AP BIOLOGY

WHAT I WANT FOR MY CHILD: To be motivated and challenged To learn, grow and be college ready To get an “A” in AP Biology To pass the AP Biology College Board exam Get college credit and save me $$ To have a good experience in AP Biology Overall, to have a good learning experience

AP BIOLOGY WHY TAKE AP? Earn College credit (up to 8 ) and AP credit in high school (boosts your GPA). Stand out in the college admission process by showing maturity, commitment and willingness to take rigorous courses. Gain skills that will help with college success. Broaden your intellectual horizon and be part of a group of students and educators committed to academic excellence

AP BIOLOGY Philosophical goals – prepare for college and beyond Students will learn to seek outside resources (e.g. internet based) to improve their understanding of concepts Students will acquire skills in independent study and self-discipline – In college, most prerequisite science course grading is exam-based – Students must learn to prepare without continuous monitoring by instructors Students will acquire skills in time management – Last-minute preparation will not be enough to succeed in rigorous courses.

AP BIOLOGY Specific Purpose Designed as a first-year general Biology college course that includes laboratory work, with a year-end cumulative AP exam Present in-depth college level study of biology with an enriching and rigorous laboratory experience Develop an awareness of the complexity and diversity of life through scientific inquiry Be able to apply biological knowledge and critical thinking to environmental and social concerns Understand that unifying themes that integrate the major topics of biology; evolution accounting for both unity and diversity of life

COURSE REDESIGN This course is structured around the four big ideas: Big Idea 1: The process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life. Big Idea 2: Biological systems utilize free energy and molecular building blocks to grow, to reproduce and to maintain dynamic homeostasis. Big Idea 3: Living systems store, retrieve, transmit and respond to information essential to life. Big Idea 4: Biological systems interact, and these systems and their interactions possess complex properties.

COURSE REDESIGN Educators are faced with the challenge of balancing breadth of content with depth of understanding given the speed at which scientific knowledge is expanding. Students will spend less time on factual recall and more time on essential concepts using more inquiry-based learning. Students will develop reasoning skills necessary to engage them in their science practices. See college Board AP Central ses/teachers_corner/2117.html?ep_ch=PR&ep_mi d= &ep_rid=

7 Science Practices 1.The student can use representations and models to communicate scientific phenomena and solve scientific problems 2.The student can use mathematics appropriately 3.The students can engage in scientific questioning to extend thinking or guide investigations within the context of the AP course. 4.The students can plan and implement data collection strategies appropriate to a particular scientific question. 5.The student can perform data analysis and evaluation of evidence. 6.The student can work with scientific explanations and theories. 7.The student is able to connect and relate knowledge across various scales, concepts, and representations in and across domains.

Redesigned EXAM May 11th a.m. Students are excused from their classes and may go home. 90 minutes multiple choice section 64 multiple choice questions and 6 grid-in response question (50% of exam) 90 minute free response (2 long and 6 short) Allowed to use a 4 function calculator with square root & supplied with a formula sheet AP Bio has become the most difficult exam to earn a 5 PASSING RATE for 2014 was 82%!! (global passing rate is 63% )

AP BIOLOGY Pre-requisites Successful completion of 1 st year Honors Biology Teacher recommendation Most recent reading level 4 or higher

AP BIOLOGY Study requirements Review of material and homework will take 5-10 hours per week 4 after-school review session beginning at end of end of March-April from 2:05-2:50 Required to stay after school to complete ongoing labs Winter and spring break assignments Tests comprise 50% of student’s grade. They may come in afterschool to review their test and correct their mistakes (2:00-2:45) Labs /quizzes/projects 20% HW 20% Classwork 10% Students need to work independently on their assignments

 Mock Exams and Review Students will take 1 mock exam during mock exam week. They will analyze their results using a diagnostic provided by College Board to determine areas of weakness. They should be using AP Biology Princeton review or AP Biology Kaplan review book on ongoing basis. Resources include Mastering Biology, Quest Online Learning and others listed on my website.

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Science Club & Environmental Club Mrs. HD and Dr. Glenn competitions: Science Bowl, Science Olympiad at FAU Science Day at the elementary campuses Butterfly Garden Biscayne Nature Center, snorkeling, Fairchild Community service: coastal & everglades clean-up street clean-up Book Club luncheon: sci-fi book School-wide recycling

Thank you for your support! WISH LIST 2-3 pack Paper towels Soap dispensers Color Copy paper Gloves Tissue boxes 2-L diet soda and mentos (for Science Day) Hand sanitizer Clorox wipes (or other brand) Grill lighters Stapler Individually wrapped candy-great incentive for review

Outdoor Classroom designed by the AP Environmental class by the students with help from the community and city. The location was chosen to be a focal point of the campus located between the butterfly garden and the wetlands. It is a green area once completed. All plants used are natives, a rain barrel will provide the water they need. In addition, the area will also have an herb garden maintained by the Honors Biology classes and Science Club. Large rock and benches donated by graduating class is used for seating. Recycled telephone poles provide the base structure for the shaded canvas area. It provides a “green” outdoor learning environment for the entire school. Our outdoor classroom will promote an awareness about the importance of saving and protecting our natural resources, empower students to find solutions to environmental issues, and to be active participants in the development of the possible solutions. New structure added with the help of an FPL grant: TOWER GARDEN ( me if you are interested in obtaining one for your home!!