg is fertilized, it can implant itself in the prepared uterus lining. If it is
not fertilized, the lining of the uterus breaks down and is lost from the body. This is called
menstruation or a period.
Pollination is the transfer of pollen from the male part of the plant to the female part of either the
same plant or a different one. When the pollen gets to the female parts, a pollen tube grows so that
fertilisation can take place.
62. Use the labels on the diagram to explain how pollination and fertilisation happen in plants.
Key words : pollen, tube, nuclei, fertilisation, stigma, ovary
Practical:
• Use the scalpels to carefully dissect the flower the way you were shown by your teacher.
• Identify as many parts of the flower as you can, but you must at least identify the anthers,
stigma and style.
• Cut into the style and see if you can find the ovules in the ovary.
Seed dispersal is how a plant spreads its seeds. Different plants do this in different ways – by air,
water or other organisms.
You are going to make a model of a seed from paper and investigate how long it takes to fall.
For your independent variable choose one of the following: the number of paper clips; the length of
the wings.
75. In your books write a method for investigating your independent variable. You must identify
the dependent variable and control variable as well.
76. Draw a suitable results table to record your results.
77. Draw a graph of your results.
78. Write a conclusion – explain how the the independent variable affected how long it took the
seed to drop.
79. Some people say that sexual reproduction must involve sex. They are wrong. Explain why.
Tigers and octopuses look very different. They are clearly different species. Lions and tigers
however are more similar, but both are still quite different. They are clearly both cats, but they
are different species of cat. If we got two tigers, they would both look different too, but they
would be the same species. A species is defined as a group of organisms that are similar enough
that they can reproduce with each other and produce fertile offspring. Fertile offspring are
organisms that can themselves go on to have offspring of their own. Lions and tigers can breed
with each other, but the offspring are infertile because they do not have functioning
reproductive systems.
Members of the same species are all similar but do show differences. Humans are a species, and
each of us looks different – eye colour, height and shoe size are all examples of the differences
between individuals. Even identical twins have different fingerprints! The scientific term for
these differences is “variation”.
Variation is group into two types: Continuous variation and discontinuous variation.
Continuous variation is for things like height, weight or hand span. They are characteristics that
change gradually over a range of values, and the value could fall anywhere within a range.
Continuous variation is usually caused by both inheritance and your environment.
A graph of continuous variation often has this classic shape known as a bell curve.
Discontinuous variation is for things like blood group, sex (male or female) or ability to roll your
tongue. These variations take one of only a limited number of possible values. Discontinuous
variation is usually only caused by inheritance.
82. Suggest why the peoples’ heights were grouped into categories instead of using each
individual’s actual height.
83. What causes continuous variation?
84. The same group of people above had their blood group recorded. Draw a bar graph of the
data table below.