AP Biology
Summer Assignment
2013
AP Biology is about inquiry (a process aimed at augmenting knowledge and then using that knowledge to
resolve doubt, and/or solve a problem or answer a question.) Your summer project is intended to get you
thinking and acting in a way that promotes critical thinking and implementing those thoughts in practical
applications. It is meant to be hands-on and discovery-based.
Expectations:
1. Things to get:
a. This packet
b. Tomato Seeds from me – Heirloom Large Red Cherry (70 days) – Lycopersicon verduras (or equivalent # of days)
c. AP Biology Textbook (hard bound)
d. AP Biology Test Prep Book (soft bound)
e. College Lab Notebook - NCR (No Carbon Required) Type – purchase from a college/university bookstore
2. Access my website:
http://morescience.pbworks.com/w/page/55867238/FrontPage
This site will become an important resource for you
3. The first day of school come with: (see attached pages for more details on the following)
a. Flash cards on animal behavior – from chapter 51
b. Specific ideas of an animal behavior lab you’ll set up & have students perform on your first block day
c. Evidence of your Tomato Plant Project – pictures (printed on one or two pages) of how far along you are
If you need to reach me over break, best to email me at: lynncmore@gmail.com
Ms. More
Olympian High School
Biology/AP Biology Teacher
AP Biology Summer Project
L. More
Olympian High School
1. Plant Lab: (after you set up the lab it’s about 10 minutes/week time investment)
a. Research some basics about the plant (see attachment)
b. Design and begin a lab using tomato seeds that will run for 4 – 6 months
Your goal is to effectively grow 3 productive plants: 1 control plant & 2 experimental plants
c. Collect data as you go (in the form of photos and qualitative/quantitative descriptions)
2. Animal Behavior Lab:
a. Learn information about Animal Behavior (terminology flashcards) so you can apply it to your lab
b. Research some basics about an animal you want to use (see attachment)
c. Design a lab using an animal that:
1. You have or…will buy, find, borrow and one(s) you can bring to school
(ideas could include but are not limited to: worms, insects, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals)
2. You can have other students perform in class
i.
Come to school Day 1 with evidence about:
Plant Lab:
1. Research page
2. Hypothesis (If…tell what you are doing, then….what you predict will happen. Make it specific & measurable.)
3. Evidence of Data Collection: Visuals followed by Qualitative and Quantitative (for example…)
A. Germination to first planting:
First growth - White, fuzzy,
Day 2
3 to 5 mm long
7 of 8 have roots
Healthy Roots, Shoots, &
leaves…planting time – day 7
White root, Light green Shoots, Dark
green Leaves
roots = 22 to 31 mm
Shoots = 17 to 23 mm
Leaves = 4 to 10 mm
B. Plant and Start Experiment
Plant
Control Plant
Week later – evidence of
phototropism
Two weeks later – rapid growth,
most look very healthy
6 of 7 have shed their seed coat &
are displaying their two leaves.
Shoots = 24 to 36 mm
Leaves = 8 to 14 mm each
New growth to the middle of the
shoot. Older leaves are on the
outside. Now 2 to 5 leaves per plant
Leaves = 11 to 45 mm
6 look very healthy, 1 straggler
Organic Fertilizer
Synthetic Fertilizer
Visual
Qualitative
Quantitative
AP Biology Summer Project
L. More
Olympian High School
Animal Behavior Lab:
1. Research page
2. Terminology Flash Cards
3. Lab Design Ideas (animal other than a pill/sow bug)
The purpose of these activities is to apply “skills” while getting to content:
1. Review and apply the Scientific Method,
2. Review and apply proper experimental design,
3. Design and run a controlled experiment
4. Accurately collect and interpret data,
5. Identify trends in data,
6. Draw conclusions based on your experimental findings, and
7. Sustain the health and well being of two living organisms: a plant and an animal.
You will be graded on:
1. Experimental design
2. * Data collection –
Plant Lab: in the form of photos, qualitative and quantitiative descriptions – plant size, number of
leaves, mass of tomatoes produced per plant, color, growth patterns, leaf shape, etc.
Animal Behavior Lab: identification of the behavior(s), stimulus, response
3. Your interpretation of the data
4. The success of your plants as measured by productivity: the sum total of tomato mass produced by your plants.
Plant Lab: Start lab at least by Sunday, June 2, 2013
You will be given:
6 Heirloom seeds (60 days) – called Lycopersicon verduras
a starting tray with 3 wells.
Your goal is to effectively grow 3 productive plants: one control plant and two experimental plants.
Getting Started:
1. Learn about your plant through research (see attached form)
2. Begin germination of your seeds in between a moist paper towel. (Research germination recommendations).
Photograph a minimum of two times prior to planting in soil (labeling the seed and shoots – stems & roots).
3. When your seeds are ready, plant the germinated seeds in a soil of your choice in the starter wells
* Remember at this point they are no longer just seeds – be sure you are planting them, NOT burying them.
The control should have no fertilizer
Experimental #1 with “X” fertilizer
X,Y can represent a different brand, type, amount, or
Experimental #2 with “Y” fertilizer
frequency to which you apply the fertilizer (pick 1 & document)
4. When you believe your plants have “taken” to the wells and before they have out grown the wells,
photograph both the root system and shoot, then transplant them into other containers. (at the same time)
These seeds are 60 day seeds, meaning it will take that long to begin to bare viable flowers – that’s when the
“productivity” data collection BEGINS, so persevere, do not give up on your plants. You are expected to attend
to them a minimum of once a week throughout the duration of this lab (initially more for the start up of course).
From start to finish, it would be reasonable to plan on collecting data for 4 - 6 months. Photos = minimum of 2
photos during germination, prior to planting, followed by one picture a week (of each – control experimental 1
& 2) for the duration of the lab.
* NOTE: Not having plants is not an option. If it doesn’t work, try and try again.
AP Biology Summer Project
L. More
Olympian High School
Once school starts back up and your tomato plants begin to produce tomatoes, you are to bring them in to mass
them (then you can bring them back home to enjoy with your family). Note – photos should depict the tomatoes
intact, on the plant for that week – prior to picking.
2. Grow the plants in a controlled experiment
(In October you will be turning in a formal lab write up including the following:)
a. Title
b. Hypothesis (as an If…then statement – If being the specifics of what you’ll do, and the then telling
the expected results with some very concrete – measurable accounts of what you expect.)
d. Equipment (list in columns)
e. Procedure (detailing what to do during these three time frames so someone else could follow)
1. Germination
2. Initial planting
3. Replanting
f. Data (depicting what happens in each of the above mentioned time frames)
1. Photos (with dates) – a minimum of one a week
2. Qualitative descriptors
3. Quantitative descriptors
4. Graph of quantitative descriptor - plotting separate lines for each plant (on the same graph)
g. Questions – develop and answer one question for each step of Bloom’s Taxonomy skills
(Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation)
h. Conclusion: one paragraph for each of the five categories listed below
□ Experimental Design:
1. Controlled variable – the plant under “normal” conditions that you used to compare
(along with all the other conditions that you kept constant in the experiment)
2. Manipulated variable – fertilizer (either type, brand, amount, application frequency,…)
3. Responding variable – how you will measure the effectiveness of your experiment
□ Critical Thinking: Note trends apparent in your data. Be specific, using your data values.
Discuss if the trends you see match what you would expect based on your knowledge of
the subject.
□ Scientific Method: What were three possible sources of errors – and what effect might they
have on such an experiment? If you find data that does not seem to fit with expected trends,
be sure to discuss the potential discrepancy.
□ Making Connections: How can the information in this lab relate/apply to “Your” life?
□ Global Thinker - Step back and look for the implications on a bigger scale.
(Respond to at least one of the following.)
• How does this potentially impact society? Who would gain/ be disadvantaged?
• As a result of performing these labs, should students think or act differently? What
would that look like?
Prior Knowledge Refresher:
Scientific Method:
1. Identify a problem – in the form of a question
2. Do background research
3. Devise a hypothesis about how to solve the problem
4. Test your hypothesis by performing an experiment
5. Analyze your data and draw conclusions
6. Evaluate the effectiveness of your hypothesis
7. Communicate your results or “back to the drawing board!”
AP Biology Summer Project
L. More
Olympian High School
O LYMPIAN H IGH S CHOOL
Scientific Research Form
1925 Magdalena Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 91913
Phone: 619-656-2400 – Fax: 619-216-0650
Plant Research: (for Lycopersicon verduras – Heirloom Tomato Plant)
1. Classification:
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Lycopersicon
Species
verduras
2. Information/characteristics about this plant:
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
3. Other plants in its “family” of plants
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
4. Determine its requirements:
a. Nutritional needs – soil recommendations, nutrients, and water: ______________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
b. Space – appropriate planting spacing and depth : __________________________________________
c. Level of sunlight - __________________________________________________________________
d. Germination time - __________________________________________________________________
e. Days to bare fruit - ______________________
5. Mode of reproduction and any developmental stages the plant might go through (include a visual)
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
6. What pest might feed on this plant – Identify 3 should you watch for:
Name
AP Biology Summer Project
Visual
L. More
What should you do if it shows up?
Olympian High School
O LYMPIAN H IGH S CHOOL
Scientific Research Form
1925 Magdalena Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 91913
Phone: 619-656-2400 – Fax: 619-216-0650
Animal Research: (What animal are you choosing? ________________________)
The first week of school you will perform an AP Biology prescribed Animal Behavioral Lab. You will then be
expected to design and run an animal behavior lab of your own using an organism you can bring to school other
than Pill Bugs/Sow Bugs, since we are already using them. Choose responsibly – do not get a “pet” and then
decide you don’t want it anymore.
1. Classification:
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
2. Information/characteristics about this animal: (and visual)
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
3. Other animals in its “family” of animals
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________
4. Determine its requirements:
a. Space – habitat or physical make up of its home __________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
b. Its trophic level in the food web:
1. Is it an herbivore, carnivore, omnivore, detrivore? _____________________
2. Nutritional needs – what does it eat? ______________________________________________
3. What what do you need to protect it from? (What are its predators?) _____________________
________________________________________________________________________
c. Its Niche – the job it plays in its environment _____________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
5. Mode of reproduction and any developmental stages the animal might go through
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
AP Biology Summer Project
L. More
Olympian High School
AP Biology
Animal Behavior Inquiry
Name ______________________
Period ___ Date _____________
Design an Animal Behavior experiment that can be performed in about 20 minutes in class and is clear enough
that others can perform your lab using your procedure. Pick from at least three behaviors to study and document
1. Title: ________________________________
2. Purpose: (be specific, tell what you’re trying to accomplish by performing the lab)
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
3. Hypothesis: (If…then statement, be sure it’s measurable)
If ______________________________________________________________________________
Then ____________________________________________________________________________
4. Equipment/Materials:
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
5. Procedure: (be detailed enough so someone else can run your experiment – consider what data you will collect)
a. ___________________________________________________________________________
b. ___________________________________________________________________________
c. ___________________________________________________________________________
d. ___________________________________________________________________________
e. ___________________________________________________________________________
f. ___________________________________________________________________________
g. ___________________________________________________________________________
h. ___________________________________________________________________________
i. ___________________________________________________________________________
j. ___________________________________________________________________________
k. ___________________________________________________________________________
l. ___________________________________________________________________________
m. ___________________________________________________________________________
6. Data:
AP Biology Summer Project
L. More
Olympian High School
Behavior
Kinesis
Ethology
Taxis
Proximate causation
Pheromones
Ultimate causation
Innate Behavior
Fixed Action Pattern
Imprinting
Stimulus
Sensitive Period
Associative Learning
Altruism
Kin Selection
Classical Conditioning
Promiscuous
Operant Conditioning
Monogamous
Agonistic behavior
Polygyny
Polyandry
AP Biology Summer Project
L. More
Olympian High School