Going Green: A study on the Swale

The Honors Biology Class wanted to research the type of soil in an area on the side of the school called a Swale.  The students collected dirt from different areas, wet and dry, to calculate the pH, nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus concentration.

Students collect samples from a dry area of the ground that is higher in the Swale. 

Students collect samples from a wet area, on the lower land of the Swale where rain settles. 

The pH of the dry area seems to be around a 7, because it has been less exposed to acid from rain. 

The pH in the wet area is more acidic, at about a 6.5, because rain has been settled there for a longer period of time. 

Cancer Presentations

In Honors Biology students learned about the process of Mitosis, also known as cell division, and also the problems that can arise in the process.  They became interested in how cancer specifically is one issue that affects people so widely.  Students were asked to choose a specific cancer and give a presentation on it in order to inform students of the risks and preventative measures related to cancer.

A pie chart representing who leukemia affects the most. 

A student demonstrates how to perform a skin check on yourself to prevent melanoma. 

A graphical representation of the portion of the body cervical cancer represents and where it can spread. 

Students are informed of the tests utilize to prevent and treat colon cancer. 

A student shows how successful treatment is in glioblastoma. 

A representation of how cells look in hodgkin lymphoma. 

A representation of what portion of the body endometrial or uterine cancer affects and how it can spread. 

Diffusion and Osmosis Lab

The AP Biology students were tasked with a lab on the processes of osmosis and diffusion. 

Science: Students use what they have learned in AP Biology in terms of how cells transport water and solutes through their membranes

Technology:  Students were asked to create a time-lapse video to demonstrate the process of diffusion

Engineering:  Students created their own agar cubes and added an indicator so they could track a color change

M: Students calculated the Surface Area to Volume Ratio of their cubes

Students cut different sizes of agar gel to represent different surface area to volume ratios.  Those that were smaller have a higher surface area to volume ratio than large cubes. 

Students measure their different sized cubes to calculate the surface area to volume ratio, utilizing math skills.  

Students placed the agar cubes that have been treated with an indicator that turns magenta when treated with a base, but white when treated with an acid.  The cubes were first treated with a base to turn the initial magenta color. The solution consists of water and an acid.  The purpose is to see how quickly the acid diffuses through the agar cubes and changes the color.

Students cut potatoes into similar sizes.  The potato presentations a semipermeable membrane which will allow water through.  

5 sugar solutions have been made with different colors to keep them separate.  Each one is a different level of concentration of sugar.  

Students will place each potato in the cup and allow it to sit for a few minutes.  Then they weigh the potatoes afterwards to see how much water it absorbed.  They then decided if the solution was hypertonic, isotonic, or hypotonic.  

Building Macromolecules

Honors Biology and AP Biology have been learning about the four different classes of large organic molecules: carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.  To aid in their understanding of these abstract concepts, they have built models of these molecules!  Check out the photos below. 

Carbohydrates: A disaccharide called maltose, a combination of two monosaccharides of glucose.  Each gumdrop represents a different molecule (Red=carbon, Green=oxygen, yellow=hydrogen), and the toothpicks represent the bonds.

Lipids: A triglyceride with a saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acid.  The saturated is kept straight to represent a lack of double bonds, the monounsaturated has one bend to represent one double bond, and the polyunsaturated as many bends to represent many double bonds.

Lipids: A phospholipid which contains two fatty acid tails, a glycerol, phosphate, and choline. 

 Lipids: A phospholipid bilayer which is organized with individual phospholipids arranged with hydrophobic portions facing inward and hydrophilic portions facing outward.

Proteins: The Primary Structure of Proteins consists of different amino acids (different colors of beads) connected by peptide bonds (blue pipe cleaner) in a single strand

 Proteins: The Secondary Structure of Proteins consists of the primary structure being folded to form two structures, the alpha helix and the beta pleated sheet.  They structures are held together through hydrogen bonding

Proteins: The tertiary structure of proteins consists of a folded up secondary structure in which the R groups of each individual amino acid interact with one another through ionic bonds, hydrophobic interactions, and disulfide bridges.  

 Proteins: The quaternary structure of proteins is when multiple protein tertiary structure subunits come together.  Notice here, two groups connected their proteins to make an overall structure.  An example of this is hemoglobin!

Nucleic Acids: Here is a photograph of a model of DNA and RNA. Notice DNA is doubles stranded and RNA is single stranded.  The orange pipe cleaner denote phosphate groups in the sugar phosphate backbones.  The blue beads symbolize deoxyribose (sugar in DNA), whereas yellow beads symbolized ribose (sugar in RNA).  The paper clips show the different bases.  Pink is uracil (only in RNA), red is cytosine, blue is guanine, green is adenine, and yellow is thymine (only present in DNA).  The connection between the complementary bases (A-T, G-C) is a hydrogen bond and is demonstrated through the connection between paper clips!

Cardboard Car Try #2

The Engineering Your World Students were given the task of building a cardboard car with minimal instructions to demonstrate how important good documentation is to the engineering field.

You can see their first try here!

Then they were given the task of building the car, now with a complete set of instructions that included a photograph, step-by-step instructions, and an objective!

Check out the video to see how they did!

Cardboard Car Try #1

The Engineering students are learning about the importance of good documentation in their engineering notebooks.  To demonstrate this, each group was given a different set of instructions: 1) step by step instructions,  2) a photograph of the finished car, and 3) the purpose of the car.

Step by step instructions

Photograph

Purpose

Students found this to be extremely challenging because they did not have a complete set of instructions to build the car and a lot was left to one's own imagination.  Take a look at the results below.

Check back next week to see the completed cars after their receive a full set of instructions!!! 

AP Biology App

Students have all downloaded the AP Biology Test Prep App to not only prepare for their quizzes and tests in class, but for the AP Exam in May.

The app is helpful because it gives students a question of the day that can be on any random topic.  This not only develops familiarity with AP test questions, but tests their knowledge outside of the context of the class. It is easy to recall something you may have just learned in class, but by testing your knowledge randomly you are creating an enduring understanding of the subject!

An example question of the day.

Once answered, you get a full explanation of why your answer is correct or incorrect. 

The app also allows students to take diagnostic and practice tests, create flashcards, and separate their knowledge by concepts.

Other helpful portions of the app

By integrating a technological device that students use all of the time, science is made accessible and even fun! 

To download the App for yourself, search for AP Biology in the App store!

Virtual Microscope Lab

In Honors Biology students will be working extensively with microscopes in lab.  To get them started, they used technology to help them become more familiar with parts of the microscope and the steps to operate a microscope effectively.  To check out the activity for yourself,  click the link below!!

https://www.brainpop.com/games/virtuallabsusingthemicroscope/

S.T.E.M. components:

Science- Students are learning laboratory techniques

Technology- Utilizing a computer program to virtually use a microscope

Engineering- Discovering how the individual components make up the total product

Math- Calculating the magnification

Here students learn about the different lenses and how they change the magnification of a microscope. 

Students virtually move pieces of the microscope in order to perform the experiment. 

Students are introduced to the specimen they will be viewing. 

By looking at the parts of the microscope online, students can become more familiar with how it works. 

What is S.T.E.M?

S.T.E.M. is a word thrown around so frequently in education, but very few know the intention of having a "S.T.E.M" course in school.  Yes, most people know it stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, but what is puzzling is how these work together to better our education system.

On the surface level, S.T.E.M. may appear to some as a way to make hard science classes easier for those less science oriented by utilizing their hands to demonstrate their knowledge instead of traditional methods.  In actuality, S.T.E.M. is not a subject at all, but a teaching philosophy in which the teacher and students are committed to learning in an integrated way; not relying simply on one avenue to learn.

In the modern world, every single job is a multi-faceted system, in which an individual must be able to integrate different skills to perform their job effectively.  As a teacher, I am constantly juggling different hats on a daily basis, whether it is biologist, communicator, personal confidant, advisor, paper organizer, grade computer, and the list goes on and on.  None of these individual jobs mean much, unless they are integrated with one another.  Being a lover of biology doesn't necessarily matter to teaching unless I can also communicate my knowledge to individuals who are newcomers to the field.  Being able to organize students' assignments is useless if I cannot calculate grades. By providing courses that rely on the S.T.E.M. philosophy, we are preparing our students for a world where they must integrate skills to perform their jobs.

S.T.E.M. is a way to deepen the understanding of a topic by looking at it from different angles.  When studying something such as the circulatory system, you can learn the science behind it, but until you look at the nuances of its detailed engineering you cannot fully develop an appreciation for its intricacies.  Having students use engineering principles, they can build their own circulatory system out of household items to demonstrate the challenges our bodies face.  Through this approach students learn for themselves how difficult it is to move a liquid, such as our blood, against gravity, therefore requiring a system built around pumps to push it around.  Or that you'll need thicker materials to represent arteries than for veins to withstand high pressures coming from the main pump.  Not only do students know how the system functions, but also have a deeper understanding of how its structure determines its function through the use of engineering.

In my opinion, there are no set "S.T.E.M." classes, but simply every class that falls under this acronym can benefit from utilizing the other three letters.  The quadratic formula means nothing if not put into context of an engineering problem.  Science that cannot be seen with the naked eye, can be enhanced through technological advances.

S.T.E.M. is not simply a group of letters, but a way to prepare our students for their futures.