Unit 1: The Language of Science

communicate and apply scientific information extracted from various sources (3.B)

evaluate models according to their limitations in representing biological objects or events (3.E)

communicate valid conclusions supported by the data through various methods (2.H)

Unit 2: Cell Structure and Function

describe the specialized parts of a cell and their specific functions (4.B)

compare and contrast prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells (4.A)

investigate and explain homeostasis (4.B)

investigate and explain energy conversions (4.B)

investigate and explain active and passive transport of molecules (4.B)

investigate and explain synthesis of new molecules (4.B)

Unit 3: Cell Growth and Differentiation

describe the stages of the cell cycle (5.A)

explain and model deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) replication (5.A)

explain and model mitosis (5.A)

relate the cell cycle to the growth of organisms (5.A)

examine and characterize specialized cells, including roots, stems, leaves, blood, muscle, and epithelium (5.B)

describe the roles of DNA, ribonucleic acid (RNA), and environmental factors in cell differentiation (5.B)

Unit 4: Disease and Immunity summarize the role of microorganisms in both maintaining and

disrupting the health of organisms (11.C)

compare the structures of viruses to cells (4.C)

describe viral reproduction (4.C)

describe the role of viruses in causing diseases (4.C)

describe the interactions that occur among systems that perform the functions of defense from injury or illness in animals (10.A)

recognize that disruptions of the cell cycle lead to diseases such as cancer (5.D)

Unit 5: Genes identify components of DNA (6.A)

describe how information for specifying the traits of an organism is carried in the DNA (6.A)

recognize that components that make up the genetic code are common to all organisms (6.B)

explain the purpose and process of transcription and translation using models of DNA and RNA (6.C)

recognize that gene expression is a regulated process (6.D)

identify and illustrate changes in DNA (6.E.)

evaluate the significance of changes in DNA (6.E)

Unit 6: Heredity predict possible outcomes of monohybrid crosses (6.F)

predict possible outcomes of dihybrid crosses (6.F)

predict possible outcomes of non-Mendelian inheritance (6.F)

explain and model meiosis (6.G)

recognize the significance of meiosis to sexual reproduction (6.H)

describe how DNA fingerprinting is used to study genomes (6.H)

describe how chromosomal analysis is used to study genomes (6.H)

describe how genetic modifications are used to study genomes (6.H)

Unit 7: Evolutionary Theory analyze and evaluate how evidence of common ancestry

among groups is provided by the fossil record and biogeography (7.A)

analyze and evaluate how evidence of common ancestry is provided by anatomical, molecular, and developmental homologies (7.A)

analyze and evaluate scientific explanations concerning any data of sudden appearance, stasis, and sequential nature of groups in the fossil record (7.B)

analyze and evaluate scientific explanations concerning the complexity of the cell (7.G)

analyze and evaluate the effects of other evolutionary mechanisms, including genetic drift, gene flow, mutation, and recombination (7.F)

Unit 8: Natural Selection analyze and evaluate how natural selection produces change

in populations, not individuals (7.C)

analyze and evaluate how inherited variation results in differential reproductive success (7.D)

analyze and evaluate how the potential of a population to produce more offspring than can survive results in differential reproductive success (7.D)

analyze and evaluate how a finite supply of environmental resources results in differential reproductive success (7.D)

analyze and evaluate the relationship of natural selection to adaptation and to the development of diversity in and among species (7.E)

Unit 9: Taxonomy define taxonomy (8.A)

recognize the importance of a standardized taxonomic system to the scientific community (8.A)

categorize organisms using a hierarchical classification system based on similarities and differences shared among groups (8.B)

compare characteristics of taxonomic groups, including archaea, bacteria, protists, fungi, plants, and animals (8.C)

Unit 10: Metabolic Processes compare the structures and functions of different types of

biomolecules, including carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids (9.A)

compare the reactants and products of photosynthesis and cellular respiration in terms of energy and matter (9.B)

identify and investigate the role of enzymes (9.C)

analyze and evaluate the evidence regarding formation of simple organic molecules and their organization into long complex molecules having information such as the DNA molecule for self-replicating life (9.D)

Unit 11: Interactions of Systems

describe the interactions that occur among systems that perform the functions of regulation in animals (10.A)

describe the interactions that occur among systems that perform the functions of nutrient absorption in animals (10.A)

describe the interactions that occur among systems that perform the functions of reproduction in animals (10.A)

describe the interactions that occur among systems that perform the functions of transport, reproduction, and response in plants (10.B)

analyze the levels of organization in biological systems and relate the levels to each other and to the whole system (10.C)

Unit 12: Stimulus and Response describe the role of internal feedback mechanisms in the

maintenance of homeostasis (11.A)

investigate and analyze how organisms, populations, and communities respond to external factors (11.B)

summarize the role of microorganisms in both maintaining and disrupting the health of both organisms and ecosystems (11.C)

describe how events and processes that occur during ecological succession can change populations and species diversity (11.D)

Unit 13: Interdependence interpret predator/prey relationships among organisms (12.A)

compare and contrast parasitism, commensalism, and mutualism, and competition among organisms (12.A)

analyze benefits and consequences of competition among organisms (12.A)

compare variations and adaptations of organisms in different ecosystems (12.B)

recognize that long-term survival of species is dependent on changing resource bases that are limited (12.D)

describe how environmental change can impact ecosystem stability (12.F)

Unit 14: Interactions in Ecosystems

analyze the flow of matter and energy through trophic levels using food chains (12.C)

analyze the flow of matter and energy through trophic levels using food webs (12.C)

analyze the flow of matter and energy through trophic levels using ecological pyramids (12.C)

describe the flow of matter through the carbon and nitrogen cycles (12.D)

explain the consequences of disrupting the carbon and nitrogen cycles (12.E)