Duration of the online course: 12 hours and 23 minutes
New
Build biology confidence fast with a free online course covering cells, genetics, evolution and body systems—plus quizzes to prep for exams and lab success.
In this free course, learn about
How scientists study biology: nature of science, scientific method, CER arguments, theory vs law
Core lab skills: safety rules, light microscope parts/use, and how biology videos can improve studying
Water chemistry & biomolecules: cohesion/adhesion, carbs/lipids/proteins/nucleic acids, enzymes & inhibition
Gene control & variation: operons, epigenetics, mutations and their impacts on proteins
Evolutionary change: natural selection vs genetic drift, speciation, and evidence for evolution
Biodiversity: classification ranks, dichotomous keys, major groups (bacteria/archaea/viruses/protists/fungi/plants/animals)
Ecology: energy pyramids, food webs, species interactions, biogeochemical cycles, succession, biomagnification
Human biology: homeostasis/feedback, immunity/vaccines, and major body systems (heart, lungs, digestion, nerves, etc.)
About the free online course
Strengthen your understanding of Biology with a clear, engaging learning path designed for school-level success and long-term scientific literacy. This free online course helps you move beyond memorizing terms by building the habits and reasoning skills that biology requires: asking good questions, using evidence, and connecting ideas across scales, from molecules to ecosystems. Along the way, you will practice learning strategies that make study time more effective, especially when working with video-based lessons.
You will start by grounding your thinking in how science works, how to write solid explanations using evidence, and how to approach lab situations safely and responsibly. As you build confidence with core tools like the light microscope, you will begin to see living systems as organized layers, where structure and function are linked. Foundational chemistry concepts are made relevant through water’s unique properties, biomolecules, and enzymes, setting you up to understand how cells run and why reactions happen when they do.
From there, the course develops a coherent picture of cell biology, including prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, organelles, membranes, transport, and signaling. You will connect these ideas to energy transformations through ATP, cellular respiration, fermentation, and photosynthesis, reinforcing how organisms obtain and use energy in different environments. Modern genetics is treated as a story of information: DNA and RNA, replication, protein synthesis, regulation, mutations, and the biotech tools that scientists use to analyze and modify genes.
You will also sharpen problem-solving skills with inheritance patterns and genetic reasoning, then zoom out to the bigger narrative of evolution, natural selection, drift, and speciation. Ecology ties organismal interactions to energy flow and cycling of matter, helping you interpret food webs, population changes, and environmental impacts. Finally, you will survey major groups of life and explore human body systems with a focus on homeostasis, coordination, and feedback. Built-in practice questions throughout the course help you check understanding, correct misconceptions, and study with purpose.
Course content
Video class: Amoeba Sisters Biology Learning Playlist Introduction01m
Exercise: How do the Amoeba Sisters make their biology videos memorable?
Video class: Study Tips, Motivation,04m
Exercise: What is a recommended technique for studying effectively using video playlists?
Video class: Nature of Science09m
Exercise: Which step involves making a testable explanation in the scientific method?
Video class: CER (Claim, Evidence, Reasoning) in Biology07m
Exercise: What is a key reason red-eared slider turtles can survive in water during winter when the pond surface freezes?
Video class: Casual and Scientific Use of Theory and Law05m
Exercise: What is the difference between a scientific theory and a casual theory?
Video class: General Lab Safety05m
Exercise: What is one essential lab safety rule mentioned in the video?
Video class: Microscopes and How to Use a Light Microscope09m
Exercise: What is the primary purpose of using a light microscope in a classroom setting?
Video class: Characteristics of Life07m
Exercise: What is a common misconception about toy animals that expand in water?
Video class: Biological Levels in Biology: The World Tour05m
Exercise: What is the basic living unit in biological levels of organization?
Video class: Properties of Water06m
Exercise: Which property of water allows it to help fight gravity in plants, enabling it to travel from roots to leaves?
Video class: Biomolecules (Updated 2023)07m
Exercise: Which biomolecule has a monomer called monosaccharide?
Video class: Enzymes (Updated)05m
Exercise: What role do enzymes play in biochemical reactions?
Video class: Enzyme Examples, Cofactors/Coenzymes, Inhibitors, and Feedback Inhibition08m
Exercise: Which enzyme plays a crucial role in the process of breaking down proteins in the stomach?
Video class: Prokaryotic vs. Eukaryotic Cells (Updated)05m
Exercise: What is the key difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells?
Video class: Introduction to Cells: The Grand Cell Tour09m
Exercise: What is a key difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells?
Video class: Cell Organelles and Structures Review08m
Exercise: Which cellular structure is responsible for photosynthesis and is found in plant cells but not animal cells?
Video class: Endosymbiotic Theory05m
Exercise: What does the endosymbiotic theory explain?
Video class: Specialized Cells: Significance and Examples09m
Exercise: What is the function of a specialized cell?
Video class: How Cells Become Specialized [Featuring Stem Cells]06m
Exercise: What is the primary function of transcription factors in the process of cell differentiation?
Video class: Inside the Cell Membrane09m
Exercise: What happens to eggs submerged in vinegar for an osmosis experiment?
Video class: Diffusion07m
Video class: Osmosis and Water Potential (Updated)09m
Exercise: Why is the use of pure water in an IV dangerous for the human body?
Video class: Cell Transport07m
Video class: Sodium Potassium Pump07m
Video class: Intro to Cell Signaling08m
Exercise: What is the process called when a signal molecule binds to a receptor, activating a series of molecular changes that can amplify the original signal?
Video class: What is ATP?05m
Video class: Cellular Respiration (UPDATED)08m
Video class: Fermentation08m
Exercise: What is the primary purpose of fermentation for cells when oxygen is not available?
Video class: Photosynthesis (UPDATED)07m
Video class: DNA, Chromosomes, Genes, and Traits: An Intro to Heredity08m
Video class: DNA Replication (Updated)08m
Exercise: What is the primary function of the enzyme DNA polymerase in the process of DNA replication?
Video class: Gel Electrophoresis07m
Video class: PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction)07m
Video class: Genetic Engineering08m
Exercise: In the process of genetically engineering bacteria to produce human insulin, which component serves as the vehicle for introducing human genes into bacterial cells?
Video class: The Cell Cycle (and cancer) [Updated]09m
Video class: Mitosis: The Amazing Cell Process that Uses Division to Multiply! (Updated)08m
Video class: Meiosis (Updated)07m
Exercise: What is one significant difference between meiosis and mitosis?
Video class: Chromosome Numbers During Division: Demystified!05m
Video class: Mitosis vs. Meiosis: Side by Side Comparison06m
Video class: Chromosomes and Karyotypes07m
Exercise: What is a karyotype and in which phase of mitosis are the chromosomes typically visualized for it?
Video class: Alleles and Genes08m
Video class: Monohybrids and the Punnett Square Guinea Pigs06m
Video class: Dihybrid and Two-Trait Crosses08m
Exercise: In a dihybrid cross involving two traits, such as hair type and sink preference in cats, which principle explains the segregation and independent assortment of alleles during gamete formation?
Video class: Punnett Squares and Sex-Linked Traits (UPDATED)08m
Video class: Multiple Alleles (ABO Blood Types) and Punnett Squares07m
Video class: Incomplete Dominance, Codominance, Polygenic Traits, and Epistasis!07m
Exercise: When considering non-Mendelian inheritance, what type of dominance allows for both alleles to be fully expressed in the phenotype?
Video class: Pedigrees09m
Video class: Mega Genetics Review15m
Video class: DNA vs RNA (Updated)06m
Exercise: Which of the following statements is true about the differences between DNA and RNA?
Video class: Protein Synthesis (Updated)08m
Video class: How to Read a Codon Chart07m
Video class: Protein Structure and Folding07m
Video class: Gene Regulation and the Order of the Operon06m
Video class: Epigenetics08m
Video class: Mutations (Updated)07m
Exercise: Which type of mutation is likely to cause the most significant change in the resulting protein, and why?
Video class: Evolution09m
Video class: Natural Selection07m
Video class: Genetic Drift04m
Exercise: What is a key feature that distinguishes genetic drift from natural selection?
Video class: Speciation07m
Video class: Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium09m
Video class: Classification07m
Exercise: What classification level is more specific than a kingdom but less specific than an order?
Video class: Dichotomous Keys: Identification Achievement Unlocked06m
Video class: Asexual and Sexual Reproduction05m
Video class: Bacteria (Updated)07m
Exercise: Which statement is true about bacteria?
Video class: Archaea05m
Video class: Viruses (Updated)06m
Video class: Antibiotics, Antivirals, and Vaccines09m
Exercise: What is the primary role of vaccines in relation to the immune system?
Video class: Protists and Fungi08m
Video class: Plants: Diversity, Structure,09m
Video class: Plant Reproduction in Angiosperms08m
Exercise: What is double fertilization in angiosperms?
Video class: Animals: Tour of 9 Phyla12m
Video class: Autotrophs and Heterotrophs06m
Video class: Food Webs and Energy Pyramids: Bedrocks of Biodiversity05m
Exercise: In an energy pyramid, if the producers have 5,000 kilocalories of energy, approximately how much energy would be stored at the tertiary consumer level?
Video class: Ecological Relationships06m
Video class: Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles07m
Video class: Ecological Succession: Nature's Great Grit06m
Exercise: In ecological succession, what is the primary difference between primary and secondary succession?
Video class: Biomagnification and the Trouble with Toxins06m
Video class: Human Body Systems Overview (Updated 2024)09m
Video class: Homeostasis and Negative/Positive Feedback06m
Exercise: Which process is an example of negative feedback in the human body?
Video class: Immune System08m
Video class: Lymphatic System07m
Video class: Circulatory System and Pathway of Blood Through the Heart08m
Exercise: What is the function of the right side of the human heart?
Video class: Digestive System08m
Video class: Respiratory System07m
Video class: Muscle Tissues and Sliding Filament Model08m
Exercise: Which type of muscle tissue is responsible for voluntary movements and is typically associated with muscles like the biceps and triceps?
Video class: Excretory System and the Nephron09m
Video class: Endocrine System09m
Video class: Nervous System11m
Exercise: Which of the following statements correctly describes the primary function of glial cells in the nervous system?
Video class: Integumentary System09m
Video class: Skeletal System09m
Video class: Stroll Through the Playlist (a Biology Review)41m
Exercise: Which of the following statements is true regarding prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells?
This free course includes:
12 hours and 23 minutes of online video course
Digital certificate of course completion (Free)
Exercises to train your knowledge
100% free, from content to certificate
What biology topics are covered in the Biology Learning course?
The course covers cells, biomolecules, genetics, evolution, ecology, human body systems, microorganisms, plants, animals, and scientific inquiry.
What is the difference between mitosis and meiosis in biology?
Mitosis produces two genetically similar body cells, while meiosis produces four genetically varied sex cells with half the chromosome number.
Why are enzymes important in biochemical reactions?
Enzymes are biological catalysts that speed up reactions by lowering the activation energy needed for them to occur.
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