Thursday, January 31, 2013

Jan. 31st 2013

Bio A 1st Hour

    Today we went over the presentations that were done and discussed the Flint Hills Quail and Upland Wildlife Federation meeting to be held tonight after the soup supper.

     Notes on the meeting. There has been a landowner donate land to allow us and the Wildlife Federation group to establish a habitat restoration project. We will be meeting with the Federation to let them know of our interest in doing the project and discuss the possibility of establishing a youth branch to their group. I explained to students about our overall goals with the Garden Growers group. We want to establish projects that students will receive grades for this year, but my hope is that our students will want to return to the organization next year and future years to participate in our community based activities. With the habitat restoration project, we will only be able to begin planting of the plot of ground this year, and future years classes and returning members will be responsible for doing the data collection of how the habitat effects the community of organisms within that area. Doing population studies, establishing trail cams to gain pictures of organisms in the area will be a vital part of the collection of information.

Kyle Hayes Prezi

Brody Sherman Prezi

Peyton Lerner Prezi


Bio B 3rd Hour

     Students today will be helping set up for tonights supper and working on project displays. We want to exhibit our work and show it off to the public who attends the wrestling event and soup supper. Following the supper, we will clean up from 7:00-7:20 and then proceed out to the meeting at 7:30. It will be a busy night and I hope it all goes smoothly.

Jodi Jensen Prezi


Anatomy 4th Hour

Anatomy students will be working on projects. I have some last minute preparation to do with the supper tonight and we will not have time to work on presentations tomorrow.


Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Jan. 30th 2013

Bio A 1st Hour

     Today we spent the first part of the hour covering sublimation as a topic of the water cycle. Students are encouraged to view or begin studying the material that has been presented in class for the up and coming test over the water cycle. The test will not be until after all presentations are made and the water cycle questions have been completed. Students were given the rest of the hour to finish the questions over the water cycle which should have been turned in today and then they were to make sure their presentation was completed as we will begin going over these after I complete sublimation tomorrow.

Bio B 3rd Hour

Students were to submit their Wildlife basic documents today. There were several who did not get this done and their grade will reflect that as well. Students were encouraged to review the pelts and skulls during class and then view the readings that were posted to the blog that were not done yesterday in class.

Anatomy 4th Hour


Powerpoint presentation- This powerpoint gives a very nice overview of the general characteristics of muscle tissue and how it works. We will be viewing this and the following links. We will not spend a great deal of time on them as you will be able to return for study by coming back to the links. This is merely for you to ask questions as we go through the presentation.

Muscle Presentation Textbook- This presentation takes us a little more in depth and shows the relationship between chemicals and the neural system that operates muscle tissue.

Jan. 29th, 2013

Bio A 1st Hour

     Today I began presentations of water cycle topics that students did not select. I covered two topics today and will cover the rest tomorrow. This was an attempt at our educational philosophy of I do, You Do, We Do. I wanted to make sure students were using presentation points and emphasize vocabulary definitions, and quantitative data when they present on Thursday. Students who missed my presentation can view the presentation at the link below.

Watercycle Presentation- Evapotranspiration, Precipitation

Bio B 3rd Hour

Today students will be viewing animal signs, various types of pelts, skulls, and tracks that have been preserved in rubber molds. I want students to be able to spend as much time as they need with the items. We will look at identification of them in a lab quiz later this week. Students should write down characteristics about the items as they will not be labeled when you take your quiz. There are sites over animals that were loaded to yesterdays blog. Students should begin looking over that material after they finish with the specimens. Check out the 28th blog post.


Anatomy  4th Hour.

Students in class should begin reading the unit material of the Biology Pearson Textbook from your iBooks app. Index Chp. 32.2 The Muscular System on page 1541 and begin reading through 1551. There I want you to complete the questions 1-5 on your own and then create a document to answer questions 6-8. For question 9, you can use either a 8.5x11 sheet of copy paper or you may use a poster board from the back of the room to create your drawing and identification of the action taken to cause a muscle contraction. You also may want to do some research to allow you to understand this action. There are several youtube videos that are great at doing this or other sites you may use.


Monday, January 28, 2013

Jan. 28th, 2013

Bio A 1st Hour

      Today we worked on questions and some worked on projects. We will begin presentation tomorrow by your instructor developing presentations over topics not selected by students in the class. Student presentations will begin on Thursday. I will present tomorrow and Wed.

Bio B  3rd Hour

     Some students worked today on the questions that are due Wed. There will be little class time given to complete the questions due to presentations over tracking and viewing of information located below. Each of the links shown below will be what we are going to be working on over the rest of the week.


Animal Tracking- This link will review some interesting information about how to look for signs of animal life and the various tracks that are left behind as they exist within a community.

4-H Observation Project- This has a lot of information that can be used in allowing you to understand how to set up a project to observe living things around you. Although this is a 4-H project, it can be easily modified to be used in any fashion you see fit.

Trapping & Furbearer Management- This document gives some of the history and management techniques of Furbearer Harvesting.

National Wildlife Health Center- A site that allows one to go and view various diseases that affect wildlife throughout our planet. Specifically go to the Disease link and you will be able to read and view information about wildlife and the various diseases that are more common.

Molly and Daniels Prezi


Anatomy & Physiology

     Today students are taking the test over functions of the Tibia & Fibula. We will begin on the muscular system tomorrow. After taking the test, you may work on your project with what time is remaining in class.

Friday, January 25, 2013

Jan 25, 2013

Test page for adding URL to blogsite

Payton Prezi

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Jan. 24th, 2013

Garden Growers Meeting Note- Attached is a link that contains information as a review over our Garden Growers meeting from yesterday. Once you open this link, it should be in your drive or google documents folder and I am also going to be sending out an email to all biology students to reach those who are not in class right now. You should read through it and make sure you are aware of what is going on.


1st Hour Biology A

     Students again today will be working on their electronic media presentation over the water cycle. I will begin presentations on Monday of topics that were not selected by students in first hour so all topics will be covered in class, through my presentations or yours as you give it to the rest of the class members.
      You should be remembering to work on your question assignment as it will be due in the middle of next week. Often we can only think about one thing at a time. You need to continue working on the questions to get this work done.You have two assignments that are due mid-next week. 1) Water Cycle questions which were assigned early last week and 2) your electronic presentation over the water cycle.

3rd Hour Biology B

     Students today will be working on the Basic Ecology questions that were assigned earlier in the week. They are now posted below. Students will have to open the document, make a copy and begin reading the information over Wildlife Ecology Basics to be able to answer the questions. There are only a few questions, but the answers to each will be lengthy.

Wildlife Ecology Basics Questions.


A & P 4th Hour

     Anatomy students will be using the document linked below over Tib/Fib functions to prepare for the tib/fib test on Monday. As a homework assignment, students should be working over the functions and articulations of the tarsal bones in the foot so they gain an understanding of where these bones are located and what functions they serve.

Tib/Fib functions

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

January 22, 2013

Bio A 1st Hour

     Students today are working on their presentations over the water cycle topic they selected. These presentations will be due next week sometime. I will be providing information later in the week as to when the presentations will be due. Students need get their presentation material ready and practice. Presentations should not be read, students should know what they have learned.
     As another presentation media tool, I have attached a brochure template to this posting below. Students will have to make a copy of it, name it and then they can modify it. This template will be used to produce our Garden Growers Brochure and students should pay attention to the top headings over each column to know where they are at in the brochure.
     Students do not have to use the brochure template as their presentation media, they can use powerpoints, prezi's, google documents or any other type of electronic media or they my use poster boards to provide their visual representation  of data they have accumulated.

Brochure Template

Bio B 3rd Hour-

      Students were given several assignments on Thursday that they need to continue working on. At the present time, I only have 6 of the narratives that were completed on Thursday shared with me. Students should be finishing up the narrative first and then continuing with the other two. Keep in mind your project work and continue working on it as well. You have a lot to finish up on prior to the end of this 2nd trimester.


A & P 4th Hour.

      Getting my teeth pulled on Thursday turned out to be a little harder on this old man than I thought. I did not get your test for today prepared and so I am providing the class time to study and we will take the test over the Femur on Wed. I still have students who need to make up past test, and will take the time to do so today in class as well. We will end up taking the tib/fib test on Friday and the rest of class that day will be used for your project work.


Thursday, January 17, 2013

Jan. 17th, 2013

Bio A 1st Hour- Today students will be working on the water cycle questions. They began this assignment yesterday and should continue working on it today as well. They have presentation projects over the water cycle that they need to be working on as well. As I did yesterday, I told students that it may be best to spend part of the hour working on their questions and use a portion of the hour to work on the presentation over the topic they selected within the water cycle.



Bio B 3rd Hour- We are going to begin our work in the Envirothon topic Wildlife. There are several sites listed below. With each link is an explanation of how we will use it and what you are to do. These are all assignments we will have over the last couple weeks of the trimester. You should complete your narrative first and then move on to the other two assignments. Once you finish the Narrative, share it with me. I am not saying it should be completed by the end of the hour, in fact, the best will take some time to be creative with but I will discuss its due date with you on Tuesday when we return.

Wildlife Terms- Students are to use this document to create a narrative leading the reader on an adventure into nature. You do not need to use all the terms within the Wildlife Terms document, but the usage of these terms should make sense and be used order to gain understanding about the adventure you are creating. Have fun with this, but idea behind it is to understand more of the terms covering our understanding of Wildlife.

Winter Adaptations- Students are to read the article Winter Adaptations. From this information students should create a document and write a summary of it including major terms and the understanding that the author intended on you gaining by reading it.

Wildlife Ecology Basics- Students should read this article and answer the questions linked below.

Wildlife Ecology Questions



A & P - 4th Hour

    Anatomy students are working on projects today. Keep in mind that before you will begin any project, you will need to share your research and your project details describing the target audience, how you will present your material and the steps and procedures of the project or experiment.
     They will be taking the test over functions of the femur on Tuesday when they return. Students may print from their iPads on the printer in our room if they want a study copy of the material posted to the blog yesterday over the functions of the femur.


Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Bio A

Bio B

A & P 4th Hour

     I have decided to allow you to have your work day on projects on Thursday since I will be gone from school, and we will have our test over the functions of the femur on Tuesday when you return. We have several that are sick and this will give everyone a chance to catch up. Below are the notes for the functions of the femur.

Functions of the Femur

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Jan. 15th 2013

Bio A 1st Hour

     Listed below is the first set of questions over the water cycle. You will need to go to your documents or drive folder, or open the document and then go to desktop version to make a copy of the questions to make them your own. Then you will be able to modify them and put your answers into the questions.

Watercycle Questions 


Bio B 3rd Hour

     Today we will be looking at test questions and get through as many as possible. These are selected off of the material I gave last week in the document with the assessment prep material from the McGraw Hill publishing company. These items allow us to look at a wide variety information and we will try to get through as many as possible.
     We will be taking the Kansas State Assessment tomorrow. For those students not present in class tomorrow, we will use seminar and first lunch on Thursday to get the test taken as I have to go have teeth pulled on Thursday. If a student in this class cannot get the test taken either Wed. or Thurs., you will have to come back in May to take it because that is when the next window is offered by the State of Kansas.

A & P 4th Hour. Students wanted to put the test off until Wed and so we have done so, but will be testing Thursday over the structures of the Femur, post superior and inferior portions of it. I will probably have the functions of the femur done by the end of class today or by the beginning of class tomorrow.

Monday, January 14, 2013

Jan. 14th, 2013

1st Hour Bio A

     Today we are going to begin reading information about our water cycle. This is an important part of our environment and is a key component to all living things. In our water unit, we will be using several documents to understand the water cycle itself and then how watersheds control the water and distribute it throughout our planet.

What is the Water Cycle

Read the link above and then begin answering the questions that I have for you below.

3rd Hour Bio B




4th Hour A & P
     Here is the information accumulated over the coxal bone or os coxa.

Coxal Bone Functions

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Jan. 9th, 2013

Bio A 1st Hour- Students are to continue to work on projects.


Bio B 3rd Hour- Review of Genetics and introduce Cell Cycle.

Cell Cycle & Notes


4th Hour A & P - Students will be taking a test over the integumentary system and then we will be starting the lower extremities of the appendicular skeleton.

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Jan. 8th, 2013

1st Hour Bio A
     Students will today be working on projects. We want to see some of these products done by Friday night to set one or several display booths out for Friday nights game. Students are reminded that their assignment from yesterday are due by the end of the hour on Wed., or tomorrow. As I was going through your Nutritional Projects document you began at the start of this project. Many of you have not added or put down additional information that you have found or projected ideas that you are planning on doing.
     I want you to go back to these documents and put todays date and give a brief synopsis of how or what you are doing with your material. Be ready for a brief oral presentation of your ideas and projected dates for completion as I come around to each group today.

3rd Hour Bio B

     We are beginning our preparation for State Assessments. Today we will be looking at Genetics as our focal topic. We will be watching several videos in class and presentations over the Genome web site. I am also going to include a couple site we will be working from over the next week to gain understanding of terms we need for the test. We will also be looking at some samples of questions that you may come into contact with as we take our test.

State Assessment Items- This document has some sample type questions covering information that may be relavent for the state assessment. There is also a link that provides us with terms that the KSDE has included as important to know or be aware of through our studies in biology.

Human Genome Information- This site allows you to look into various terms related with the genetics of humans and have information related to you as a reader through various forms.


Friday, January 4, 2013

Jan. 7th, 2013

Bio A First Hour

     As you begin today, I want you to remember that you still need to be working on your projects that we were given time on Friday to work on. Our goal date of the 11th of Jan. for some of our work to be viewed is still in reach. I want you to open the link below termed Idling Assignment, and read all three documents that are listed. Select one article to complete the assignment work on. It is important to read all three documents because they will give us a better understanding of the validity of the material. When you get this done, you need to submit this to me by Wed., as only parts of the hour may be used on Tue and Wed to get this completed.


Idling Assignment

Bio B 3rd Hour

     As with first hour, you should continue to think about and be working on your projects, but I want you to as well look at the reading of automobile idling. You will have to complete the assignment as well as listed above for first hour.

A & P 4th Hour

     We are going to be discussing answer to questions 25-31 on page 1568 of the reading assigned on Friday. We will be taking our quiz over this material on Wed. Today we will briefly talk about the answers to these questions and then I will post my answers to them on the blog at the end of the hour. They are listed below, but I have not made them accessible until after we get through with our discussion.

Answers to 25-31 questions. 

Thursday, January 3, 2013

Jan. 4th, 2013

 Welcome Back !!!

     I hope you had a wonderful break and got a lot of time to spend with your family and friends. I truly enjoyed the time I got to spend with my kids, wife and new puppies we have at our home. I also spent a considerable amount of time reflecting about the first half of the year and began to sketch out the plans for the 2nd half of my classes. We did a lot of great work but a lot of it was establishment of plan we intend to implement in the very near future. We have a lot of work to do and I hope you have come back to school ready to put our plans in action.
     As many of us do as we age, ( you'll know what I mean in future years), we begin to look at our life with all of its virtues as well as flaws. We make New Years resolutions that promise to decrease our weight, increase the involvement in healthy habits and attempt to plan financially for the future of our lives. I know students in high school tend not to look into their life so in depth, but maybe we should. Maybe we should plan better study habits, challenge ourselves with more invigorating educational subjects, and look to see what effect we can have on our planet. I am hoping, if nothing else happened during the first half of our school year, that we looked into opening our eyes to the effects we have as a population on our planet. Many of you began good works with many environmental issues as well as nutritional studies that can benefit our school and living communities.
     I am looking at doing several things differently in the next few months and mostly because of the work that you as students put in during 2012. I have several articles for you to read on Monday and begin doing some analysis of how we are impacting our planet. We are no longer purchasing water bottles at our house due to the plastic oceans we studied about in December. We will look at other alternatives as I hope you will as well on how we can use water more effectively. You may notice me walking to or from school as we return mainly due to the problem that I have in the cold weather of it taking longer to thaw my windshield and let the car warm than it does to actually drive to school. My health and our environment will be better off with me walking although I know this is not an option for many of my students.
     Lets just keep challenging ourselves to see how great of an effect we can have on our school, community and our personal lives over the next few months.

Bio A- 1st Hour
     Today I will be handing back your diagrams you began in December as I want you to either get them into an electronic media or continue working on them in your colored pencil form. Lets get the plans put together and get these projects operational in the next several weeks.

Bio B- 3rd Hour
     As with first hour, I will be giving you back your project works and have you continue working with the concepts until they are competed. I want them to get into the public eye soon.

A & P 4th Hour
     Today I want you to look into a short system we will be covering prior to getting into the muscles. I want you to read on your iPad the textbook Biology by Pearson over the chapter 32.3 Skin- The Integumentary System, pages 1554- 1558. Answer the questions on page 1559, 1-5, 6a., 6b., 7a., 7b., and 8 a & b. Create the questions 6-8 on a google document and make your answers there. When you complete the assignment, submit it to me. This will be due by the end of the hour on Monday, but we will spend little time working on them during class. We will also be looking at answering some of the questions on page 1568 during class on Monday, as you might want to take a look at them prior to class on Monday.