AP Environmental Science

“The greatest discovery of the past century had nothing to do with nuclear physics, or computer science, or genetic engineering. Rather it was the discovery of the essential connectedness of life and environment.” - Erik

Jorgensen

Course Overview: From Me: Living in Vermont we are immersed in the natural world, yet I am constantly surprised by how much I still don’t know about it. Being home last spring allowed me to walk outside every day and intentionally observe the coming of spring. Everything around us from the smallest puddle to the largest ecosystem has complex geological, chemical and biological interactions and provides many learning opportunities. My hope is that we can use what we are learning to find new ways to appreciate the intricate and exciting ecosystems around us and that we can better understand the world and the environmental problems that we are facing as a society. I look forward to learning with and being inspired by you. From College Board: The AP Environmental Science course is designed to engage students with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships within the natural world. The course requires that students identify and analyze natural and human-made environmental problems, evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, and examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them. Environmental science is interdisciplinary, embracing topics from geology, biology, environmental studies, environmental science, chemistry, and geography. Follow THIS LINK to the College Board Course and Exam Description to read more about the course

Units and Activities: What will we be learning about and doing in this course? The plan is to begin the year grounded in monitoring ecosystems on our campus so that students can analyze real world data and get outside as much as possible. Students will study the Ottauquechee River, the forest behind our school and the soils on campus. Then they will move to modeling ecosystems and how energy moves through them. Next, students study human populations and human health. Semester two will focus mostly on the atmosphere, atmospheric pollution and how it connects to energy and climate change. Our last big unit will be about land use with a focus on food production and feeding a growing global population. After the AP exam, students will have a menu of projects to choose from so that they may explore their passions. See the content standards section for more information about the content covered in each unit. Units:

Checkpoint 1 Checkpoint 2 Checkpoint 3 Checkpoint 4 Checkpoint 5 Checkpoint 6 Checkpoint 7 Checkpoint 8

WUHSMS Field Studies

WUHSMS Field Studies

The Living World, Ecosystems and Energy Flow

Human Populations

Atmosphere and Atmospheric Pollution

Energy and Climate Change

Food Production

Final Project

Topics and Weight on the AP Exam: I. The Living World: Ecosystems (6-8%) II. The Living World: Biodiversity (6-8%) III. Populations (10–15%) IV. Earth Systems and Resources (10–15%) V. Land and Water Use (10–15%) VI. Energy Resources and Consumption (10-15%) VII. Atmospheric Pollution (7-10%) VIII. Aquatic and Terrestrial Pollution (7-10%) IX. Global Change (15-20%)

Standards: What knowledge and skills will I gain by the end of this course? Anchor Standards: The four anchor standards for this course were chosen because they align well with the College Board science practices for this course. All of the College Board science practices will be incorporated into all units but only the four listed below will be explicitly scored.

Our Anchor Standard College Board Science Practice

INVESTIGATING - Planning and Carrying out investigations

SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTS - Analyze research studies that test environmental principles

ANALYZING - Analyzing and Interpreting data DATA ANALYSIS - Analyze and interpret quantitative data represented in tables, charts and graphs

EXPLAINING - Constructing explanations and, in engineering, designing solutions

CONCEPT EXPLANATION - Explain environmental concepts, processes and models presented in written format

ARGUING - Engaging in arguments from evidence (with a focus on arguing for environmental solutions)

ENVIRONMENTAL SOLUTIONS- Propose and justify solutions to environmental problems

2

INVESTIGATING - Planning and carrying out investigations

ANALYZING - Analyzing and Interpreting data

EXPLAINING - Constructing explanations and, in engineering, designing solutions

ARGUING - Engaging in arguments from evidence

College Board Science Practices:

3

Content Standards: This course builds student knowledge using the College Board standards. The content standards for AP Environmental Science are:

Follow THIS LINK to the College Board Course and Exam Description to read more about the course content standards

The Exam:

Follow THIS LINK to the College Board Course and Exam Description and scroll to page 223 to read more about the exam

4

Assessment of Learning: For information about assessment types, scoring, and overall grade calculation: click here.

Communication: How Do I Access Work from Home, and What Should I Expect?

● All work will be posted in Google Classroom. ● The work will be explained during our in-person meetings and/or by video posted to Google Classroom. ● The work will also be explained in our Class Planner posted to Google Classroom. ● If you have any questions, email your teacher.

How Do I Know What My Grades Are?

● On Summative Assessments, teachers will provide both a 4-point grade and a letter grade. ● You can monitor your progress in the following ways:

○ By reading feedback and scoring returned to students on summative assessments. ○ By monitoring the scores and Overall Course Mastery Grade in the Parent/Student portal on

JumpRope. Reminders to check grades will be sent from the school. ○ Communicating with your teacher if you are unclear.

Where Can I Find This Syllabus during the School Year? ● This syllabus will be available on the school website in each subject’s department tab once the school

year is up and running. It will also be available in our Google Classroom. How Do I See What’s Due?

● Assignment and summative assessment due dates with handouts are posted in Google Classroom, with connection to Google Calendar, for student access.

How Do I See What’s Past Due?

● If a student is missing a grade on an assessment, it will be listed in the red “Missing Assessment” section of the JumpRope Parent/Student Portal along with any attachments. Please contact your teacher if you have any questions.

Materials: A three ring binder is recommended for storing notes, papers and handouts.

Friedland and Relyea Environmental Science for AP

5

Schoolwide Procedures: Please see the Student Handbook for Procedures and Policies related to: Due dates and deadlines, extra credit, retaking assessments, and turnaround time for grade entry. Personal Mobile Devices: This class will follow the procedures outlined in the student handbook.

Classroom Expectations: WORK HARD - All of us will be expected to participate and be active and engaged learners on a daily basis BE NICE - Respect and kindness must be the basis for all of our interactions. It takes courage to share our work and ideas openly. The classroom must be a safe space for dialogue, sharing and risk taking. GET SMART - We are not born smart. We are all rough drafts. We get smart by practicing our skills and persevering through difficult tasks. WE ARE CREW, NOT PASSENGERS - Passengers sit back and wait to be told where to go and what to do, they are passive. Crew actively contribute to the learning community by leading discussions, giving feedback and shaping the direction of class.

Final, important, thoughts about this course and the AP Exam Your learning - deep and sustained learning - is my utmost priority. What I care about is you, your personal well-being, and your ability to grow and develop as a person and as a student. The topics, the lessons, the syllabus, the curriculum…. All of these have been carefully chosen to align with the AP exam at the end of this course. That does NOT mean, however, that I care about the exam more than I care about you. YOU may care very deeply about your success on the AP exam and I can support you. But it will not drive me, drive the pace of instructional activities, nor the spirit with which we conduct our business.

6