How to Help Your Students Succeed in AP Biology

I. What Content Will You Teach?

A. Our Approach

1. Simplify the Curriculum Framework to a manageable outline (4 pages)

2. Find where these topics are covered in the textbook

3. Highlight topics in the Table of Contents

4. Decide what “Illustrative Examples” we will use to enrich our course

5. Highlight where these are covered in the text

B. “You Must Knows” (from Test Prep) paired with the Curriculum Framework

II. How Can You Incorporate Science Practices?

A. A look at the Science Practices

B. Mathematics, graph and data analysis, modeling and more require practice!

C. Inquiry in Action: Interpreting Scientific Papers by Buskirk and Gillen

D. Biological Inquiry: A Workbook of Investigative Cases by Waterman and Stanley

E. Practicing Biology : A Student Workbook by Heitz and Giffen

F. University of Buffalo Case Studies (sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu)

III.What Will Your Labs Look Like?

A. Levels of Inquiry: Confirmation, Structured, Guided, Open

B. Move toward Guided Inquiry

1. Content needed = Knowledge Base

2. Teacher expectations should be high

3. Teach a technique—may do this using a “Classic” AP lab

4. Guide student questions in early labs

C. Some Systems for Inquiry

Pillbugs, fruit flies, floating disks, enzyme reaction chambers,

respirometers, dialysis tubing,

D. Sample Activities: Enzymes, Floating Disks

1. Evaluate using “Miniposter” presentations (see Brad Williamson’s

resources at

IV. Use Unit Exams to Develop a Core Knowledge Base

A. Reading Guides/Study Guide

1. How we use them

2. Evidence of student success

B. Cumulative Practice Exams (from Campbell Biology web site)

C. Use of test corrections, midterms and final examto build knowledge

V. Strategies for Success

A. Incorporate Science Practices in every unit exam

B. Write and include Grid-in questions

C. Draw connections all year long!

D. Campbell Test Bank as a resource to develop items Multiple Choice

1. Holtzclaw2 AP Biology Test Prep Guide: AP Test Prep Series: Biology

2. Hints to maximize scores

E. Multiple Choice Strategies (see Test Prep)

F. Essay Strategies

1. Essay “fragments” and Concept Generalizations

  • Precision
  • Peer grading/self-grading

2. Hints from the Readers

Become a Reader!

VI.Enrichment Activities

A. Articles, Books, and Case Studies

B. Team Building

1. DNA Day (In-school field trip)

2. Ethnic Dining

3. Video: Race for the Double Helix

4. Field Trip/Hikes

5. Pizza Review

VII. Be Ready on Exam Day

A. Take the entire secure practice exam yourself. Use those insights to inform

your teaching all year.

B. Provide your students with calculators they can use on the exam, the formula

sheet, and write questions to use them on each exam.

C. Study areas you haven’t covered (Reading Guides)

D. Use labs as an organizing review toolLabBench

E. Use released exams (2008, AP Central) But be careful!

Good: Lab Sets in Multiple Choice

Questions 2, 3 (Part b, c) and Q 4 (all parts) from 2012 exam

Bad: Discrete factual items

F. Know the format of the exam

1. ALL objectives link Science Practice to Content

2. 63 multiple choice items + 6 grid-ins (90 minutes)

3. Free Response: 2multi-part questions, 6 single-part questions (80 minutes)

VIII. Where to go for Help???

1. College Board at AP Central

2. AP Teacher’s Community

2. Campbell Biology (AP Edition) for our materials (Pearsonschool.com)

3.Teaching High School Science Through Inquiry by Douglas Llewellyn (NSTA)