AP® Course #: SC571
5 Credit Full Year Course
Recommended for grades 10-12

Advanced Placement Courses provide an opportunity for students to experience a college course while still in high school. AP courses follow a syllabus that has been approved by the College Board, and teachers must receive specialized training to teach the courses. Although it is not required, it is expected that students who take AP courses will also register for the national AP exam at their own expense. The course is an in-depth study of the fundamentals of biology and focuses on four major themes: 1) the process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life. 2) Biological systems utilize free energy and molecular building blocks to grow, reproduce and maintain dynamic homeostasis. 3) Living systems store, retrieve, transmit, and respond to information essential to life processes. 4) Biological systems interact, and these systems and their interactions possess complex properties. A series of inquiry-based laboratories will be completed during the year, which will involve a considerable amount of data analysis. Students should expect a summer assignment. Students who enroll in this course should have demonstrated the ability to gather and analyze large amounts of data in a timely fashion, think clearly and express ideas orally and in writing with clarity and logic. It is recommended that the student has had experience in Biology.

AP® Course #: SC581
5 Credit Full Year Course
Recommended for grades 11-12

Advanced Placement Courses provide an opportunity for students to experience a college course while still in high school. AP courses follow a syllabus that has been approved by the College Board, and teachers must receive specialized training to teach the courses. Although it is not required, it is expected that students who take AP courses will also register for the national AP exam at their own expense. AP® Chemistry is a rigorous math-based course, with a strong laboratory component that is intended to develop the student’s ability to apply mathematical skills to solve chemistry problems. The pace, depth and amount of material covered exceeds the standard high school chemistry course, as does the college-level textbook, laboratory experiments and analysis, and time and effort required of students. Students should plan on spending at least eight hours per week in independent study. Topics include states and structure of matter, chemical reactions, thermodynamics, kinetics, equilibrium, acids and bases, electrochemistry, and colligative properties. It is recommended that the student have a background in Chemistry.

AP® Course #: SC583
5 Credit Full Year Course
Recommended for grades 11-12

Advanced Placement Courses provide an opportunity for students to experience a college course while still in high school. AP courses follow a syllabus that has been approved by the College Board, and teachers must receive specialized training to teach the courses. Although it is not required, it is expected that students who take AP courses will also register for the national AP exam at their own expense. The AP Environmental Science course is designed to be the equivalent of an introductory college course in environmental science. In this course, students will be studying modern environmental issues integrating concepts from biology, earth science, and chemistry. The course is designed to provide students with scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural world, to identify and analyze environmental problems both natural and man-made, to evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, and to examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them. Students will participate in field studies to collect and analyze authentic data and to evaluate specific environments.

AP® Course #: SC545
5 Credit Full Year Course
Recommended for grade 12

*Recommended for grade 12 students who have taken or are taking a calculus course and have completed a physics course. Advanced Placement Courses provide an opportunity for students to experience a college course while still in high school. AP courses follow a syllabus that has been approved by the College Board and teachers must receive specialized training to teach the course. Although it is not required, it is expected that students who take AP courses will also register for the national AP exam at their own expense. AP Physics C: Mechanics is a calculus-based, college-level physics course, especially appropriate for students planning to specialize or major in one of the physical science or ENGINEERING. Students cultivate their understanding of physics through classroom study and activities as well as hands-on laboratory work as they explore concepts like change, force interactions, fields and conservation.

College Prep Course #: SC523
Accelerated Course #: SC522
5 Credit Full Year Course
Recommended for grades 9-10

This course is designed to teach biological concepts and laboratory skills that will equip students for further study in the scientific disciplines. Students will learn biological technology, terminology, and the scientific method. Course topics include biochemistry, cell biology, reproductive biology, genetics, microbiology, taxonomy, evolution, and the structure and function of both plants and animals. These topics are taught within a developmental framework, stressing the relationship between structure and function in living things.

College Prep Course #: SC533
Accelerated Course #: SC532
5 Credit Full Year Course
Recommended for grades 10-12

Topics in this course include matter, energy, scientific measurements, solutions, atomic structure, periodic law, chemical bonding, stoichiometry, nuclear chemistry, and gasses. This course is fast-paced; math application is advanced; lab techniques will be developed, and digital technology is used extensively. Students electing the Accelerated version of this course should possess very strong math skills.

Elective Course #: SC556
5 Credit Full Year Course
Recommended for grades 11-12

This course combines the study of local ecosystems with that of current issues. Human use and misuse of the environment are emphasized. Topics include energy production and consumption, soil properties, water use and water ecology, water quality, natural disasters, habitat destruction, human population growth, global climate change, and solid waste issues. The course involves a variety of hands-on labs and projects, as well as long-range research assignments relating to environmental issues. Frequent trips outdoors should be expected, even in cold weather.

College Prep Course #: SC543
5 Credit Full Year Course
Recommended for grades 11-12

Relying on their math skills, diligent lab work, and the scientific method, students will complete lab and project work to recognize and solve problems in these classic topic areas: light, sound, wave theory, linear and circular motion, projectile and 2-dimensional motion, freefall, forces, universal gravitation, work, power, energy, impulse and momentum, magnetism, and electricity.