Honors Biology Course Info

Below, you will find specifics regarding Honors Biology.  This will include what to expect throughout the course and what extensions an honors student will receive in this class that is not taught in the general level class.  If you have questions regarding the following, please contact the course teacher.  

Curriculum Content  

Honors Biology is one of the first science classes that a student will take that has a strong vocabulary component.  Students learn the relationship between ecosystems, living structures and functions, genetics and evolution, and molecular biology.  Using this, students will see how everything around us is connected and how organisms change through time.  Inquiry-based labs are used to prepare students for upper-level science classes.  Throughout the course, students will have to think critically to make predictions, draw conclusions, find solutions, and will make connections between pieces of knowledge they learned in pre-requisite science classes with knowledge learned in this class. 

Honors Biology is a pre-requisite for Honors Human Anatomy & Physiology and AP Biology, so the vertical alignment may be applied to more than one course.  To prepare for Honors Human Anatomy & Physiology students will learn about cell structures and functions, biochemistry, and life processes. To prepare for AP Biology, students will demonstrate knowledge of the science practices such as modeling, applying mathematics, scientific investigation,  making connections. 

Standards and Objectives  

Extensions to Prepare for Honors Human Anatomy & Physiology 

• Dehydration synthesis and hydrolysis reactions 
• More in depth understanding of organelle physiology 
• More practice with microscope use, specifically calculating field of vision, specimen size, and use of dissecting microscopes 

Extensions to Prepare for AP Biology 

• Dehydration synthesis and hydrolysis reactions 
• More in depth understanding of organelle physiology 
• More practice with microscope use, specifically calculating field of vision, specimen size, and use of dissecting microscopes 
• Dihybrid crosses 
• Epistasis 
• Chi Square calculations 
• Hardy-Weinberg equation 

Curriculum Plan  

There are eight main units within the Biology curriculum. Please note that an individual teacher may elect to divide these units into multiple assessments.  

Click here to access the Parent Curriculum Documents.   

Instructional Materials and Methods   

Students will receive additional instruction and modified assignments in reference to the extension topics.  They will be responsible for the general biology curriculum as well as mastery of the extension topics. 

Through Honors Biology students will be performing: 

• Additional/ Modified Labs
• Additional/ Modified Performance Tasks
• Modified Assignments

Assessment  

In Honors Biology, students will have various course/unit assessments.  These include quizzes, labs, projects, performance tasks, and tests that will also assess the extension topics as well as the NC essential standard objectives.  Honors Biology students are expected to show proof of in-depth understanding through written expression, on labs, performance tasks, and formative assessments.                                                                                                                                            

All students will be required to complete the NC EOC Test of Biology worth 25% of the overall course grade. The EOC will not include honors extensions.