AP Biology Summer Assignment

We have quite a task ahead of us this next year in AP Biology. The College Board expects you to learn all the information in a 1,200 page college level biology book by next May. Sound daunting? It is. Consequently, I have created this summer assignment to take some pressure off you during the school year. During the first week of class, I am going to lecture on the high points of the nine biodiversity chapters in your textbook (chapters 26-34). If you want to preview these lectures they are on my website. I will test you on this material during the second week of school. Not to worry though, because my students report that my lectures prepare them well for this first exam. To prepare you for this first week, I have selected a book for you to read this summer that should be fun and interesting. Rather than have you read the nine chapters in your textbook, I would like you to go out and get Bill Bryson’s book, the one with the modest title, A Short History of Nearly Everything. It covers some of the same material that is covered in your textbook chapters 26-34, but in a more interesting and fun way. If you feel the need to read the textbook (chapters 26-34), feel free to do so, but it is not required. The summer assignment should be sufficient.

Due Date of Summer Assignment
The summer assignment, described below (both part one and part two), is due on the first day of class. I will accept it on the second day of class for 90% maximum credit, I will accept it on the third day of class for 80% maximum credit, and I will accept it on the fourth day of class for 70% maximum credit. After the fourth day I will not accept any late work from the summer assignment.

Part One (Can be either word processed or hand written)
Get Bill Bryson’s book, A Short History of Nearly Everything. It’s in paperback; it’s cheap. I’d like you to read parts IV, V, and VI. That is more than half the book, but it’s good, really good. The part that relates specifically to biodiversity is in Part V (chapters 19-23), but to really understand chapters 19-23 you need to read the chapters preceding and following these core biodiversity chapters. These additional chapters (chapters 13-18 and 24-30) set the context for the biodiversity chapters. In order to ensure that you get the most out of the reading I would like you to write a short, one paragraph, summary of each chapter (chapters 13-30) as you read the book.

Part Two (MUST be word processed!)
One of the most popular ways of organizing the 1.8 million species that have been identified on earth is to use the five kingdom system: animal, plant, fungi, protist, monera. I would like you to select one species from each kingdom and do a two page write-up. Page one of each write up should describe the characteristics of the kingdom- what makes the kingdom unique and different from the other kingdoms, what are typical organisms one finds in this kingdom, etc. Page two of each write up should describe a species of your choice from the kingdom. If you feel you need to use more than two pages, that is fine, but I don’t require any more than two pages per kingdom: one page describing the kingdom, one page describing a species within the kingdom. Be sure to include a picture or illustration of the species you select. Feel free to pull an image off the Internet; if you want to include a digital photo of your own, that would be even better! I suggest you consider the diversity of life during the summer and select an organism which you encounter during your summer vacation.  The organism you pick should interest you and draw your attention to biodiversity. Make this assignment fun. If it is boring, you only have yourself to blame! When you do your write-up, write things that fascinate you-  if they fascinate you, they will probably fascinate me. Do some research, find out some exciting and cool things about your organisms. Please show integrity. Do not copy and paste material from the Internet. Do your own research, and write your own paper. Have fun with this!

Have a great summer and enjoy life. . . literally!