Course Overview
AP Biology is a college level biology class and is designed to be the equivalent of a two semester college introductory biology course. AP Biology will cover three general areas
of study; molecules and cells, heredity and evolution, and organisms and populations.
The emphasis of this course will be on developing an understanding of concepts rather
than on memorizing terms and technical details. The general outline of the course
integrates the eight major themes of biology (Science as a Process, Evolution, Energy
Transfer, Continuity and Change, Relationship of Structure to Function, Regulation,
Interdependence in Nature, and Science Technology and Society) into the units taught.
Teaching Strategies
Class time is divided between lecture, discussion of reading assignments, laboratory
procedures, essay writing, and test taking. Students will spend out of class time on
reading assignments, essay writing, and class projects. Students are expected to be able to contribute to class discussions over the themes of biology based on reading
assignments and class lectures. Students will be required to complete one independent
reading assignment and written critique each of the first three quarters. Some out of class time will be required to complete laboratory experiments.
Laboratory Component – 25% of class time and 25% of grade
All twelve AP lab exercises are performed, either as detailed in the AP Laboratory
Manual or in a manner modified to fit the specific equipment and time constraints of this
particular course along with other exercises used to emphasize certain topics. Students
are required to complete a report for each lab activity in a lab composition book which will be provided by the school. They are also required to design several different activities (i.e., effects of environmental factors on enzyme activity and the effects of exercise on heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration). Within these activities they must design an experiment, test the variables, analyze and discuss data, and present their findings in a formal laboratory report. Many lab activities are performed using graphing calculators, CBL interfaces, and appropriate sensors. After completing the molecular biology lab activity, students perform an electrophoresis demonstration lab for the introductory level biology classes. Students in AP Biology spend a large amount of time collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data collected during lab experiments.
Student Evaluation
Approximate Grading Distribution:
o Out of class essays – 10%
o In class essays – 25%
o Multiple Choice tests – 25%
o Lab Reports and Notebooks – 25%
o Independent Reading Papers – 15%
Unless otherwise notified dates for out of class essays, tests, and independent
assignments will not change. If a student is absent or school is cancelled the due dates
will not change. If school is missed on the due date, all tests and assignment due dates
will be moved to the next day of class.
Texts
Campbell, Neil A.; Reece, Jane B., Biology, 5th Edition
Starr, Cecie; Taggart, Ralph, Biology: The Unity and Diversity of Life
College Board, Advanced placement biology laboratory manual
Supplies
Students will be provided with a Lab Notebook which will remain at school until they graduate unless a college requests to evaluate it. Many colleges require students to submit their Lab Notebook in order to receive credit for their Biology Lab component. Some schools will give credits for the lab in this manner even if the student did poorly on the AP Exam.
Students will also need the following supplies:
o A binder dedicated to AP Biology (1” binder or larger)
o Blue or black ink pens (preferable to pencils)
o Grading pens
o Highlighters
o The books listed in the next section (may be checked out from a public library)
Independent Reading Books
Wilson, Edward O., The Diversity of Life
Dawkins, Richard, The Selfish Gene
Preston, Richard, The Hot Zone
Supplemental Materials
Magazines: Biology Digest, Discover
DNA Science; David Micklos & Greg Freyer; Carolina Biological Supply Company (Publisher)
Princeton Review, Cracking the AP Biology Exam
Vernier, Biology with Calculators, David Masterman, Kelly Redding
First Nine Weeks
Unit I – Ecology
o The Biosphere
· Major aquatic and terrestrial biomes
· The relationship between ecology and evolution.
o Population Biology
· The effect of abiotic and biotic factors on populations
· The effect of predator pry relationships on populations
o Ecosystems
· Food webs and the interdependency of organisms within these feeding
relationships
· Geochemical cycles and the impact of these on populations.
· Disscussion: The relationship between the carbon cycle, human activities,
and global warming
o Labs
· AP Lab 11Animal Behavior and Habitat Selection
· AP Lab 12: Dissolved Oxygen and Primary Productivity; DO measured using a graphing calculator, CBL2, and DO Sensor
· Field Trip: Stream Ecology of Selected Local Streams – Two or three local streams are visited in a one day period. DO sensors, pH sensors, temperature sensors, and conductivity sensors are used along with a study of macroinvertebrates and stream ecology to judge the health of the stream. Students are required to discuss the effect of changes to the environment around each stream (farming, commercial and residential development, location of sewage treatment plants) on the organisms in each stream. They are also required to discuss the effect of these activities on environments downstream from the site tested. [THIS MAY BE DIFFICULT TO ORGANIZE BASED ON THIS UNIT BEING MOVED TO THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.]
o Project: Ecological Disasters
Unit II – Survey of the Domains
o Phylogenetic classification
· Discussion Classification Schemes – Domains and Kingdoms and how
classification changes with new discoveries
· Prokaryotic Domains: Bacteria and Archebacteria
· Eukaryotic Domain: Brief survey of Protists, Fungi, Plants, Animals
o Evolutionary Relationships
o Labs
· Gram Stains
· Antibacterial Products
· Do Protists Have Good Table Manners?
o Project: Phylogenetic Tree & Dichotomous Key
Unit III – Plant Form and Function
o Transport in Plants
· The role of leaf structure, xylem, phloem, and water potential in transport.
· The role of mycorrhizae on the ability of roots to absorb water.
o Plant Nutrition – nutritional requirements and the role of soil in nutrition
o Plant Reproduction and Life Cycles
· Reproduction in Mosses, Ferns, Gymnosperms, and Angiosperms. How the
structure of the reproductive structures in these organisms differ and how they
allow for reproduction.
· The advantages and disadvantages of different types of plant reproduction.
· The evolutionary significance of seeds and pollen.
· Discussion: CoEvolution of Flowering Plants and Animals which act as Pollinators
o Labs
· AP Lab 9: Transpiration – using graphing calculator, CBL2, and biology gas pressure sensor
· Examining Stem Structure & Stomates
o Plant Responses to Internal and External Signals
· Plant Hormones and their effects on plant growth, development, and reproduction
· Plant responses to environmental stimuli such as light, gravity, touch
Ø First Nine Weeks Independent Reading Project: Students read The Diversity of Life. They are required to write a summary of the book and apply the scientific information to a current topic in biology or society.
Second Nine Weeks (Some of Unit IV will be covered in the First Nine Weeks)
Unit IV – Animal Structure and Function
o Nutrition
· Food types and feeding mechanisms
· Types of digestion
o Circulation and Gas Exchange
· Evolution of circulatory systems from simple to the more complex and how
the type of circulation is related to environment and body temperature
regulation.
· Methods of gas exchange and the importance of countercurrent exchange in
some organisms.
o Regulation of the Internal Environment
· Regulation of body temperature in ectotherms and endotherms.
· Regulation of growth, development, and metabolism by hormones.
o Reproduction
· Asexual reproduction in animals
· Types of sexual reproduction in animals and the adaptive advantages and
disadvantages of each.
o Nervous Systems – Evolution of nervous systems from simple nerve nets to centralized nervous systems with complex brains.
o Labs
· AP Lab 10: Physiology of the Circulatory System
· Independent Activity: Design and perform an experiment to test the effects of
different activities on heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration. After
performing AP Lab 10, students decide on an activity that they think will
affect heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration. They work in groups of 3
with each taking turns performing the activity and recording data.
Unit V -- Mechanisms of Evolution
o Evolutionary Biology
o Evolution of Populations
· Discussion: The evolution of drug resistant bacteria and pesticide resistant
insects and the implication of this on society.
o Hardy Weinberg Equilibrium
o Natural Selection
o AP Lab 8: Population Genetics and Evolution
Unit VI – The Chemistry of Life
o Water
o Carbon and Macromolecules
o Enzymes and Metabolism
· Mechanism of enzyme activity (lowering of activation energy)
· Induced fit model of enzyme activity
· Controls of enzyme activity (cofactors, inhibitors, cooperativity)
o Labs:
· AP Lab 2 Enzyme Catalysis
· Inquiry Lab: The Effects of Environmental Factors on Enzyme Activity –
After performing the AP lab on enzyme catalysis, students work in groups
of 2 to test a particular environmental factor such as pH, temperature,
substrate concentration, or enzyme concentration on the rate of enzyme
activity. Each group is responsible for determining how to manipulate the
factor being tested and how to measure the rate of enzyme activity. They
also must state how they will keep other factors constant and what they
will use as a control. After performing the lab they must explain in the lab
report how the factor tested affects the induced fit model of enzyme
activity and why this has an affect on the rate of enzyme activity.
Unit VII – Cell Biology
o Cell Structure and Function
· Discussion: Compare and Contrast Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic cell
structure
· Cell Organelles: Structure and Function
· Structure of the Plasma Membrane and Transport Mechanisms – how the
structure of the plasma membrane allows for selective permeability and
how compound structure and characteristics (lipid or water solubility)
affect transport
· AP Lab 1: Diffusion and Osmosis
· Cell Communication
o The Cell Cycle
· Phases of Mitosis
· AP Lab 3A: Mitosis
Ø Second Nine Weeks Independent Reading Project: Students read The Selfish Gene. They are required to write a summary of the book and apply the scientific information to a current topic in biology or society.
Third Nine Weeks
Unit VIII – Energy Transformation
o Cellular Respiration
· The structure of a mitochondrion and how this structure allows for the
production of large amounts of ATP
· AP Lab 5: Cell Respiration – using graphing calculator, CBL2, and
biology gas pressure sensor
o Photosynthesis
· The structure of a chloroplast and how this allows for capturing light
energy and using it to produce carbohydrates
· AP Lab 4: Plant Pigments and Photosynthesis –using graphing calculator,
CBL2, and colorimeter
· Discussion: Similarities between mitochondrion, chloroplast, and
prokaryotic structure and the evidence for endosymbiotic evolution
Unit IX – Protein Synthesis & Biotechnology
o Protein Synthesis: From Genes to Proteins
· How the structures and properties of DNA, mRNA, tRNA, and ribosomes
direct the processes of transcription and translation
· The modifying of polypeptide chains into the quaternary structure of
proteins.
· How the structure of a protein determines its function
o Molecular Basis of Inheritance
· DNA technology and its uses in forensics, gene therapy, and development
of new plant crops
· Discussion: What are some ethical and safety questions raised by the use
of DNA technology.
· AP Lab 6B: Restriction Enzyme Cleavage of DNA and Electrophoresis
· Bacterial Plasmids and Transformation
· AP Lab 6A: Bacterial Transformation – Ampicillin Resistance and pGreen
· Lab: Student demonstrations of DNA restriction mapping and forensic
DNA mapping for introductory biology classes. The forensic mapping
activity is a kit from Carolina Biological Supply Company. Students
demonstrate the process of electrophoresis while explaining the concept of
restriction enzymes. They then explain how DNA mapping can be used in
the field of forensics.
Unit X – Meiosis & Genetics
o Basic Heredity
· Gregor Mendel’s experiments and the basic laws of heredity
· Meiosis, Law of Segregation and Law of Independent Assortment
· AP Lab 3B: Meiosis and Crossing Over
· DNA, Genes, Chromosomes, and Genetics
· Use of a pedigree chart to determine mode of inheritance.
· Construction of a pedigree chart from phenotypic information
o Lab 7 (Alternate) Genetics of Organisms: Wisconsin Fast Plants – Life Cycle and Reproduction of Flowering Plants and Genetics of two types of traits. I use WFP that are dihybrid for two simple dominant/recessive traits. The students are responsible for planting, care, pollinating, and harvesting seeds. They are required to keep a daily log of the growth and development of the plants and what was done each day.
Seeds are germinated after being harvested and students can count the number
of each plant that possesses a particular combination of traits. These numbers
are then used to perform a Chi square statistical analysis.
Ø Third Nine Weeks Independent Reading Project: Students read The Hot Zone. They are required to write a summary of the book and apply the scientific information to a current topic in biology or society.
Fourth Nine Weeks
o Review for AP Exam
Ø Fourth Nine Weeks Independent Reading Project: Students read two articles from a
scientific magazine such as Biology Digest (they do not have access to the summary portion of the magazine, only the feature article) or Discover. They are required to write a summary of the article and apply the scientific information to a current topic in biology or society.
