Download South Warren High School Science Department 2011

South Warren High School Science Department 2011-2012 Biology Syllabus
Course description: The goal of this course is to develop scientifically literate students who are able to understand
the influence of science on technology and society and are able to use this knowledge to enhance critical thinking
skills and daily decision making. Students will investigate, through laboratory and class work, the cell as a building
block for life. Students will understand that it is the subtle variations that exist within these small building blocks
that account for both the likenesses and differences in form and function that create the diversity of life.
Students will also explore the role natural selection plays in the diversity of species and examine the variety of
factors that influence the survival of a species, leading to an understanding of interdependence. Below is an outline
for the course. In parenthesis are the approximate numbers of weeks within each unit.
Fall Semester
Biology and Scientific Method (2 weeks):
 Characteristics of life
 Laboratory skills, graphing and reports
Cellular Biology (4 weeks):
 Cell Theory
 Cell structure/organelles
 Cell differentiation
 Cell membrane and transport
 Properties of water and pH
 Microscopy
 Biological macromolecules
Cellular Respiration and Enzymes (3 weeks):
 Types of bonds and chemical reactions
 Enzymes as catalysts
 Factors affecting enzymes
 ATP/ADP
 Fermentation
 Mitochondrial structure
Photosynthesis (3 weeks):
 Electromagnetic Spectrum
 Pigments
 Factors affecting rates
 Chloroplast structure
 Plant structure, transport, and reproduction
Cellular/Nuclear Division (3 weeks):
 Cell Cycle and Mitosis
 Reasons for cell division
 Prokaryote vs. eukaryotes
 Plants vs. animals
Introduction to DNA (2 weeks):
 Discovery of DNA
 Structure of DNA and chromosomes
Midterm Cumulative Exam (1 week):
 Comprehensive Exam and Review
Spring Semester
RNA and Protein Synthesis (2.5 weeks):
 Structure and types of RNA
 Replication, transcription, & translation
 Amino acids and protein synthesis
Meiosis and Mutations (2 weeks):
 Oogenesis vs. Spermatogenesis
 Karyotypes and mutations
Heredity (3 weeks):
 Mendel’s Laws
 Genotypes and phenotypes
 Mono and dihybrid crosses
 Incomplete and co-dominance
 Pedigrees and probability
Biotechnology (1 week):
 Human Genome Project
 Stem Cell Research
 Cloning
 Topics of Current Interest
Biological Change (3 weeks):
 Binomial nomenclature
 Factors affecting biological change
 Evidence of change in species
 Disruptive, stabilizing, and directional
selection
 Catastrophism, gradualism, and punctuated
equilibrium
Interdependence of Organisms (2.5 weeks):
 Ecological levels of classification
 Trophic levels and availability of energy
 Food web, food chain, and pyramid analysis
 Biotic and abiotic factors in biomes
Kingdoms (2.5 weeks):
 Taxonomic levels of organization
 Dichotomous keys
 Requirements to be a species
 Major divisions of animals
 Animal cell and tissue types and functions
 Animal body systems and functions
 Criteria for fungi, plants, and animals
 Viruses, bacteria, and protists
Final Cumulative Exam (1.5 weeks):
 ACT Biology End of Course Assessment and
Review (10%) of final grade