Advanced Placement Biology - Course Overview

Sep 30, 2026

Uploaded by Stanley

Advanced Placement Biology is a one-year, non-integrated, introductory college-level biology course for 11th and 12th graders. The curriculum builds understanding through inquiry-based investigations across evolution, cellular processes, energy and communication, genetic information transfer, ecology, and interactions, with 25% of instructional time dedicated to hands-on laboratory work. Course content is organized around four Big Ideas: Evolution, Energetics, Information Storage and Transmission, and Systems of Interactions. Unit 1 Chemistry of Life establishes chemical foundations, water’s properties, macromolecule organization, and how monomers bond into polymers.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

Course Overview

Course Description and Structure

Four Big Ideas

Unit 1: Chemistry of Life

Sample Unit Assignments and Lab

Advanced Placement Biology Overview Information | Title of Course: Advanced Placement Biology | | | --- | --- | | Course Author(s):
John Hayden, Amy Mastromonaco, Laura Valentine | Schools where the course will be taught: Redwood, Tamalpais, Archie Williams | | Length of Course: 1 year | Subject Area and Discipline: Science | | Grade Levels: 11th and 12th | Is this course an integrated course? No | | Is this course being submitted for possible UC honors designation? No | Are you seeking UC approval? If so, in what area (A-G)? | | Prerequisites (required or recommended): Living Earth (required), Physiology (recommended) | Co-requisites (required or recommended): Chemistry | | Living Earth provides students with foundational knowledge about biology, which will be built upon in AP Biology. Chemistry also provides students with foundational knowledge about molecules, which is essential for fully understanding biology at the molecular/cellular level. Physiology is often useful for providing students with additional knowledge and context about living systems, which helps some students to be successful. | | | Check all that apply:✅ UCA-G course
❏ Graduation Requirement ( specify the requirement this course meets)✅ Elective
✅ Honors/AP
❏ CTE | | Course Overview: AP Biology is an introductory college-level biology course. Students cultivate their understanding of biology through inquiry-based investigations as they explore the following topics: evolution, cellular processes, energy and communication, genetic information transfer, ecology, and interactions. This course requires that 25 percent of the instructional time will be spent in hands-on laboratory work, with an emphasis on inquiry-based investigations that provide students with opportunities to apply the science practices. The course includes two essential components: the science practices and the course content. The science practices are central to the study and practice of biology. Students develop and apply the described practices on a regular basis over the span of the course. The course content is organized into commonly taught units of study that provide a suggested sequence for the course. These units comprise the content and skills colleges and universities typically expect students to be proficient in to qualify for college credit and/or placement. This content is grounded in big ideas, which are crosscutting concepts that build conceptual understanding and spiral throughout the course. The course content is focused on 4 Big Ideas ● Big Idea 1 : Evolution The process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life. ● Big Idea 2 : Energetics Biological systems use energy and molecular building blocks to grow, reproduce, and maintain dynamic homeostasis ● Big Idea 3 : Information, Storage and Transmission Living systems store, retrieve, transmit, and respond to information essential to life processes ● Big Idea 4 : Systems of Interactions Biological systems interact, and these systems and their interactions exhibit complex properties. | Unit 1: Chemistry of Life | | | --- | --- | | Unit Summary:
This first unit sets the foundation for students to understand the chemical basis of life, which is needed for mastery of future areas of focus and provides students with a survey of the elements necessary for carbon-based systems to function. Students learn that water and the properties of water play a vital role in the survival of individuals and biological systems. They also learn that living systems exist in a highly complex organization that requires input of energy and the exchange of macromolecules. This unit also addresses in detail how and in what conformations molecules called monomers bond together to form polymers. The structure of monomers and polymers determines their function. In the units that follow, students will need to understand and explain the interaction and bonding of atoms to form molecules.
Essential Questi

FAQs

What is the overall focus of AP Biology and how is student learning structured?

AP Biology emphasizes inquiry-based investigations across major biology topics and requires hands-on laboratory experiences. Learning is organized around science practices and course content arranged in a suggested unit sequence.

What are the four Big Ideas that organize the course content?

The course focuses on Big Idea 1 Evolution, Big Idea 2 Energetics, Big Idea 3 Information, Storage and Transmission, and Big Idea 4 Systems of Interactions.

What does Unit 1 Chemistry of Life cover?

Unit 1 builds the chemical foundation for future topics, emphasizing water’s properties, complex organization in living systems, macromolecules, and how monomers bond to form polymers that determine function.

Sep 30, 2026

Uploaded by Stanley