“For in the end, we will conserve only what we love. We will love only what we understand. And we will understand only what we have been taught.” Baba Dioum-
http://mrsfergusonsscienceportal.edublogs.org/Dear Parents/Guardian,
I would like to take this opportunity to let you know how excited I am to have your child this year in my Biology I class. Teaching your child is a privilege, as well as a tremendous responsibility, and I will do my best to ensure a positive learning experience.
Below you will find a course description, my expectations of your child, and a course outline. Please read this syllabus carefully, sign it, and have your child return it to me. If you ever have any questions, please feel free to call me. You may call the office anytime and leave a message, and I will return your call. I look forward to working together to make this a great school year.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Ferguson
Biology I will focus on in-depth study of biological structures, processes and interactions. Topics include scientific method and experimentation, cell structure and function, photosynthesis and respiration, mitosis and meiosis, basic genetics, ecology, evolution, and animal behavior.
Students are expected to be in their assigned seat and ready to work when the tardy bell rings. Paper, pencils, textbooks, and assignments should be brought to class each day. Excessive talking, horseplay, and disruptive behavior will result in detention with parental contact, or referral to the principal.
Student evaluations will be based on quizzes, worksheet, activities, class notebook, labs, essays, chapter and semester tests.
Extra credit is usually given in the form of bonus on tests. It has been my experience that students who know they can get extra credit will not work up to their potential during the semester. So, in order to prevent this, I have eliminated extra credit except in the form of bonus on tests. I expect students to be concerned with maintaining their grade all semester.
The following course outline is an approximation. We may be able to get through some sections faster than anticipated, and there are always school activities, assemblies, and unexpected events that may cause a change. However, this is the order of the major topics that your child will be learning.
During the month of January, we will be studying genetics. We will learn to do punnett squares and pedigrees, as well as the basics of how inherited traits are passed from one generation to the next. We will also study biotechnology and common mutations. I have several activities planned for this section. We will extract the DNA from a kiwi fruit, create marshmallow babies to model meiosis (Marshmallow Meiosis), a "Baby Who" lab in which students must model restriction enzyme analysis of DNA and gel electrophoresis to determine the biological parents of a given offspring.