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 Course Description:
The AP Biology course is designed to be the equivalent of a two-semester college introductory
biology course usually taken by biology majors during their first year, covering the eight major themes
in the official AP Biology curriculum. This course will provide the necessary foundation of knowledge
for any career in the biological field. Upon showing themselves qualified on the AP Exam, some
freshmen students may take upper division classes their first year in college.
 Purpose of AP Biology:
The purpose of AP Biology is to provide students with the conceptual framework, factual
knowledge, and analytical skills necessary to deal critically with the rapidly changing science of
biology. The range and depth of topics covered, the type of laboratory work done by students, and the
time and effort required of students differs significantly from the first year biology course in high
school. Students are required to work on their own and read all pertinent chapters. This AP Biology
course will provide students the recognition of evolution as the foundation of modern biology by using
lectures focusing on the relationships between embryology, symmetry, and the origin of the eukaryotic
cell throughout the course. All available resources will be used to provide the students the necessary
information to determine what is important in the chapters.
 Textbook:
Biology, 6th Ed. By Campbell and Reece. 2002. Benjamin Cummings Publishers.
 Topics Covered:
AP Biology should include those topics regularly covered in a college biology course for biology
or biology-related careers. The textbook used in AP Biology will be a college level textbook. Also the
labs done in the course will be those labs done by students in a freshmen level college class. Three
general areas will be covered in the AP Biology class:



Molecules and Cells
(25%)
Heredity and Evolution
(25%)
Organisms and Populations (50%)
 The Laboratory:
Laboratory experience must be included in all AP Biology courses. In most college classes, lab
credit makes up one-fourth of the total credit in a course. Descriptive and experimental laboratory
exercises should be assigned that will provide the maximum opportunity for students to learn a variety
of skills and those facts, principles, and concepts of general biology, such as the process of science;
evolution is the basis for modern Biology, linking science to society. There are several opportunities for
the class to have on-site labs at different biological locations. The minimum labs completed in AP
Biology are a set of 12 labs designed to provide a standard for the teacher and student. All equipment
needed for these labs was purchased in the fall of 2006. These labs are as followed from AP Biology
Lab Manual, with each student possess their own manual:
1. Diffusion and Osmosis
2. Enzyme Catalase
3. Mitosis and Meiosis
4. Plant Pigments and Photosynthesis
5. Cell Respiration
6. Molecular Biology
7. Genetics of Organisms
8. Population Genetics and Evolution
9. Transpiration
10. Physiology of the Circulatory System
11. Animal Behavior
12. Dissolved Oxygen and Aquatic Primary Productivity
 Cost of AP Biology:
The AP Biology class itself is a free offering to all students who have completed chemistry. The
AP Exam is expected to taken by all perspective students. If a student shows enough mastery in the
subject, two semesters worth of college credit can be awarded towards a student’s degree. Most, if not
all, freshmen level biology courses are four (4) hours worth of credit. At today’s cost, this one class,
which costs the students $82 may end up saving close to $800, which is the cost of two undergraduate
classes.
 Grading Scale:
All Rutherford County Board of Education grading policies will be followed in AP Biology.
Students will receive 5 points added to their six weeks average instead of the usually 3 points in a
honors class. The grade distribution will be the following:
Tests
Labs
Homework
50%
35%
15%
-- This scale would be a typical biology course grade scale
in college, except for no grade given for
homework
 Ideas Worth Pondering:
Through this course, I want to provide you with the best possible Biological class and provide
factual, real-world knowledge that you would not receive in a typical public educational setting. Several
ways to accomplish this goal are by guest speakers as mentioned above, projects, and book readings.
Each student must read one book each semester from the approved book list or with special instruction
from Mr. Dodd. Upon reading each book, the student must present an 8-10 page summary report about
the book. The books offered range from nonfiction to fiction books like Jurassic Park. All the books
deal with Biology in some sort of fashion.
This class will also hopefully be the start of another club at Riverdale. This club will raise
money for our class and also to help pay for certain trips we might take as a group throughout the year.
I have some ideas about fundraising and hopefully you do too! I am also excited about the idea of
joining with other AP courses at Riverdale and provided you the opportunity to learn from your peers in
a cross-curriculum environment.
 AP Biology Schedule:

Unit 1: Eight Themes of Biology Discussion

Selected Chapters
Science as Process, Foundation of Evolution for Biology, Energy Transfer, Continuity
and Change, Structure vs. Function, Regulation, Interdependence in nature, and Science,
Technology, and Society.


Discuss phylogenetic trees, symmetry, and types of coelom.
Unit 2: Ecology and Behavior in the Environment
Chapters 50, 52 – 55

Time: Two weeks

Topics: Different Biomes, populations, ecology (community, population, ecosystem),
soil.

Students will research the introduction of Kudzu to American and its impact.
Leaf Identification Project using local flora lab
AP Lab 12

Unit 3: Biological Molecules
Chapters 3-5, 8

Time: Two weeks

Topics: Review of basic chemistry, role of water in biology, different types of
macromolecules, proteins, and enzymes and their function.
AP Lab 2

Unit 4: Cells
Chapters 6, 7, 11, 12, 27 - 34

Time: Three Weeks

Topics: Comparison of Prokaryotes and Eukaryotes’ structures, different cell organelles,
cell wall of prokaryotes and plants, transport of materials into and out of a cell, bacteria,
and viruses.
AP Lab 1 and viewing prepared slides

Unit 5: DNA and Genetics
Chapters 16 – 20

Time: Four Weeks

Topics: DNA history, structure, function, replication and protein synthesis, different
mutations, and present day use of DNA (PCR, cloning, electrophoresis, etc.), Mendel’s
Laws of Genetics, genetic problems, sex linkage, and genetic disorders in society.
AP Lab 6 & 7
Hardy - Weinberg and Chi Square Analysis
Gene Mapping
Genetic Disorder Presentation Using PowerPoint

Unit 6: Respiration and Photosynthesis
Chapters 9 & 10

Time: Two weeks

Topics: Leaf anatomy, chloroplast structure and function, light-dependent and lightindependent reactions, contrast C3 and C4 cycles, mitochondria structure and function,
Glycolysis and Krebs’s Cycle, energy flow from the sun to cells, global warming due to
these processes, evolutionary importance of DNA in mitochondria and chloroplast.
AP Lab 4 & 5

Unit 7: Mitosis and Meiosis
Chapters 13 – 15

Time: Four weeks

Topics: Purpose of Mitosis and Meiosis, cell cycle, difference in these two processes in
plants and animals, crossing-over, chromosomal abnormalities, cancer
AP Lab 3
Viewing prepared slides of each stage

Unit 8: Evolution
Chapters 22 – 26

Time: Two weeks

Topic: History of evolution, Past and present evidences for evolution, modern synthesis,
natural selection, speciation, the importance of the fossil record and the connection to
phylogenetic trees, extinction past and present and possibly future,
AP Lab 8
Review Hardy –Weinberg
Dating Fossils lab

Unit 9: Plants
Chapters 21 – 40

Time: Two weeks

Topics: Plant structure, alternation of generations, angiosperm structure, reproduction,
and growth.
AP Lab 9

Unit 10: Animals
Chapters 21 – 40

Time: Two weeks

Topics: Structure and Function of animal cells, behavior to their environment,
AP Lab 11

Unit 11: Organ Systems
Chapters 40 – 51

Time: Two weeks

Topics: Different organ systems and their structure and function.
AP Lab 10