Tonight's Reading

Chapters 34-38 are the Ecology chapters.  I know you are very familiar with most of this material, but I feel quite certain there are a few new concepts (particularly in the Population Ecology chapter) that you may have never heard before.  Over the next week, we will be addressing these concepts, conducting a few labs, and reviewing old material. 

Highly recommended for review:  The Biology AP app, the Barron's book, the exam apps.  Also, the Biology Place website.  (The link is in a previous post, but I can't remember the exact date of the post.  Scroll down and look.)

Test Tomorrow

Yes, the dreaded plant test is tomorrow.  Study your graphic organizers, skim over the chapters, and don't forget the diagrams.  The test covers chapters 31-33.  No essay.

In case you missed today (and will miss tomorrow)

We created a table that includes the levels of organization ( ecosystem, community, population, etc...all the way down to atoms) and six of the eight AP Biology themes.  In case you've forgotten what those are, they are on a red sheet of paper that I gave you back in August. (The course break-down is on the other side of the handout.)  Now---what we are doing is coming up with examples of how that theme relates to each level of organization.  Today, we came up with an example of evolution at each level.  (That's as far as we've gotten.) The goal is tackle one theme per day until we get the entire table filled in.  We can always go back and add examples as we remember/think of new ones.  This is a GREAT way to make you think outside the box and relate those AP Bio themes to things you may or may not even think they apply to.  I was quite impressed with the examples that were offered up today in class.  This is the kind of thinking that will be expected of you on the AP exam free response section--seeing the big picture and not just memorization of detailed facts.

The levels of organization (ecosystem, community, population) introduced chapter 34 and the remainder of the chapter discusses the biomes.  We will summarize the biomes tomorrow in class.  Keep reading.  On the iPOD, go to the Biology AP app and listen to the lecture on Ecology and Behavior (at least the first part of it.)  The information is excellent.

Tonight's Reading

Make sure you are caught up on the plant chapters (31-33) and begin reading chapter 34.  Chapter 34 mainly discusses aquatic and terrestrial biomes (freshwater, marine; tundra, taiga, desert, etc...) so it is a topic you've heard before.  (But that doesn't mean you shouldn't read and study.)  We will work on chapter 34 for the next two days. 

Come prepared to ask questions Monday for the plant test on Tuesday.  The plant test (chapters 31-33) will be the last exam of the semester that goes in the gradebook.  We will take a couple of practice AP exams, but they will be for diagnostic purposes and not for a recorded grade.

Tonight's Reading

I'm pretty sure you know what to be reading (Chapter 32), but just in case you don't---Read chapter 32.  We will finish the content tomorrow and you should have time to complete the self quiz as well.  Thursday and Friday will be acceleration for the Ecology unit.  If you are going to be absent either/both of those days, the bad news is we will be moving along without you.:(  The good news is the material is pretty easy stuff to understand.  If you read chapter 34 and jot down some notes, you will be caught up.

Next week:  Monday--Review for chapters 31-33.  Tuesday--Exam over chapters 31-33.  Be advised:  The plant material seems easy on the surface, but it is very easy to confuse one tissue with another, etc... when the content is out of it's 'natural' order, i.e. your notes and diagrams.  Do not wait until Monday night to study!

Tonight's Reading/Assignments

Finish all plant sketches tonight if you have not completed them already.  We will continue chapter 33 tomorrow--discussing the plant hormones, tropisms, and photoperiodism.  PLEASE READ this chapter!  Also--it would be a great idea to complete the self-quiz at the end of chapter 31.  The test over chapters 31-33 will be Tuesday, April 19th due to so many people being out next Thursday/Friday or both.  As always--it is your responsibility to keep up with your reading and self-quizzes.  Do not wait until the last minute to study this material.  The plant test will be your last test grade of the nine weeks.

Tonight's Reading/Studying

Don't forget your test tomorrow.  As promised, it only covers what we went over today (and has been on the board since Monday.)  It only has 15 questions and they are pretty straight-forward.  I'll check in until around 10:30ish.

Tonight's Reading/Assignments

I hope everyone has checked their email this afternoon.  I sent a link (got it right the second time) to the Biology Place website.  It has several awesome tutorials and interactive lessons.  There is one on Plant Growth and Development that I highly recommend you check out ASAP.  See what you can do with a few of those lessons.  Choose topics we have already discussed. 

Also--you need to be working on the sketches I assigned in class today:  the root longitudinal section (p.631), the flower (p.634 Figure A), the monocot seed (corn, p. 636 Figure B), and the eudicot seed (bean, p.636 Figure B.)  All sketches will be due on Friday, including the leaf we did in class today and the root and stem cross sections we will draw tomorrow.  The sketches will be for a daily grade.

Reminder:  Test Thursday over the material listed on the board (it's still there.) 

Tonight's Reading

As discussed in class today, thoroughly read sections 31.1-31.5.  Skim the rest of the chapter, paying close attention to figures and diagrams.  We will finish chapter 31 tomorrow and begin reviewing for the test on Thursday.  Make sure you get the study guide list for the test.  It is still on the board and I will leave it up through Thursday.  Oh yeah---I forgot to include muscle contraction on the list, so please add.