Advanced Placement Biology is designed to be equivalent to a two semester college introductory biology course. The class is conducted at the college level and students are expected to work accordingly. AP Biology differs significantly from a traditional  high school biology course due to text content, depth of material covered, lab work, and time and effort required to achieve mastery in subject area. This course is designed to be taken by students after successful completion of high school biology (or biology honors) and high school chemistry (or chemistry honors).

Text: Biology, Campbell and Reese 7th ed.  Textbook provided by PCHS.

Labs: You will be required to complete twelve (12) labs set forth by The College Board Advanced Placement Program. You are also required to purchase the A.P. Biology Laboratory Manual, $18.00.  Due to the large amount of time required for laboratory set-up, it is essential that you are always present on lab days. Please be prepared to stay after school occasionally to finish long labs. You will be given advance notice for those days.

Study Guide: (Optional) Taylor, Martha R. Student Study Guide for Biology. 2001 6th ed. The Benjamin/Cummings Publishing Company, Inc.

The A.P. Examination: Exam Information  ____________, 2008 (Morning Session) at 7:30 AM.    The exam is three hours in length and is designed to measure a student's knowledge and understanding of modern biology.  These exams are administered during (or just prior to) "finals week" in the media center at Eau Gallie High School.  The exam consists of an 80-minute 100 item multiple choice section (60% of exam grade), a 10-minute reading period, and a 90-minute free-response section (40% of exam grade) consisting of four mandatory essay questions that encompass broader topics and concepts, one of which is based on one of the twelve labs. On a 5 point scale, a score of 3 or better is passing.

Course Policies:

	Students are expected to read required chapters in textbook prior to class discussion.
	No late work will be accepted, pay close attention to due dates (always posted online).
	If you are absent the day of a test, your make-up will be 100% essay.
	Pop-quizzes will be given periodically
	Discussion is required
	This class requires dedication and an immense amount of study time.  You will get out of this class only what you are willing to contribute!

Major Themes:

	Science as a Process
	Evolution
	Energy Transfer
	Continuity of Change
	Relationship of Structure and Function
	Regulation
	Interdependence in Nature
	Science, Technology, and Society

FIRST SEMESTER

 *Time frame is an approximation. Revisions may be made do to time fluctuations.

Ch. 1- 5   (3 ½ weeks)

	Introduction:  Themes in the Study of Life
	The Chemical Context of Life
	Water and the Fitness of the Environment
	Carbon and the Molecular Diversity of Life
	The Structure and Function of Macromolecules
	UNIT TEST #1: Ch. 1- 5.

Ch. 7 and 8   (2 weeks)

	A Tour of the Cell
	Membrane Structure and Function
	Laboratory 1:  Diffusion and Osmosis
	UNIT TEST #2:  Ch. 7-8 AND Laboratory 1.

Ch. 6, 9 and 10 (3½ weeks) 

	An Introduction to Metabolism
	Cellular Respiration: Harvesting Chemical Energy
	Photosynthesis
	Laboratory 2:  Enzymes
	Laboratory 4:  Plant Pigments and Photosynthesis
	Laboratory 5:  Cell Respiration
	UNIT TEST #3: Ch. 6,9 and 10 AND Laboratories 2, 4 and 5

Ch. 11-15  (3½ weeks)

	Cell Communication
	The Reproduction of Cells
	Meiosis and Sexual Life Cycles
	Mendel and the Gene Idea
	The Chromosomal Basis of Inheritance
	Laboratory 3:  Mitosis and Meiosis
	UNIT TEST #4:  Ch. 11-15 AND Laboratory 3

Ch. 16-21 (3 weeks)

	The Molecular Basis of Inheritance
	From Gene to Protein
	Microbial Models: The Genetics of Viruses and Bacteria
	Genome Organization and Expression in Eukaryotes
	DNA Technology
	The Genetic Basis of Development
	Laboratory 6:  Molecular Biology
	UNIT TEST # 5 Ch. 16-21 AND Laboratory 6

MIDTERM EXAM CH 1- 21 AND ALL LABORATORY EXERCISES

SECOND SEMESTER

Ch.  22-28,31 (4 weeks) 

	Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life
	The Evolution of Populations
	The Origin of Species
	Tracing Phylogeny: Macroevolution, the Fossil Record, and Systematics
	Early Earth and the Origin of Life
	Prokaryotes and the Origins of Metabolic Diversity
	The Origins of Eukaryotic Diversity (545-554)
	Fungi (616-619, 629-631)
	Laboratory 8:  Population Genetics and Evolution
	Laboratory 7:  Genetics of Organisms
	UNIT TEST #6 Ch. 22-28, 31, Laboratories 7 and 8

Ch.  29-30, 35-39 (4 weeks)

	Plant Diversity I: The Colonization of Land
	Plant Diversity II:  The Evolution of the Seed Plant
	Plant Structure and Growth
	Transport in Plants
	Plant Nutrition
	Plant Reproduction and Development
	Control Systems in Plants
	Laboratory 9:  Transpiration
	UNIT TEST #7: Ch. 29-30, 35-39, Laboratory 9

Ch. 32-34, 40-49 (4 weeks)

	Introduction to Animal Evolution
	Invertebrates
	Vertebrate Evolution and Diversity
	An Introduction to Animal Structure and Function
	Animal Nutrition
	Circulation and Gas Exchange
	The Body's Defenses
	Controlling the Internal Environment
	Chemical Signals in Animals
	Animal Reproduction
	Animal Development
	Nervous Systems
	Sensory and Motor Mechanisms
	Laboratory 10:  Physiology of the Circulatory System
	UNIT TEST #8: Ch. 32-34, 40-49 and Laboratory 10

Ch. 50-55  (2 - 3 weeks)

	An Introduction to Ecology and the Biosphere
	Behavioral Biology
	Population Ecology
	Community Ecology
	Ecosystems
	Conservation Biology
	Laboratory 11:  Animal Behavior

REVIEW

AP EXAMINATION: TBA                  

FINAL EXAM/LAB: UNIT TEST #9: Ch. 50 - 55 and Laboratory 11 & 12 (Turn in lab manual for grade).