Science and Math Courses

Advanced Placement Biology / Biology Lab II

Grades: 11th, 12th
Prerequisites: Successfully pass Biology, Chemistry with a "C” or higher.   
Additional requirements: 3.0 GPA minimum
Fees:  $15 for supplies and materials
Dual Credit:  No

Advanced Placement Biology is designed to offer students a solid foundation in college level introductory biology based on the belief that many students are ready for college work while still in high school.  This course is aligned to the College Board AP Biology Curriculum Framework and is based on four Big Ideas, which encompass core scientific principles, theories, and processes that cut across traditional boundaries and provide a broad way of thinking about living organisms and biological systems.  Twenty-five percent of instructional time is devoted to hands-on laboratory work with an emphasis on inquiry-based investigations.  Investigations require students to ask questions, make observations and predictions, design experiments, analyze data, and construct arguments in a collaborative setting, where they direct and monitor their progress.

Upon completion of the course students should be able to have the conceptual framework, factual knowledge, and analytical skills necessary to deal critically with the rapidly changing science of biology.  Students who earn a qualifying score on the AP Biology Exam are typically eligible to receive up to eight college credits and placement in advanced science courses in college; please note that this varies by university, so please look into the qualifying AP Exams of the colleges to which you are applying.

Session / Days / Times	Course Length	Credit Information
Session IA M, Tu & Th: Monday  -  8:40-10:00 am Tues & Thurs  -  8:40-11:00 am	Full year	1.0 credit per semester

NMPED Course/Career Cluster or Academic Course of Study: Health Science; Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

Advanced Placement Chemistry

Grade: 10th, 11th, 12th
Prerequisites: Successfully completed Chemistry 1, unless teacher approved
Additional requirements: At least enrolled in Algebra 2
Fees:  $20 Lab fee per year
Dual Credit:  No

AP Chemistry is a high-level science class that is intended for students that have a deep interest in science and want to pursue a career in the fields of chemistry, biology, medical, or engineering.
This course is a challenging, rigorous, class that will prepare students for college science laboratory study through inquiry labs, mathematical based problem solving, and outside class work.  Students will cultivate their understanding of chemistry through inquiry-based lab investigations as they explore the four Big Ideas: scale, proportion, and quantity; structure and properties of substances; transformations; and energy.
The nine units of instruction students will become familiar with in preparation for the AP Chemistry exam are:

• Atomic structure and properties including the mole and periodic trends
• Molecular and Ionic compound structure and properties including bonding
• Intermolecular forces and properties
• Chemical reactions including stoichiometry and reaction types
• Kinetics
• Thermodynamics and its application
• Equilibrium and Le Chatelier’s Principle
• Acids and bases
• Electrochemistry

Additional Course Information:  This class is a high level, high rigor class designed to prepare students for college lab classes, the AP exam, and a career in a scientific field.

Session / Days / Times	Course Length	Credit Information
Session II Mon thru Fri - 1:20-2:50 pm	Full Year	0.5 credit per semester

NMPED Course/Career Cluster or Academic Course of Study: Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

Advanced Placement Physics C: Mechanics with Pre-Engineering Physics

Course Information Video

Grade: 11th, 12th
Prerequisites: Corequisite Calculus (Can be completed before this course)
Additional requirements: none
Fees:  none
Dual Credit:  No

AP Physics C is officially authorized by the College Board in mechanics.  The course also offers supplemental material, including enough electricity and magnetism to design and build battle bots for the final project.  This course is equivalent to calculus-based Physics at the university level and serves as the foundation physics course for students majoring in the physical sciences or engineering with the following:

• Motion, force and energy
• How to use the concept of torque to judo throw your teacher
• Hands-on lab activities with Nerf guns, Hot Wheel cars, and ultra-sonic motion detectors
• Designing and building small remote-operated vehicles

AP Physics is a laboratory course that is designed as a rigorous introductory college level physics course with laboratory activities.  The student examines mechanics at a level appropriate for college majors in the physical sciences and engineering.  It is recommended as a second-year physics course for the student interested in the physical sciences and/or engineering.  The student uses calculus to formulate physical principles to solve problems and applies inquiry to the study of matter and energy and their interaction.

Additional Course Information:  The student is encouraged, but is not required, to take the AP exam at the end of the school year.

Session / Days / Times	Course Length	Credit Information
Session II Mon thru Fri - 1:20-2:50 pm	Full year	1.0 credit per semester

NMPED Course/Career Cluster or Academic Course of Study: Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

Advanced Placement Statistics and Probability

Grade: 11th, 12th
Prerequisites: Successful completion of Geometry & Algebra 2
Additional requirements: none
Fees:  none
Dual Credit:  No

AP Probability & Statistics is the high school equivalent of a one semester, introductory college statistics course, but is taught over the course of a year in high school.  Students develop strategies for collecting, organizing, analyzing, and drawing conclusions from data.  Students design, administer, and tabulate results from surveys and experiments.  Probability and simulations aid students in constructing models for chance behavior.  Sampling distributions provide the logical structure for confidence intervals and hypothesis tests.  To develop effective statistical communication skills, students are required to prepare frequent written and oral analyses of real data.

Additional Course Information:  AP Stats Exam; The ability to earn this college credit supports careers in allied health fields (which fits the nursing schedule for senior nursing students), engineering and business.

Session / Days / Times	Course Length	Credit Information
Session IIIA Mon & Wed - 2:55-4:55 pm	Full year	1.0 credit per semester

NMPED Course/Career Cluster or Academic Course of Study: Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

Astronomy

Grade: 10th, 11th, 12th
Prerequisites: none
Additional requirements: Successful completion of Algebra I
Fees:  $20 Lab fee
Dual Credit:  No

Would you like to learn more about the universe such as galaxies, stars, and the Earth’s place in the universe?

• History and development of astronomy and physics
• The formation of the solar system and universe with most up to date theories
• Workings of stars and their life cycles
• Cosmology
• Comparative planetology and the basic working and use of telescopes
• The course is Project driven and uses a variety of learning methods to develop a more expansive, mathematical understanding of astronomy!

Astronomy is a laboratory course and is designed to help the student develop a clear understanding of the formation and workings of the universe.  This will include learning about our planet’s position in the solar system, comparative planetology, the workings of stars and the Sun, formation and identification of galaxies, tools of astronomy, and theories of cosmology and the big bang theory.  This class will use algebra and geometry to understand and support a deeper understanding of celestial mechanics, Kepler’s and Newton’s Laws, and methods of measuring stars.  The student examines scientific thinking and practices, and how science impacts individuals and society.  Literacy strategies are integrated throughout the curriculum, and a variety of activities will support student learning.

Additional Course Information:  May be opportunities outside of class time for telescope viewing and celestial observation.

Session / Days / Times	Course Length	Credit Information
Session IIIB Tues & Thurs - 2:55-4:55 pm	Fall semester ONLY	1.0 credit per semester

NMPED Course/Career Cluster or Academic Course of Study: Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

Forensic Science

Grade: 11th, 12th
Prerequisites: Biology and chemistry
Additional requirements: none
Fees:  none
Dual Credit:  No

Forensic Science is an advanced laboratory course designed for students interested in forensic science.  The philosophical, rational, and practical framework that supports a forensic investigation is presented via an integrated curriculum.  This course presents the unifying principles of forensic science, discusses the foundation of forensic science in the basic sciences and mathematics, and introduces the technique of integrating these areas in the determination of the cause of death.  The student studies forensic anthropology, biochemistry, chemistry, botany, entomology, and physics as well as problem-solving techniques utilized in analyzing a crime scene.  Other topics include ballistics, autopsies, mass disasters, epidemiology of environmental disaster, biological weapons as well as toxicology, microbiology, and pathology.  The instructor utilizes a variety of techniques (e.g., demonstration, lecture, laboratory case studies) and literacy strategies (e.g., reading, writing, speaking, research) to deliver the curriculum.

Session / Days / Times	Course Length	Credit Information
Session II Mon thru Fri - 1:20-2:50 pm	Full year	1.0 credit per semester
Session IIIA Mon & Wed - 2:55-4:55 pm	Full year	1.0 credit per semester

NMPED Course/Career Cluster or Academic Course of Study: Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics