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This course is organized based on the four big ideas and corresponding enduring understandings as listed in the Curriculum
Framework. The four big ideas are: Big Idea 1: The process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life. Big Idea 2: Biological
systems utilize free energy and molecular building blocks to grow, reproduce and to maintain dynamic homeostasis. Big Idea 3:
Living systems store, receive, transmit and respond to information essential to life processes. Big Idea 4: Biological systems interact,
and these systems and their interactions possess complex properties.
The AB Calculus class is designed to cover what students study during a college calculus class. The curriculum has been designed by
the College Board through consultation with teachers and college professors from across the nation. Students review functions and
students examine limits, derivatives and their applications, and integrals and their applications
AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE
The AP English Language and Composition course is designed to help students become skilled readers of prose written in a variety of rhetorical contexts and to become skilled writers who compose for a variety of purposes. This college-level course provides students with opportunities to write about a variety of subjects and to demonstrate an awareness of audience and purpose. The course will also enable students to read complex texts with understanding and to write prose of sufficient richness and complexity to communicate effectively with mature readers.
This course will cover the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the
natural world, to identify and analyze both natural and human-made environmental problems, to evaluate the relative risks associated
with these problems, and to examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them.
AP Physics is an algebra-based, introductory college-level physics course. Students cultivate their understanding of Physics through
inquiry-based investigations as they explore topics such as fluid statics and dynamics; thermodynamics with kinetic theory; Pressure
Volume diagrams and probability; electrostatics; electrical circuits with capacitors; magnetic fields; electromagnetism; physical and
geometric optics; and quantum, atomic, and nuclear physics.
AP Statistics provides students with the opportunity to explore data and determine how the results from those data can be applied. The course is designed for college-bound students, whether they plan to major in a mathematics field or not. The four themes studied in AP Statistics are exploring data, planning a study, anticipating patterns, and statistical inference.
Advanced Placement United States History is designed to enable students to develop analytical skills and acquire a thorough
knowledge of United States History. The approach of the course includes, but is not limited to, the following elements: development of
substantial knowledge of social, cultural, political, economic, and military events relevant to the history of the United States;
development of assessment and interpretive skills; development of geographic awareness; the development of analytical thinking
skills, and the development of communication skills through the writing of coherent, analytical essays
AP STUDIO ART: 2D DESIGN
This course is designed for serious art students who have an interest in applying to Arts programs in college. The objective will be to
build and document a strong body of work called a portfolio. Development of the artistic process in assorted media is the goal. College
application and portfolio review process will be a component of this course. Also, in this course students will practice advanced
drawing techniques, including but not limited to, realistic observational drawing, linear perspective, form and space. These skills will
then be applied to cartoon and comic illustration and stylistic narrative art.
AP CHEMISTRY
This course is structured around the six big ideas articulated in the AP Chemistry curriculum framework provided by the College
Board. This framework is based on six big ideas. Big Idea 1: Structure of matter, Big Idea 2: Properties of matter-characteristics,
states, and forces of attraction, Big Idea 3: Chemical reactions, Big Idea 4: Rates of chemical reactions, Big Idea 5: Thermodynamics.
Big Idea 6: Equilibrium A special emphasis will be placed on the practices, which capture important aspects of the work that scientists
engage in, with learning objectives that combine content with inquiry and reasoning skills.
This course is designed to be equivalent to a first semester introductory college computing course. In this course, students will develop
computational thinking skills vital for success across all disciplines, such as using computational tools to analyze and study data and
working with large data sets to analyze, visualize, and draw conclusions from trends. The course is unique in its focus on fostering
student creativity. Students are encouraged to apply creative processes when developing computational artifacts and to think creativity
while using computer software and other technology to explore questions that interest them.
The AP English Literature and Composition course is a college-level course that engages students in the careful reading and critical analysis of imaginative literature. Through the close reading of selected texts, students can deepen their understanding of the ways writers use language to provide both meaning and pleasure for their readers. As they read, students should consider a work's structure, style, and themes, as well as such smaller-scale elements as the use of figurative language, imagery, symbolism, and tone. The course includes intensive study of representative works from various genres and periods, concentrating on works of recognized literary merit. The works chosen invite and gratify rereading.
This course analyzes the fundamental concepts of geography and helps students develop critical thinking skills through the
understanding and application of the field. This course focuses on the key concepts of geography as a field of inquiry dealing with the
following areas of geography respectively, cultural, political, agricultural, industrial, rural, economic, city and urban planning as well
as population problems.
This course will introduce students to the systematic and scientific study of behavior and mental processes of human beings and
animals. Students are exposed to the physical facts, principles and phenomena associated with the major subfields within psychology.
Students will also learn about the method psychologists’ use in their science and practice.
This college level course addresses the nature of the American Political system, its development over the past 200 years, and how it
works today. There will be an examination in some detail of the principle processes and institutions through which the political
system functions, as well as some of the public policies that these institutions establish and how they are implemented.
This course is part of the AP Capstone Diploma Program from College Board. It’s based on two one-year long courses; AP Seminar
and AP Research. Rather than teaching subject specific content, these courses develop student skills in research, analysis,
evidence-based arguments, collaboration, writing and presentations.
In AP Research, you’ll explore various research methods and complete an independent research project. Your project can build on a
topic, problem, or issue you covered in AP Seminar or on a brand new topic of your own choosing. At the end of the project, you’ll
submit your academic paper and present and defend your research findings. These components contribute to the overall AP Research
score.