AP Environmental Science
Course Updates September 2014
Fall Break??
But what if your school spring break is a different date than GaVS? What if you have an awesome trip planned the week of September 15? Well, what you will have to do is work ahead in the course so you can afford to take the time off from the course.
You will need to do whatever is necessary to make sure you have your assignments completed and submitted before that date; otherwise late assignments will be subject to a grade penalty. If you have specific questions or concerns, feel free to contact me.
Upcoming Events!
- September 26: Assignment Due Date
- October 10: Assignment Due Date
- October 24: Assignment Due Date
- November 7: Assignment Due Date
- November 21: Assignment Due Date
- November 24 - 28: Thanksgiving Break
- December 3-4: Final Exam
- December 5: Course Ends
- May 4: AP Biology Exam
Student Code of Conduct
Any attempt to cheat, plagiarize, falsify information, or receive credit for work you did not do will be considered dishonest behavior and will be dealt with accordingly by the instructor, facilitator, and the Georgia Virtual School Program administration. Unless your teacher expressly states otherwise, all work must be original and entirely the student's own work without any outside help, which includes other students, parents, textbooks, Internet or any other outside source. Assignments that require documentation and/or references must adhere to guidelines presented by the teacher. When in doubt, clarify with your teacher before beginning an assignment or submitting it.
Late Work? Missing Assignments?
Work turned in after the deadline on the course schedule will be accepted within 1 week with a late penalty assessed. Late penalty begins on Saturday and is deducted at a rate of 10% of the assignment value per school day. Work submitted on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday is considered 1 day late.
GaVS does not provide make up work for assignments missed during the semester. If you notice that a student grade is dropping, please encourage them to contact the teacher for ideas and suggestions for bringing up the course grade based on upcoming assignments.
Recipe for Success
Several packages of sleep
1 bushel of food
1 gallon of inspiration
1 can of discipline
5 cups of reading
2 spoonfuls of homework
1 pinch of encouragement
A small dash caffeine (optional)
Begin with several packages of sleep until the student is relaxed and malleable. Treat regularly with food and inspiration, while adding discipline. This is needed before adding the reading and homework. Stir regularly. Add encouragement any time the student gets too groggy or discouraged. Continue treatment until the look of pride is evident.
Shmoop
As part of our review, we will be using Shmoop. ALL students are required to make an account so I can enroll them in the appropriate class. If you have not created your account yet, please review this link to help you get started. After you have created your account, please send me an email.
Click here to get started!
AP Exams 101
The College Board provides a host of information on how you should prepare for the upcoming AP Exams. Check out the AP Students website and the Bulletin for Students and Parents for more important information!
FRQ Test Tips
Throughout the semester we have talked about the best ways to approach the multiple choice and free response questions. Here are a few additional tips from the College Board on how you should approach those pesky free response questions. Go ahead and review this information now to help improve your course FRQ scores.
AP Environmental Science Labs
Part of what makes this class rigorous is the AP labs. They take time… lots of time. Remember, AP science classes are especially challenging because they consist of both lecture, so it is almost like you are taking two classes in one.
When preparing your lab report, be sure to read the directions in the lab manual and in the module before you begin. The directions are not always the same and many of the labs have been modified for you to complete at home.
Also be sure to review the Lab Report Rubric carefully.
A couple of things to think about when preparing your lab report:
- Do not copy the procedure in the lab manual. Write what YOU do, which will be different from every other student because you must design your own lab.
- Take pictures - it's required. If your pictures make your file too big, consider using Vimeo or Animoto to share your qualitative data. Vimeo is Free; Amimoto requires a promo code: a4emitce5924a
In each lab, you will likely make mistakes… It’s ok! You are supposed to! That's where real learning occurs. Include the record of mistakes in your observations and conclusions.
So have fun!! Make a mess of the kitchen! Just clean up when you are done!
Parent Auditor Account
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Create an Account and link it to your child's account using the GTID.
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