AP Environmental Science
Topsham, ME 04086
2009-2010 School Year
Class Profile
There is one section of AP Environmental Science and the current enrollment is
12. The maximum allowable size is 20 students. The class meets four (4) 53minute class periods per week with two (2) 53-minute lab periods each week. All
six of these periods will be used for instruction, in class activities, and laboratory
investigations.
Course Prerequisites
The course requires that all students taking the course with have already had two
years of science, including Biology. Most students taking the course will have
three years of science, including Chemistry.
Course Overview
The AP Environmental Science Course is designed to be the equivalent of a onesemester introductory college course in environmental science as outlined in the
Course Description for AP Environmental Science as prepared by the College
Board. This includes an emphasis on “the scientific principles, concepts, and
methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural world,
to identify and analyze environmental problems, both natural and anthropogenic,
to evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, and to examine
alternative solutions for resolving and/or preventing them.” The AP exam is a
requirement of the course, any student who does not take the exam, must take a
course final exam and will have the course changed to “Academic Environmental
Science.” This course has a strong laboratory and classroom component that
will help to bolster material for the students.
All students enrolled in the course will have summer assignments that need to be
completed prior to the start of school. The must read a section in their text on
Learning Skills and Chapter 1 Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and
Sustainability. They will also gather articles for their APES in the News
Scrapbook projects due at the end of the quarter. Students are required to
maintain an organized notebook, complete textbook and supplemental readings,
complete all laboratory and classroom assignments, and unit exams. All exams
follow the format of the AP exam (60 multiple choice questions, 2 free response
questions) and will cover multiple chapters. The direct instruction will be in the
form of Keynote presentations and demonstrations. The exploratory activities will
take place in the lab, on campus, and at a nearby nature preserve. All students
are required to complete an additional final project that has them design a
sustainable city and market it to the class.
Textbooks and Other Reference Material
1. Textbook: Living in the Environment, 15th Edition, G. Tyler Miller, Jr
2. Field & Laboratory Exercises in Environmental Science, 7 th Edition, Enger &
Smith
3. Video: Cane Toads
4. DVD: Planet Earth
5. DVD: An Inconvenient Truth c. 2006 by Paramount Pictures.
6. DVD: The Death of the Electric Car
Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Guests and Field Trips
The students in this course have a remarkable resource in close proximity to the
school in the Cathance Resource Education Alliance (CREA) Preserve and
Ecology Center. The students will visit the preserve each Thursday during
September and October to conduct field experiments and meet with experts.
The class will also visit the Brunswick WWTF and drinking water facility during
the fall term. They will also visit a single sort recycling facility and incineration
facility in Portland.
The class will also welcome experts to discuss the topics of forestry, soils,
alternative fuels, and aquatic invertebrates.
Course Planner
Unit 1. Introduction to Environmental Science (Weeks 1-2)
Readings

 Chapter 1: Introduction: Our Changing Environment (p6-26)
 Supplement 5: Overview of U.S. Environmental History (pS16-S24)
 Collapse Lecture: Easter Island
Activities

 APES in the News Scrapbook Activity

 On-line activity: environmental footprint (www.myfootprint.org),
 tumbleweed houses (www.tumbleweedhouses.com)
 Pizza Box Solar Oven
Video

 Planet Earth
Unit 2. Ecology and Diversity (Weeks 3-7)
Readings

 Chapter 2: Science, Systems, Matter, and Energy (p28-49)
 Chapter 3: Ecosystems: What Are They and How Do They Work?
(p50-81)

 Chapter 4: Evolution and Biodiversity (p82-99)
 Chapter 5: Climate and Terrestrial Biodiversity (p100-125)

 Chapter 6: Aquatic Diversity (p126-142)
Activities
 Rice and Nutrient Lab
 Shannon Diversity Index w/ Grass and Sticky Cards
 Biome Mini Presentation
 Ecocolumn Lab Write-up
 Community Structure
 Stream Quality Assessment
Unit 3. Population Ecology and the Human Population (Weeks 7-9)
Readings

 Chapter 7: Community Ecology (p143-160)
 Chapter 8: Population Ecology (p161-170)

 Chapter 9: Applying Population Ecology: The Human Population and It’s
Impacts (p171-190)
 Supplemental 12: Wolf and Moose Interactions on Isle Royale (S46)

 Killer Whale Predation on Sea Otters Linking Oceanic and Nearshore
Ecosystems, Estes et.al. Science Magazine 1998.
Activities
 Isle Royale Simulation
 Cemetary Data and Population
 Internet Population Assignment (US Reference Bureau)
 Fish Banks Online Simulation
Video
 Shifting Baselines (Overfishing)
 Cane Toads (Invasives)
Unit 4. Forestry and Nutrient Cycling (Weeks 9-10)
Readings

 Human Domination of Earth’s Ecosystems, Vitousek et.al., Science
Magazine 1997

 Supplemental 9: Deforestation and Nutrient Cycling in an Experimental
Forest (S36-37)
 Supplemental 15: Reducing the Harmful Effects of Insects and Pathogens
on Forests (S49-50)
Activities
 Point Quarter Sampling
 Primary Productivity
 Ecodome Project
 Dendrochronology
 Biogeochemical Cycleactivity
 Succession Activity
Unit 5. Energy Resources and Consumption (Weeks 11-14)
Readings

 Chapter 16: Nonrenewable Energy (p355-383)

 Chapter 17: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (p384-417)

 Supplemental 20: Brief History of the Age of Oil (S55)
 Supplemental 21: Maps of Nonrenewable and Renewable Energy
Resources (S56-64)
 An Energy Primer for the APES Student, AP Central
Activities
 Energy Audit
 Carbon Diet Activity
 Showcase Your Energy Advertisement Activity
 Nuclear Power Activity
 Strontium Half-Life Worksheet
 Alternative Fuels Presentation
Video

 Wind Video “Mr. W.”
Unit 6. Agriculture and Soils (Weeks 15-18)
Readings

 Chapter 13: Food, Soil Conservation, and Pest Management (p270-304)

 Chapter 15: Geology and Nonrenewable Mineral Resources (p335-354)

 Supplemental 14: Shade-Grown Coffee and Tropical Forests (S48)
 Supplemental 21: Maps of Nonrenewable and Renewable Energy
Resources (S56-64)
 An Energy Primer for the APES Student, AP Central
Activities
 Salinization Lab
 Soil Lab/Soil Management
 Genetically Modified Foods
Unit 7. Water Resources and Water Pollution (Weeks 18-20)
Readings

 Chapter 14 Water (p305-334)
 Chapter 21 Water Pollution (p493-518)
 Supplemental 18: Using Isotope Hydrology to Explain Aquifers (S53)
Activities
 Water Audit Lab
 Water Treatment Plant Lab/Drinking Water Facility
 Serial Dilution Toxicity with Brine Shrimp
 Water Pollution with DO and BOD (Engel/Smith)
 Biodegradable Material and their Effects on Dissolved Oxygen
Unit 8. The Atmosphere and Air Pollution (Weeks 21-23)
Readings

 Chapter 18 Environmental Hazards and Human Health (p418-438)
 Chapter 19 Air Pollution (p439-463)

 Chapter 20 Climate Change and Ozone Depletion (p464-492)
 Supplemental 22: Estimating the Toxicity of a Chemical (S65)
Activities
 Acid Deposition Lab
 Acid Rain in the News Webquest
 Particulate Lab
Video
 Inconvenient Truth
 Six Degrees
Unit 9. Solid Waste and Recycling (Weeks 24-26)
Readings

 Chapter 22 Solid and Hazardous Waste (p519-547)
 Supplemental 19: The US General Mining Law of 1872 (S54)

 Supplemental 23: Dioxins (S68)
Activities
 Personal Solid Waste Inventory Lab
 Paper vs. Plastic (Energy & Waste)
 Visit Single Sort Recycling Facility and Incinerator

 Waste Scavenger Hunt
Video
 The Story of Stuff
Unit 10. Urban Land Use, Economics, and Sustainability (Weeks 27-30)
Readings

 Chapter 23 Sustainable Cities (p548-568)
 Chapter 24 Economics, Environment, and Sustainability (p569-591)

 Chapter 25 Politics, Environment, and Sustainability (p592-614)

 Chapter 26 Environmental Worldviews, Ethics, and Sustainability (p615626)
Activities
 Design a Green City
Video

 Radiant City