Honors Biology Syllabus - Central Dauphin School District



Biology II Syllabus

Mrs. Fortenbaugh – Room 238

Email: pfortenbaugh@

Phone: 541-1662 x 238 Homework hotline X 1238

Welcome to a successful year in Biology II! I am excited to teach this course and hope that you will find this year to be challenging, yet exciting as we learn about the diversity of our planet! Biology II is recommended for high-achieving students and for students who have a particular interest in biology, especially the 6 kingdoms. Students will be ultimately responsible for their learning; therefore, you should be organized, prepared, and motivated to learn every day.

The Biology II curriculum differs from the Biology I curriculum in meaningful ways. The Biology II course places a higher priority on developing critical thinking skills. The Biology II curriculum also examines topics with more depth and includes more advanced resource material in addition to the adopted text. Laboratory investigations play a more prominent role in the Biology II course. Labs are more sophisticated than in the regular curriculum and students are expected to design and carry out experiments using appropriate methods and resources.

• 3 ring binder with 5 dividers. The dividers should be labeled as follows: (1) Homework,

(2) Learning Maps, (3) Class work /Notes, (4) Labs & Projects, (5) Graded Work

• Pencil and pen

COURSE PRE-REQUISITES: Biology I or Honors Biology and Chemistry (can be concurrently)

GRADING

• This is a weighted course – you will earn 1.04 credits for completing this course.

• Quarterly grades are EARNED based on the following percentage arrangement adopted by the Central Dauphin School District Science Department:

• 50% of your grade is Summative Assessments

o Tests, Culminating Projects/Labs

o You have 3 days to turn in late work with a penalty: Day 1 deduct 10% from earned grade, Day 2 deduct 20%, and Day 3 deduct 30%; Day 4 is a zero

• 25% of your grade is Quizzes

o Quizzes, Formative Assessments, Learning Labs etc.

o You have 3 days to turn in late work with a penalty: Day 1 deduct 10% from earned grade, Day 2 deduct 20%, and Day 3 deduct 30%; Day 4 is a zero

• 25% of your grade is Miscellaneous

o Homework, Class work, Participation

o Same late policy as above; no late work accepted if gone over in class (if absent, district policy applies)

*Each quarter accounts for 20% of the overall grade, while midterms and finals each equal 10% of the final grade earned for the year.

ALWAYS KEEP THIS SHEET IN THE FRONT OF YOUR NOTEBOOK!!

INSECT or LEAF COLLECTION

• Students will be required to complete an individual taxonomy collection during marking period 1. Collections are to take place outside of class. One class day will be provided to practice identification and assist with curating the project and answering questions.

• Counts as a summative assessment.

DISSECTION

• Dissection is an extremely valuable lab activity in this course.

• No student will be required to participate in or assist with dissection if he or she opts not to. Those students will not be penalized in any way and will be offered alternate activities to complete.

1. Show RESPECT for your teacher, your classmates, yourself, and your learning environment! No food or drink is permitted in the classroom/laboratory!

2. All school and district policies apply in the classroom. Hats, coats, cell phones, and other electronic devices are to be turned off and out of sight. Violation of this district wide policy could result in the confiscation of your property. Please follow the rules!

3. Come to class on time and prepared!

4. Dismissal will be by the teacher not by the bell!

5. Earn your grade!

If you are absent it is solely YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to get the notes, assignments, and any make-up work that you missed during your absence. You will find any handouts you missed placed in the “Missed Work” folder labeled for your class period. It is your responsibility to check the folder when you return to school.

According the Central Dauphin School District’s Attendance policy, a student with an unexcused absence will not receive credit for missed work, including assessments. Failure to complete any assignment in a timely manner (per District Science Department policy) is recorded as a zero.

*Participation points are earned daily. You will not be awarded points for unexcused absences. It is the student’s responsibility to show me their excuse slip when they return to school in order to regain participation points from their absence.

*Tests and Quizzes are expected to be made up upon the student’s returns to school. If a student is absent on a review day or a test/quiz day, the student is required to make up the assessment on the day they return to school. If the student has been absent for several days and missed several days of instruction a make-up testing date will be determined when the student returns to school.

|Unit |Content of Study |Chapters |

|1 |Taxonomy, Classification, and Evolution |18 |

|2 |Bacteria |24 |

|3 |Viruses |25 |

|4 |Protists (Protozoans and Algae) |26-27 |

|5 |Fungi |28 |

|6 |Intro to Animals, Porifera, and Cnidaria |34, 35 |

| |MIDTERMS – week of January 14 | |

|7 |Worms and Embryology |35 - 37 |

| |(Platyhelminthes, Nematoda, Annelida) | |

|8 |Mollusks and Echinoderms |37, 40 |

|9 |Arthropods |38 |

|10 |Plants |32 |

|11 |Vertebrates |40 - 45 |

| |(Fish, Amphibians, Reptiles, Birds, Mammals) | |

| |SENIOR FINALS – May 28-29 (tentative) | |

| |UNDERCLASSMEN FINALS – week of June 2 | |

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Materials – What should I bring to Biology II class?

A = 90 - 100

B = 80 - 89

C = 70 - 79

D = 60 - 69

F = 59 and below

Expectations – What is expected of me as a student in Mrs. Fortenbaugh’s class?

Absences – How do I make up work from an absence?

Content – What will I be learning in Biology II?

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