Science

HEALTH

The course is designed to develop concepts, attitudes, and skills that lead to effective decision-making regarding one’s physical, mental, and social health.  Students must earn a passing mark in this course to meet the district graduation requirement in health.  Health Education is a one semester course, paired with World Geography.

Grade Level:  9th           Course is a JUHSD graduation requirement

BIOLOGY CP 

Biology is a one-year course that offers students a comprehensive background in the following areas: cell biology, genetics, ecology, evolution, and physiology.  Students will explore biological concepts through a variety of strategies which include laboratory work and other hands-on activities, discussion, projects, cooperative learning, note-taking, presentations and use of multimedia. There is also an opportunity to perform some biotechnology labs from the Gene Connection curriculum through a partnership with BABEC. Biology fulfills the one year Life Science requirement.

Grade Level:  9th-12th         Course is UC/CSU-d approved

CHEMISTRY CP

Chemistry is a one-year laboratory course that investigates the following themes: Atomic and Molecular Structure, Chemical bonds, Conservation of Matter and Stoichiometry, Gases, Acids and Bases, Solutions, Chemical Thermodynamics, Reaction Rates, Chemical Equilibrium, Organic Biochemistry, and Nuclear Processes.  The course stresses mathematical relationships in the study of the above themes.  

Grade Level:  10th-12th        Course is UC/CSU-d approved

PHYSICS CP

Physics is the study of the interaction between matter and energy.  In this one-year course, students will explore the world around them by looking at how things work, why they do what they do and how physical ideas can be used to improve the quality of life.  Laboratory experiments and other hands-on activities will be performed throughout each unit.  The course requires students to use algebra, some geometry and some trigonometry to solve mathematical problems.  However, it is also important that students be able to express physics concepts and their understanding of events using clear, concise and correct written and spoken language and then support these statements mathematically.  Physics is a must course for students who are planning careers in such fields as engineering, architecture, radiography, astronomy or other physical science, or mathematics.  It is also needed by the student who is contemplating entering the medical profession. 

Grade Level:  10th-12th         Course is UC/CSU-d approved

Prerequisites: “C” or higher in Biology CP; “C” or higher in Algebra 2, Math Course 3 CP, or concurrent enrollment in Algebra 2 CP

AP CHEMISTRY

This course is designed to be the equivalent of the general chemistry course usually taken during the first college year. For some students, this course enables them to undertake, as freshmen, second-year work in the chemistry sequence at their institution or to register for courses in other fields where general chemistry is a prerequisite. For other students, the AP Chemistry course fulfills the laboratory science requirement and allows for other courses. This course provides a laboratory experience equivalent to that of a typical college course. Students who successfully complete AP Chemistry attain a depth of understanding of fundamentals and a reasonable competence in dealing with chemical problems. The course contributes to the development of the students’ abilities to think clearly and to express their ideas, orally and in groups.

Grade Level:  10th-12th         Course is UC/CSU-d approved

Prerequisites: Teacher recommendation; “C” or higher in Chemistry CP

AP ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE

The goal of this one-year course is to provide students with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies to understand the interrelationships of the natural world.  Students will also be able to identify and analyze environmental problems and to examine alternative solutions for resolving and/or preventing them.  Environmental Science is a laboratory course that embraces a wide variety of topics from different areas of study.  The following themes provide a foundation for the structure of the AP Environmental Science course. 

• Science is a process
• Energy conversions underlie all ecological processes
• The Earth itself is one interconnected system
• Humans alter natural systems
• Environmental problems have a cultural and social context

Grade Level:   11th-12th                                                                             Course is UC/CSU-d approved

Prerequisites: Teacher recommendation; “C” or higher in both semesters of Biology CP, Chemistry CP, and Math Course 1 CP