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May 18 – May 22, 2009

What’s Happening in Biology

for the week of

May 18 – May 22, 2009

 

Dear Parents and Guardians,                

 

WOW ! Where did the time go?  I can not believe it is finally the last week of school.  We have been very busy getting prepared for the biology final exam. The students have all the review questions and answers. We are reviewing the questions daily and should be prepared for the exam.  The exam was prepared from the questions the students have. The exam is straight forward and is not tricky. It is meant to test their basic knowledge of Biology for the semester as well as prepare them for the Alabama Graduation Exam that they will take in March. If you have any questions or concerns please let me know.

 

The week ahead:

 

Tuesday  =  Mock Test Part 1 50 questions and review)

Wednesday  = Mock Test Part 2 50 questions and review)

Thursday = Biology Final Exam 3rd Block 10:30 - 12:05

Friday = Biology Final Exam 4th Block 8:15 - 9:30

              Brunch Break            

              5th Block 10:30 - 12:05

 

I hope to have the grades finalized by Friday at 3:00.  I will send an e-mail once the grades have been finalized to let you know.  If at that time you would like to know your childs grades in Biology I will e-mail them to you.

 

I hope you have a great week!

Mrs. Balkcom

May 11 – May 15, 2009

What’s Happening in Biology

for the week of

May 11 – May 15, 2009

 

Dear Parents and Guardians,                

 

Hello Everyone!

 

The end is very near and we are trying to finish up our Taxonomy unit and review for our final.  We will have our unit test on Friday. Students will receive their study guides for the taxonomy test on Wednesday.  Students have already started their study guides for the final in Biology.  Everyday there are 15 – 20 questions on the board that they write down on their paper and then I go over the correct answers with them. The questions that are writing are very similar to the questions on the exam.  Please check to see that your student is taking advantage of this opportunity.  I am having them write the questions so that it will help them to remember.  I have found that when we do a few daily they seem to respond better.  On Friday progress reports went home make sure you have seen it. If not I can e-mail you their grade.

 

 

 

This week at a glance

M =  Eubacteria and Archaebacteria

T = 9th grade Field day

W = Study Guide and Protista Kingdom

H = Dichotomous keys and Review for test

F = Taxonomy test and review for semester exam.

 

If you have any questions or concerns please let me know!

 

Thanks,

Mrs. Balkcom

May 4 – May 8, 2009

What’s Happening in Biology

for the week of

May 4 – May 8, 2009

 Dear Parents and Guardians,                

 Hello Everyone!

 Hope everyone is staying well. Last week we walked to WMR elementary school and shared our photosynthesis books. I think the majority of the students really enjoy reading to the 2nd graders.  The students did a great job with the 2nd graders. I was very proud of their maturity and how well they interacted with the younger students.  

We only have a few more weeks and school will be out.  This week we will be conducting many of our dissections (fish, earthworm, mussel and fetal pig). I know some students are a little nervous about the events but we will get through it.  There is always one in the group that is will to cut while the others watch. We will soon start preparing for the final.  We will work on the study guide in class daily (10-15 minutes) and then the week of the final the students will take home the completed study guide.  This Friday is the 9th grade field day.  A flyer was sent home last Friday with the following information:

 The 9th graders are gearing up for field day.

Field day is Friday, May 8th

9:00-2:00

We need some help to make this day a day to remember:

450 individual size bags of chips

450 canned soft drinks

Lots of bottled water and ice

450 individually wrapped desserts.

Those of you who are able to contribute items, please take items to school and label them 9th grade field day.

If you are able to come and help please email me at clc0818@aol.com

9th Grade Parents:  Cindy and Stephen Naughton

  This week at a glance:

 M = Animalia Kingdom Vertebrates

T = Animalia Kingdom InVertebrates

W = Plant Lab

H = Plant Lab

F = 9th grade Field Day

 If you have any questions or concerns please contact me. 

 Thank you!

Mrs. Balkcom

April 27 – May 1, 2009

What’s Happening in Biology

for the week of

April 27 – May 1, 2009

 

Dear Parents and Guardians,

 

Hello Everyone!

 

I hope everyone had a great weekend. We are getting so close to the end of school and the students are ready to be out of school.  We are still busy working and covering concepts that will be on their High School Graduation Exam. Progress reports went home on Friday.  If you have not seen one please let me know and I will be happy to e-mail you their grade.  Please make sure you are keeping up with what is going on at school so that your child can finish up the year strong.  Our last unit should be interesting to the students because we will begin our dissections. I am in the process of planning 2 walking field trips. One will be to Wrights Mill where our students will read their photosynthesis books to 2nd graders. The next will be to the high school where we will visit Mr. Arrington’s aquatics program.  More information will come once the dates have been finalized. If you have any questions of concerns please let me know!

 

This week at a glance:

 

M = Animal Adaptations

T = Water, Carbon and Nitrogen cycles

W= Review for Ecology Test

H =  Ecology Test

F = Intro to Taxonomy Unit

 

 

Thank you!

Mrs. Balkcom

April 20-24, 2009

What’s Happening in Biology

for the week of

April 20 - 24, 2009

 

Dear Parents and Guardians,

 

We are currently learning about Biomes, predator –prey interactions, symbiosis and other ecology topics.  Most students enjoy learning about interactions that take place in the environment.  Students are working on a Biome project that is due this Friday.  They can complete the project in PowerPoint, Word, on a poster or even create a diorama. I do not care how they present their work as long as it has the following components:

 

a.       Name of your Biome

b.      Where is your Biome found

c.       Describe the climate including temperature and rainfall amounts?

d.      Include a map of your Biome

e.      Describe what the land looks like Include 3 pictures.

f.        Identify 10 animals found in your Biome include pictures of the animals.

g.       Identify 10 plants found in your Biome include pictures of the plants.

h.      2 interesting facts about your Biome

i.         Example of predator prey relationship for your Biome

j.        Energy pyramid showing relationships for your Biome

k.       Example of Symbiosis from your Biome

l.         Adaptations needed for plants and animals to survive in the biome

m.    Ecological concerns or issues

Students will be given about 15 minutes daily to work on this project. Students will receive progress reports this week. Please make sure that your child does not have any zeros related to work not being turned in.  We are getting to the short rows and will soon run out of time to get work turned in. I have attached  this guiding questions for this unit. All test are made form the guiding questions. Students who complete and study their guiding questions usually do better on the test.

 

This week at a glance:

M = Energy Pyramids

T = Team Field Trip to Shakespeare Festival

W =Symbiosis

H = Limiting Factors

F =  Adaptations/Natural Selection

 

Thank you for all or your support! If you have any question or concerns please let me know!

Mrs. Balkcom

 

April 13 - 16, 2009

What’s Happening in Biology
for the week of
April 13 - 16, 2009
 
Dear Parents and Guardians,
 
 I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend!  We will take our Energy Test on Tuesday. I will review with the students on Monday and answer any questions they may have about the study guide. Students are having a hard time staying focused on school work. They are ready for school to be over but we still have a lot of information to cover. Please take time to look for the progress reports every two weeks so that you will know how they are doing. Progress reports went home on Friday. Please sign and return for bonus points.
 
Last week the students created their photosynthesis story books. They are amazing!  The students are very creative and have impressed me with their creative skills.  I am in the process of making arrangements for them to visit a local elementary school where they can share their stories with other children.  Look for more details to follow.
 
This week at a glance:
 
M = Review photosynthesis and cellular respiration study guide
T = Energy Test
W = Intro to Ecology Unit.
H = Abiotic vs Biotic Factors
F = No School Teacher work day 
 
If you have any questions or concerns please contact me.
 
Have a great week!
Mrs. Balkcom

April 6 - 10 , 2009

What’s Happening in Biology
for the week of
April 6 - 10, 2009

 

 

Dear Parents and Guardians,

 

We will continue working on our Energy Unit. We will learn about the light and dark reactions on Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday, we will move to cellular respiration and the Krebs cycle. Finally, we will compare and contrast photosynthesis and cellular respiration.  The unit test will be Tuesday, April 14, 2009. The students will receive the study guide on Friday.

 

On a personal note, I would like to thank everyone for their prayers and support during this very difficult time in my life. In the early morning hours of Wednesday we lost my niece to CF. She was 28 and leaves behind a 7 year old son. We have much to be thankful for including having her as long as we did but we are human, thus selfish, and would like to of had her longer. Thank you for your patience while I have been out of class dealing with this personal loss.

 

This week at a glance:

 

M = Light Reactions

T = Dark Reactions and Calvin Cycle

W = Glycolysis and Transition reaction

H =  Krebs cycle and Electron Transport system

F = Photosynthesis vs cellular respiration

 

If you have any questions or concerns please contact me.

 

Thank you,

Mrs. Balkcom

March 23 - 27, 2009

What’s Happening in Biology

for the Week of

March 23 - 27, 2009

Dear Parents and Guardians,

I hope everyone had a wonderful spring break!   This week we will start our unit on Harvesting Energy.  In this unit, students will learn about energy transformations, chemical reactions, photosynthesis and cellular respiration.   Students will be required to complete a webquest on photosynthesis and cellular respiration where their final project will be to write a children’s book on photosynthesis and cellular respiration.  Students will receive a rubric this week on the project.  As always, time will be given to work on the project in class. They will only need to work on this at home if they do not use time wisely in class.

I have attached a copy of the guiding questions for this unit.  This is the information that all students will be tested on.  If students take time to answer these questions they usually score higher on the unit test.  This is the information I use to design test questions. 

Progress Reports will go home this Thursday.  If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me.

Thank you for all of your support!

Mrs. Balkcom

The week ahead:

M = Energy Transformations

T = Enzymes, Chemical Reactions and Activation Energy

W = Intro to Photosynthesis

H = Light Reactions

F = Teacher Work Day (No Students)

March 9-13, 2009

 What’s Happening in Biology
for the week of
March 9 - 13, 2009

Dear Parents and Guardians,

 

What a beautiful weekend. I hope everyone got a chance to enjoy it!  This is our last week before spring break and we will be completing our unit on heredity.  We will have our unit test on Friday. The students will receive their study guides on Tuesday.  If students make their own study guide from their completed study guide they can receive 5 points extra credit on their test grade.

Biology Lab Portfolio’s are due this Thursday. Students have been given 15 minutes of class time to work on portfolio’s for the last 2 weeks.  Many students have completed their portfolio, while others are procrastinating.  The portfolio is a collection of 7 student work samples from labs completed in class or activities we have completed with reflections.  I have attached the requirements.  If you have any questions or concerns please let me know.

The week ahead:

M = Pedigrees

 T = Stem cells and Cloning

W = Biotechnology/DNA Fingerprinting

H = Review Games

F = Unit 3 Test - Heredity

 

Thanks,

Mrs. Balkcom

March 2-6, 2009

What’s Happening in Biology
for the week of
March 2 - 6, 2009

Dear Parents and Guardians,

What a crazy weekend of weather.  I hope you and your family are safe and warm. I was very excited about the test grades this week.  Most students did very well, with a class average of 80 to 82 in all classes.  We have started our unit on heredity and will finish this unit before spring break. Progress reports will go out this Friday. Please sign and return for extra credit.

This week at a glance:

M = The Island movie (I will be out on a personal day)
T =  Punnett Squares
W = Co-dominance and incomplete dominance
H = Genetic Disorders
F = Pedigrees

If you have any questions or concerns please contact me.

Thanks,
Mrs. Balkcom