Explore Biology | Resources | AP Biology Teaching & Learning Resources

Welcome! Here is a wide variety of resources to help you learn biology. These items may be Web links or books or magazine articles. Please ASAP if any of these links have expired

Essentials

AP Curriculum Calculator
A resource for teachers developing their curriculum. This is an Excel spreadsheet. Input the total number of teaching days that you have in your school year and the spreadsheet will automatically calculate how many days you can devote to each unit, roughly based on the percentages recommended in the College Board's AP Biology Course Description "Acorn" book.
Document as a ZIP file (may improve download).
Campbell Biology
Web site supporting our Campbell Biology 5 textbook.
At the PHSchool Web site, click on "Student Registration" & then choose "New User" & use the following "Access Code":
Student: SSNAST-BAEDA-RAJAH-BOSON-NADIR-LEGES
Be sure to choose a login name & password you will be able to remember all school year.
The Biology Place
This is an early version of Prentice Hall Biology resource to support their textbooks. It still has good info & practice questions on it. Access is free.
The Value of Taking AP Biology
Why take a course as hard as AP Biology? For many reasons! But just one is that it is good training for your brain and your future academice career. Research shows that students who take AP classes are far more successful in college, no matter what grade they receive in the course or on the AP exam. The challenge of the course and the emphasis on critical thinking, study skills and increased content knowledge prepares a student for college work. AP is a predictor of college success...read the report...
A Note to Parents: How to Help Your Child Succeed in AP Biology
You can help your child succeed in this course through five easy steps!
UnitedStreaming Video on Demand
Very good educational video clips. Use these access codes (updated 9/30/2006):
LOGIN: halfhollowhills
PASSWORD: darwin
AP Essays
Previous AP essays with answers and analysis posted at the College Board Web site
AP Essays
Previous AP essays with answers and garding rubric
More AP Essays
Previous AP essays with answers and garding rubric

Scientific Method

LabWrite
A great resource for teaching students how to write lab reports
What to include in a Scientific Paper
A good overview

Chemistry & Biochemistry

Diffusion animation
A cool animation -- molecule movies -- illustrating the process of diffusion. It's rather mezmerizing.
Properties of Water animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the properties of water.
pH animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the concept of pH.
Protein Structure animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating protein structure

Cells

Studying Cells Tutorial
A short walk through the study of cells
Apoptosis
An overview of the process of programmed cell death.
Anton van Leeuwenhoek
A brief biography of the man who started the study of cells.
Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2003: Peter Agre & Roderick MacKinnon
These 2 scientists won the Nobel Prize for "discoveries concerning channels in cell membranes". Agre for "for the discovery of water channels" and MacKinnon "for structural and mechanistic studies of ion channels". The "Information for the Public" is a must read. But see if you can find the biological error in the 2nd paragraph (this was written by a science writer, not one of the Nobel laureates.)
Cell Membrane animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the properties of the bilipid cell membrane.
Cell Anatomy animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the anatomy of the cell. Be sure to click on each organelle to learn more.
Transport Across a Membrane animations
Narrated animations on transport of material across a membrane: contransport, active transport, endocytosis & exocytosis
Lysosome animation
Narrated animation on structure & function of lysosomes
Cell Division animations
Narrated animations depicting mitosis, cytokinesis & DNA replication
DNA Replication animations
Narrated animations depicting DNA replication, the Hershey & Chase experiment, and the Meselson & Stahl Experiment

Enzymes & Metabolism

Free Energy animation
Simple animation illustrating the free energy changes & activation energy needed in a reaction.
Conformational Change animation
Simple animation illustrating the conformational changes in an enzyme-mediated reaction.
Enzyme animation
Simple animation illustrating how an enzyme speeds up biochemical reactions.
Allosteric Inhibition animation
Simple animation illustrating allosteric control of an enzyme.
Biochemical Pathway animation
Simple animation illustrating a biochemical pathway with the enzyme-directed transformation of pyruvate to ethanol.
Biochemical Pathway animations
Good narrated animations on the concept of biochemical pathways & feedback inhibition of enzymes.
Enzyme animations
Simple animations showing enzyme function & factors that affect enzyme function.
Enzyme animations
Clear, simple animations showing enzyme function & factors that affect enzyme function.
Enzyme animations
Interactive animations showing enzyme function & factors that affect enzyme function. Good interactive graphs illustrating factors affecting rate of enzyme function
Glycolysis animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the process of glycolysis.
Kreb's Cycle animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the Citric Acid Cycle.
Electron Transport Chain animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the mitochondrial membrane and electron transport.
Photosynthesis Light Reactions animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the photosynthesis light reactions.
Photosynthesis Dark Reactions animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the photosynthesis dark reactions.

Genetics

Gene animations
Narrated animations depicting various aspects of gene expression & protein synthesis
Control of Gene Expression animations
Narrated animations depicting various aspects of gene expression, including lac operon & tryptophan repressor
Meiosis animations
Narrated animations depicting various aspects of meiosis, including a comparison of mitosis vs. meiosis
Meiosis Square Dance
Pure fun!

Biotechnology

Biotechnology animations
A broad array of narrated animations depicting various aspects of biotechnology, including restriction enzymes, RFLPs, PCR, Southern blots & micorarrays

Classification & Taxonomy

Bacteria
Fun animations illustrating the world of bacteria
Classification Lab
A wonderful Virtual Lab Book created by the Biology I students at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, DC. Direct links to Domain Eukarya, Domain Archaea, and Domain Bacteria

Evolution

Evolution
Extensive material which accompanies Evolution series from PBS. Can purchase DVD set from 5 hour program.
Scientists Hesitant to Debate Intelligent Design
Radio report on Ken Miller's success in debating Intelligent Design
Miller's Evolution Resources Web site at Brown University
Extensive list of resources promoting evolution and exposing Inelligent Design fallacies.
Teaching Evolution: A State-by-State Debate
An article at National Public Radio giving an overview of the evolution debate in multiple states as of 2005.
The Scopes Monkey Trial, 80 Years Later
In July 1925, the small town of Dayton, Tenn., became the site of the clash of religion, evolution and public school education. NPR looks back at the Scopes monkey trial and examines where the battle over evolution stands today.
New Scientist's Special report on Evolution
Eighty years after the Scopes trial drew battle lines over evolution and creationism, Darwin's theory is under renewed attack, this time from "intelligent design". A great collection of resoucres fostering the teaching of evolution.

Plants

Photosynthesis Light Reactions animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the photosynthesis light reactions.
Photosynthesis Dark Reactions animation
An exceptional series of animations -- molecule movies -- illustrating the photosynthesis dark reactions.

Animal Systems

Animal Behavior

Behavior of the Beautiful Betta splendens
The purpose of this paper is to categorize behavior of the betta in a format consistent with the major categories of animal behavior found in
Visual display by male fighting fish
Good photos detailing levels of aggressive behavior in Betta
About the Siamese Fighting Fish
An overview from About.com

Ecology

Animal Behavior
Animal Systems
Biotechnology
Cells
Chemistry & Biochemistry
Classification & Taxonomy
Ecology
Enzymes & Metabolism
Essentials & Administrative
Evolution
Molecular Biology & Genetics
Plants
Review
Scientific Method