Science lesson plan · 10th grade (Year 11 in England) · 45 minutes
Endocrine glands and the hormones they release
Human body and health
CCSS NGSS.HS-LS1-2CCSS NGSS.HS-LS1-3England: GCSE Combined Science: Homeostasis and response
Objective and success criteria
Students will: Endocrine glands and the hormones they release.
- I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
- I can explain each step and say why it works.
- I can check my answer and spot a mistake.
Before and after
Needs first: Nervous system, reflexes and hormones
Leads to: the next skill in this area.
Materials: Stopwatches, Body diagrams, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).
Warm-up · 5 min
- Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Nervous system, reflexes and hormones). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
- Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
- Compared with nerves, hormones usually act… (more slowly but for longer / faster and for a shorter time / exactly the same way / only in the brain) → more slowly but for longerPrompt: Blood travels more slowly than an electrical impulse.
- Coordination and control: which statement is true? (Hormones travel along nerves. / Reflex actions are controlled by conscious thought. / Insulin raises blood glucose. / Adrenaline (epinephrine) prepares the body for "fight or flight".) → Adrenaline (epinephrine) prepares the body for "fight or flight".Prompt: Nerves carry electrical impulses; hormones are chemicals.
- Why are reflexes useful? (They let us think carefully first / They are fast and automatic, protecting the body from harm / They are slow and careful / They only happen when we sleep) → They are fast and automatic, protecting the body from harmPrompt: The message does not have to go to the conscious brain.
Hook · 5 min
- Ask everyone to find their pulse, then jump for 30 seconds and find it again.
- Share the objective: Endocrine glands and the hormones they release. Read the success criteria together.
I do: model it · 10 min
- Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
- Example: Which gland releases testosterone?
- Step 1: The testes release testosterone.
- Step 2: So the answer is: testes
- Answer: testes
- Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.
We do: guided practice · 10 min
- Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
- Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
- Which gland releases ADH (anti-diuretic hormone)? (thyroid gland / pituitary gland / pancreas / testes) → pituitary glandPrompt: One gland in the brain controls many others.
- Does this describe the nervous system or the endocrine system: acts on one precise place? (nervous system / endocrine (hormonal) system) → nervous systemPrompt: Think about speed and how the message travels.
You do: independent practice · 10 min
- Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
- Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.
The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.
Exit ticket · 5 min
- Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
- Which hormone controls the body's basal metabolic rate? (thyroxine / insulin / testosterone / adrenaline) → thyroxinePrompt: It needs iodine to be made.
- Does this describe the nervous system or the endocrine system: very fast but short-lived effects? (nervous system / endocrine (hormonal) system) → nervous systemPrompt: Think about speed and how the message travels.
Watch out for
- Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
- Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"
Support and stretch
Support
- Review first: Nervous system, reflexes and hormones.
- Use concrete materials: stopwatches.
- Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
- Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.
Stretch
- Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
- Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.
Homework and more practice
Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-10.
Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder