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STUDENT:________________________________________________________________

BEAR CREEK HIGH SCHOOL: AP SUMMER ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET

AP Biology Summer Assignment 2017-2018 Ms. MacTaggart

Introduction:

Welcome to AP biology! This class is highly intensive, with a lot of material that needs to be covered in a short amount of time. This means we will occasionally have to get together after school as a group. We will also study outside the classroom; field trips are a part of this class! Please be aware that taking this class requires a commitment to being on time, on task, and hard working. Although AP Biology is a huge commitment, we will have a lot of fun. I look forward to working with each one of you next year! Here are a few items of interest before you get started on the summer assignment.

I know the words “summer assignment” (this means over the summer not the night of August 18th!) may not be what you were hoping for… but I think you will find this assignment will be beneficial to you as we start the school year in the fall and even a little interesting! It will also help to keep your mind sharp and thinking, so you are ready to hit the ground running in August

SUMMER ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW Part# Due

Date Task Description Objective

I Second day of class

AP Biology Non-Fiction Book

Summary Introduction to Science Reading

II Second day of class

Biology Prefixes and Suffixes-

The Language of Science Introduction to the language of Biology

III First day of class

The 4 Big Ideas

Familiarize yourself with the major concepts in AP

Biology

First day of class

Purchase the textbook for class Biology In Focus 2nd Edition

ISBN-13: 978-0-13-427891-9 ISBN-10: 0-13-427891-7

**Be sure to get the AP edition

These books are available on line for a reduced price, do not hesitate to locate a good used version,

CAUTION: do it now, the shipping often takes 2 weeks and you need it the 1st day of class.

My email address is kmactagg@jeffco.k12.co.us If you have any questions about the summer

assignment you can get in touch with me through email.

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Disputable Statements Definition of dispute - A disagreement, argument, or debate (keep this in mind when you are discussing each statement)

Chapter 1 Finding Your Inner Fish Dispute: Most living organisms fossilize after death, so fossils in exemplary condition are easily found all over the world.

Chapter 2 Getting a Grip Dispute: Humans and fish are nothing alike: we have hands with fingers, they have fins.

Chapter 3 Handy Genes Dispute: Each cell in a human body contains a unique set of DNA. This allows some cells to build muscle or skin and some cells to become arms versus fingers. Chapter 4 Teeth Everywhere Dispute: Teeth evolved through time, after bones, as they became a beneficial adaptation for protection against predation.

Chapter 5 Getting Ahead Dispute: Humans and sharks both have four gill arches as embryos, but the germ layers and arches develop into unrelated structures in each organism.

Chapter 6 The Best-Laid (Body) Plans Dispute: Scientists work in isolation: it is counter-productive to repeat another scientist’s experiments or to consider research that is not directly related to the organism you are studying.

Chapter 7 Adventures in Bodybuilding Dispute: All tissues in the human body are made of similar cells that connect to each other in similar fashion.

Chapter 8 Making Scents Dispute: There are few genes dedicated to olfactory sense and they are similar in all organisms capable of detecting smell.

Chapter 9 Vision Dispute: All organisms with vision have similar eyes and similar vision genes.

Chapter 10 Ears Dispute: In humans, eyes and ears function independently of one another; sensation in one does not affect sensation in the other.

Chapter 11 The Meaning of It All Dispute: Maladies of the human body are not related to our evolutionary past.

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Name: ______________________________________________Grade: _______ Email: ________________________________________________

1. Why did you sign up to take AP Biology?

2. What are your personal strengths when it comes to learning new material?

3. What causes you to struggle in a course?

4. What is the most effective way for you to prepare for a test?

5. Do you plan on taking the AP exam?

6. How many AP classes are you taking (please list)?

7. Have you or will you be taking anatomy and physiology?