Download Frederick A - Frederick Douglass Academy High School

Frederick A. Douglass: Honors Environmental Science
Syllabus
School Calendar Year: 2010-2011
Instructor: Mr. Matt Iverson
Email: [email protected]
[email protected]
Phone: 773.534.6176/ 630.251.4591
Course Description:
The goal of the course is to provide students with the scientific principles,
concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural
world, to identify and analyze environmental problems both natural and human made, to
evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, to examine alternative
solutions for resolving and/or preventing them, and to develop and focus their own
political perspective. It is a rigorous course that stresses scientific principles and analysis
and includes laboratory/field work, enabling students to understand a more advanced
study of topics in environmental science.
Text: Living in the Environment by G. Tyler Miller Jr., 12th edition, 2002, Thomson
Brooks/Cole Publishers.
Other texts mat include: Environment: The Science Behind the Stories by Jay Withgott
and Scott Brennan, 3rd edition, 2008, Pearson Education, Inc.
Other Resources
In addition to the textbook, we will draw information from supplemental environmental
science textbooks, lab manuals, periodicals, readings/case studies, and the Internet.
Required Materials
Notebook for class notes
Separate notebook (small) for assignments
Scientific calculator
1-1/2" 3-ring binder
Pens and pencils ( make sure to have plenty of extras)
colored pens or pencils ( to make lab report drawings more appealing)
Mr. Iverson's Schedule and Room:
Room 126A: periods 1,3,8
Room425D: periods 4,6
Free periods: 2,5,7
(please make appt.)
Schedule: Daily from 7:30 am- 3:15pm
Contact Phone: (773) 534-6176
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
Classroom Expectations from the Teacher
You are expected to come to class everyday and on time.
I expect you to be prepared: have your text, notebook, pens and pencils.
I expect that you will show respect to me as I will to you. I expect that you will show
respect to your classmates and refrain from fighting or arguing. If there is a problem,
please come and see me.
Please allow other students to speak and try not interrupt: RESPECT
Leaving the classroom before the bell rings is not allowed.
I expect that you will try hard to keep up with all reading assignments, complete all
classwork and homework and study hard for tests and quizzes.
I expect you to spend a minimum of 2 hours per week at home doing work for this class,
whether reading ahead (what a great idea!) studying or assignments
Classroom Rules and Procedures
Tardies will be carefully recorded and can mean lower grades.
Attendance will be carefully recorded. You will not get a good grade if you are not
in class. (expect a call to your Mom if you're not in class)
Copying and plagiarism will not be accepted. All people involved will get zeroes. It is
very easy for
teachers to uncover this type of academic fraud.
Take responsibility for your own success in this course.
You will NOT be given a grade; you must earn it.
No food, drinks or gum will be allowed in class unless previously approved by the
teacher.
The Douglass High School and CPS Handbook of Policies and Procedures will be
adhered to.
Grading Policy
Grading is based on points earned and a percentage of the total. Points are earned
for everything
from homework to class participation to projects and lab write-ups. Answering a
question does not
give automatic points, but it is noted and counts towards participation.
93-100% ---- A
85-92% ------ B
77-84% ------ C
68-76% ------ D
IMPORTANT: You will be graded on all work received and class participation in
the following weighted format: Test and Quizzes 30 %
Classwork and homework 30%
Lab write -ups and projects 30% (some projects
worth more)
Class participation 10%
**Please Note: We will be actively studying for the Science portion of the ACT test.
Students are stongly encouraged to remain focused for this test as it is very
important to their future.
There will be weekly quizzes and an assessment (test) every five weeks. There will be
a summative assessment at the end of each semester that will cover approximately
19 weeks of content.
Late assignments will be accepted up to two days at a grade reduction of 20% per day.
For example, 1 day late highest grade B, 2 days late highest grade C.
Exemptions only for approved absences with written note signed by parent.
You may come and see me to discuss your grades anytime, but during class is not an
appropriate time.
I will be available almost everyday after school until 3:15-3:30pm. Please come and
see me for help.
I will also be in the room by 7:45 am everyday. You can also see me during my free
periods, but you must make an appointment. Make-up tests will be given during
your lunch. See me for appointment.
Grades will be entered into IMPACT allowing students and parents access via
internet.
Curriculum Outline:
Unit 1: Overview of Environmental Science- 3 weeks
 Chapter 1: Environmental Science
 Chapter 2: Environmental History
 Chapter 3: Science, Systems, Matter, and Energy
Video: The Lorax, Race to Save the Planet
Unit 2: Ecosystems and Biodiversity- 5 weeks

Chapter 4: Ecosystems: Components, Energy Flow, and Matter
Cycling
 Chapter 5: Evolution and Biodiversity: Origins, Niches, and
Adaptation
 Chapter 6: Biogeography: Climate, Biomes, and Terrestrial
Biodiversity
Video: The Rainforest (National Geographic)
Unit 3: Biodiversity, Populations, and Communities- 3 weeks

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Chapter 7: Aquatic Ecology: Building in Aquatic Ecosystems
Chapter 8: Community Ecology , Structure, Species Interaction, and
Sustainability
Chapter 9: Population Dynamics capacity, and Conservation
BiologyVideo: Cane Toads
Unit 4: Geology - 2 weeks
 Chapter 10: Geology: Processes, hazards, and Soils
Video: Weathering and Soil: Earth Revealed
Unit 5: Human Population- 2 weeks

Chapter 11The Human Population: Growth, Demography, and
Carrying Capacity
 Chapter 25: Sustainable Cities: Urban Land Use and Management
Video: The People Bomb, World Population (Zero Population Growth)
Unit 6: Resources- 4 weeks


Chapter 12: Food Resources
Chapter 13: Water Resources

Chapter 14: Geologic Resources: Nonrenewable Mineral and Energy
Resources
 Chapter 15: Energy Efficiency and renewable Energy
Video: The Power of Water (National Geographic)
Unit 7: Pollution- 5-6 weeks
 Chapter 16: Risk, Toxicology, and Human Health
 Chapter 17: Air and Air Pollution
 Chapter 18: Climate Change and Ozone Loss
 Chapter 19: Water Pollution
 Chapter 20: Pesticide and Pest Control
 Chapter 21: Solid and Hazardous Waste
Video: Endangered Planet
Unit 8: Conservation- 3 weeks


Chapter 22: Sustaining Wild Species
Chapter 23: Sustaining Terrestrial Biodiversity: the Ecosystem
Approach
 Chapter 24: Sustaining Aquatic Biodiversity
Video: NOAH’S: Keeper of the Ark
Unit 9: Environment and Society- 4-5 weeks
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
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Chapter 26: Economics, Environment, and Sustainability
Chapter 27: Politics, Environment, and Sustainability
Chapter 28: Environmental Worldview, Ethics, and Sustainability
Unit 10: Review and After-2-3 weeks



Independent Research
Community Service Project
Critical Evaluation of Media Portrayal of Environmental Issues
Parents/Guardians: Please sign and return this sheet, indicating that you have read the
syllabus and know the policies set forth by Mr. Iverson.
Print Student Name –
Print Parent/Guardian Name –
Parent/Guardian Signature –
Date_____________________________
During lab periods the following labs and activities may be/are performed:
First Semester
1. Quadrat lab. On school grounds, students learn how to mark off a quadrat and
identify the large plants in the area. Then they graph the area.
2. Population lab. In a nearby meadow, students caught grasshoppers in a specified plot
of land, marked them, and then released them. The next week, we returned to recatch the
insects and did a population study using the Shannon-Weaver Index. Students also
identified any unusual insects or animals in the meadow.
3. Ecological succession. Students did a transect study of ecological succession in a park
near the school, from the mowed area to the woods. Plants were identified along a string
line, and their root depth was noted.
4. Soil diversity. Students collected soil during the lab on ecological succession, and
stored it in a refrigerator until the following week. Using Berlese funnels and arthropod
identification keys, students identified organisms found in different types of soils.
5. Computer lab on population growth. Students used one of the ecology labs from
“Biology Explorer” by Logal Educational Software and Systems to compare rabbits in
the United States and Australia. When a virus is introduced, they find out what happens
to the populations.
6. Thermal pollution. This is a timed experiment using yeast cells, heat, stain, and
microscopes.
7. Bacterial identification lab. Students grew three unknown bacteria on special agar.
Using a colony growth key, they identified each.
8. Acid rain and seed germination.
9. Lead lab. Students collected samples from dishes and pottery at home. In the lab, they
tried to determine the presence of lead through a chemical change.
10. Skull lab. I borrowed all types of skulls (herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores) from
a local museum. The students determined what the animal’s lifestyle was from its
dentition, jaw shape, location of eye orbits, zygomatic breadth, size of the nasal cavity,
and shape of the cranium.
11. Detecting mutant bacteria. The students grew E. coli on streptomycin agar and
collected the mutants. They grew the mutants in nutrient broth and replated them on
specific concentrations of streptomycin agar plates.
12. Oxygen cycle Lab—with snails and elodea. The students determined whether there
was any chemical change, over time, by using indicator solutions in test tubes.
13. Horns and antlers—Bovidae and Cervidae. Again I went to our local museum and
borrowed all kinds of skulls with different horns and antlers. The students determined the
chord, catching arch, stabbing zone, greatest reach, and length of the stem. This
information enables the students to determine how the animal used these structures, and it
leads to good discussions on natural selection.
Second Semester
1. Chaparral seeds. Requirements for germination.
2. Bacterial enrichment from a carrot medium. This demonstrates bacterial succession
over a period of weeks.
3. Growing plants hydroponically and macronutrient effects.
4. Winogradsky column. A study of ecological succession in a microbial community
with an oxygen gradient.
5. Population dynamics of Drosophila growth. Determining the potential for increase
and how different conditions affect population dynamics.
6. Human population study in a cemetery. Students collected data from tombstones
over the last few hundred years to create survivorship curves, age pyramids, death per age
group graphs, etc.
7. Physiology activity—perception and behavior. Houseflies are used to determine
behavioral response.
8. Modeling a wet scrubber. Students build a wet scrubber with laboratory equipment
and determine how well it operates.
9. Controlling pests in stored grain. Oat cereal is used to show pest control.
10. Amount of land needed to grow our food. Students calculate the amount of calories
in our food and then the amount of land required for different kinds of foods.
11. Experimental eutrophication. Using creek water, students cause eutrophication and
observe the resulting changes in small aquatic organisms.
12. Hike to sites of acid mine drainage to see how drainage enters different
watersheds. We explore an old railroad track not too far from us that has excellent
examples of AMD and an old closed portal from the original mine.
13. Creek analysis. There will be two more trips to the water this semester; this involves
a great deal of lab time.
14. Local trail maintenance. My students were asked to help improve trails in a park in
our township. We lined the trails with logs, staked the logs, and added gravel to areas that
had poor drainage, covering the gravel with shredded bark. Materials were provided by
the township.
Evaluation Methods & Grade Composition:
Tests……………………………………………………………... 20%
Quizzes……………………………………………………………15%
Lab Notebook……………………………………………………. 25%
Group Projects…………………………………………………… 20%
Homework……………………………………………………….. 10%
Classwork………………………………………………………... 10%