Year 8

Cells
Key idea: inside cells
Recap
• Living vs. non-living
• Building blocks of life

Quizizz
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 01
Inside Cells
Key idea: what is inside cells &
different types of cells
 Learning Goals

Identify the main parts of a cell (organelles) and describe

Identify their functions

Compare the structure of animal & plant cells

Compare
Cells
So far we have been treating cells as simple units

But every cell is like a complicated machine, filled

with countless moving parts that enable the cell to
carry out its function
Organelles
With powerful enough microscopes, we can look inside
cells and find are lots of small structures with different
shapes and sizes.

Just like the organs in the human body, these structures all
play different roles in keeping the cell alive.

For this reason, they are called organelles, which means

little organs.
 Plant cells
What do you notice about the plant cells? What can you observe?
Plant Cells
Plant cells contain a range of
organelles and structures that help
them function.

The number of organelles varies

from one cell to another.

Some of the other organelles found

in a plant cell are shown in the
diagram.
 Plant Cell Organelles
Activity: While you watch the video, label the organelles of your plant cell
Plant Cell Labelling - ANSWERS
 Functions of Organelles
In every cell there are 3 main organelles:
• Nucleus
• Cell membrane
• Cytoplasm

cell membrane

cytoplasm

nucleus
animal cell plant cell
3 Main organelles
 Nucleus

The nucleus is the brain or control centre of a

cell

It controls all the important processes needed to

keep the cell alive

It holds all the important information (stored as

DNA) which helps the cell to reproduce and
make more cells just like it.
 Cytoplasm

● The cytoplasm is a jelly like substance that

fills the entire inside area of a cell

● All organelles live in this jelly like substance

besides the nucleus

● The cytoplasm helps the cell to metabolise or

break down important chemicals to keep the
cell alive.
 Cell Membrane
● All cells are contained in a something called a
cell membrane.

● It is semi permeable which means it controls

what goes into and out of the cell.

● The cell membrane acts as a boundary that keeps

a cell separate from its environment.

● It acts as a kind of gatekeeper letting things into

and out of the cell and not letting other things
into the cell.
Other key
organelles
 Cell Wall

● The cell wall is like an exoskeleton – it supports

& protects the plant cell

● Made up of fibrous material called cellulose

 Vacuole

● Acts as a storage contain

● Stores fluids, nutrients and wastes

 Mitochondria

● Known as the ‘power house’ of the cell

● It creates energy packets for the cell by

converting sugar into usable energy
 Chloroplasts

● Give the plants their green pigment

● Collects sunlight to convert water and carbon

dioxide into sugar (the plant’s food)

● This process is known as photosynthesis

 Ribosomes

● Their function involves making proteins

● They are quite small and found in the cytoplasm

of the cell
 Activity
1. Complete Plant cell structure worksheet

2. Cell origami
• Follow the instructions
• Half of the class to make a plant cell, other half to make an animal cell (we will use this
for our next activity)

Extension:
Complete the following in your Stile X books:
• Lesson: Parts of a cell (pg. 16-17)
 02
Plant vs. Animal
cells
Key idea: compare the organelles of
plant and animal cells
 Review
On Stile, complete 3.1 Check-in: Parts of a Cell
 Comparing plant and animal cells
We know that all living things are made up of one or more cells. But did you
know that we use the differences between cells to classify living things into
kingdoms?

There are six kingdoms: animals, plants, fungi, bacteria, archaea and protists.

Differences in cell structure can be used to place an organism into one of the
kingdoms. For example, bacteria and archaea are single-celled (unicellular)
organisms that do not have nuclei.
 Plant vs. Animal cells
Using your cell origami models and the image below, compare and contrast plant
and animal cells.

What are the differences? What are the similarities?

In pairs, complete a Venn Diagram outlining the similarities and differences.

Animal cell
Plant vs. Animal cells
When comparing plant and animal cells, we
notice differences in the organelles

● Plant and animal cells mostly contain the

small organelles

● However, cell wall and chloroplasts are

exclusive to plant cells

● Plant cells also have a much larger vacuole

compared to animal cells They also have
larger vacuoles
Animal cell
Activity

In the notes section of your Stile X

books, explain why a cell wall,
chloroplasts and large vacuoles are
only found in plant cells
 ANSWER
Question: Explain why a cell wall, chloroplasts and large vacuoles
are only found in plant cells

A cell wall acts like an exoskeleton of a cell and provides protections

and support. Animal cells do not contain a cell wall as animal use
bones (skeleton) to provide support for the organism.

Chloroplasts are responsible for using sunlight to convert water and

carbon dioxide into sugar for the plant’s fuel. However, animals obtain
their fuel from other plants and animals.

Plant cells are known to have larger vacuoles than that of animal cells
as they need to store food and water. This is because the plant don't
possess the ability to move freely like that of animals. Thus, they
possess large vacuoles as a reservoir in unfavourable conditions.
 Stile X books
Complete the following lessons:

1. Lesson: Parts of a cell (pg. 16-17)

2. Lesson: Animal vs. plant cells (pg. 18-19)

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