Welcome

Hello and welcome to biology! I’m so excited to get to learn about you and your goals
while we embark on a knowledge seeking journey together! We will be touching on your
previous knowledge and digging a little deeper to understand more about those topics, along with
a few new ones too!

Topics that we will cover include:

1st Semester 2nd Semester

 Lab safety, Scientific  Central Dogma of Biology

Inquiry Review  Cell Cycle and Replication
 Properties of Life  Genetic Variation and Meiosis
 Ecosystems  Inheritance and Alleles
 Population Dynamics  Natural Selection and Adaptation
 Ecosystems and  Speciation
Biodiversity  Evolution’s Evidences
 Energy and Matter in
Ecosystems
 Hiearchal Organization of
Life
 Cellular Metabolism

Expectations

 Be kind and think of others 

 Follow all lab safety rules
 Bring your materials to class
 Be responsible for your work
 Follow all school and classroom rules and procedures
 Do your best! I know you’re capable of great things!

Classroom Rules

1. No bullying- includes repeated name calling, unwanted physical touch, and unwanted
verbal communication
2. Follow lab safety rules
3. Do not distract others from learning- if they are looking or listening to you, they aren’t
able to receive information from me
4. Sit in your assigned seat and follow classroom procedures

Lab Safety Rules

1. Do not bring any food, drink, or gum into the classroom.

2. Do not put anything in your mouth.
3. Do not smell anything directly (you will learn a technique called wafting in class that is
appropriate to use in the lab).
4. No horse playing (this includes moving about the room, running, or anything that could
put yourself and others at risk).
5. Wear appropriate personal protective equipment on lab days (goggles when specified
by teacher, hair tied back, close toed shoes, protective aprons, and no loose clothing when
using an open flame).

Routines and Procedures

 Papers and Materials:

o Grab your materials for the as you enter the classroom from the material table.
o Papers to turn in will be placed in the Turn-in tray

 Entering and Leaving the classroom:

o Enter quietly, grab the day’s materials, sit in your assigned seat, and begin on
your Bellwork projected at the front of the room
o Do not get out of your seat until I say “See you tomorrow!” Then you may leave.

 Tardys:
o You are tardy if you are not inside the classroom by the time the bell rings. You
then get a Tardy.
o 3 Tardys and you receive lunch detention.
o 10 Tardys and you receive ISS.

 Makeup work:
o If you have an excused absence you may go to the Make-Up work file, look in the
file from the appropriate date you were absent, and get the materials and
instructions out of it.

 Restroom Requests/Hall Pass Requests:

o You are allotted 5 passes each semester.
o To use one you must ask teacher permission, I will sign it, and you will need to
carry it with you until you return to the classroom.

 Individual work:
o Individual work (includes exams and tests) will be done with zero talking.
o Must stay seated and raise your hand for any questions.

 Group/lab work:
o Students will move to the assigned work space when instructed, keep their voices
at a conversation level, and only talk to their own group members.
o Students will always follow the lab safety rules

Consequences
 First Offense: You will receive a verbal warning, and we will come up with a solution to
the situation.
Second Offense: Your parents will be notified that the solution has failed, and we need to
come up with one collaboratively.
Third Offense: You will be sent to the office to discuss why your solutions to the
problem have failed and what will happen in the future if you have more offenses, as well as
having your parents notified.
*NOTE: If you endanger yourself or anyone in the classroom, repercussions will be
skipping to Third Offense consequences.

Academic Policies

Grading Scale:

A 100-90% B 89-80% C 79-70% D 69-60% F 59-0%

Assignments:

 Tests, Projects, and Exams- Tests, Projects, and Exams (Final Exam) will be worth 40 %
of your grade.

 Classwork- Active readings, lab papers, bellwork, and anything else you are asked to do
that don’t fall in the other two categories will be considered classwork. Classwork will be
worth 35% of your grade.

 Quizzes- Quizzes will be worth 25% of your grade. You will be allowed to use notes and
vocabulary frames on quizzes.

(test/project/exam points x 0.4)+(classwork points x 0.35)+(quiz points x 0.25)=Grade

Late Work and Makeup Work

 Makeup work- Makeup work will be available to students, who have excused absences, in
the makeup work file under the date they were absent. The makeup work will be due 3
days after the excused absences. Acquiring this work will be the responsibility of the
student. If a student is absent for a week or more, special arrangement will need to
be made with the contact of parents.
 Make up Labs- Unfortunately make up labs will not be available for students because of
the special materials, equipment, and instruments needed.

Parent/Guardian Communication/Involvement

Please, feel free to contact me anytime via email or school phone for any questions,
comments, or concerns. I want your kiddos to excel as much as you do, so please don’t hesitate!
Let me know if you would like to speak in person and we can schedule a meeting time
convenient for us both. Thank you for letting me invest in your children’s futures!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Anna Dillard
(Insert contact info)

Please sign and return the second copy of the syllabus for my files, stating that you have read and
fully understand the information contained in the syllabus. Also please enter information for your
preference of how you would like to be contacted by me in the future (in an emergency, the
information you have on file in the office will be used).

Student Signature ________________________

Parent Signature _________________________

Contact Information

Home Phone _________________ Cell _________________ Email ____________________