Course title
Sci-Pre-requisite
college prep biology, geometryCourse description
This course starts with a unit on human impacts on the ocean (overfishing; global climate change; ocean acidification; ocean pollution; dead zones etc.). We then look at physical oceanograpphy (tides; currents; waves; plate techtonics; salinity; properties of water; pressure; light). We do a unit on plankton and another on macro algae. We then do a survey of some of the more commonly found marine fauna (Porifers; Cnidaria; Platyhelminthes; Annelida; Mollusca; Arthropoda; Echinodermata. Lastly we look at marine vertebrates (fish; reptiles and marine mammals) Ihave a 75 gallon cold water tidepool tank in my classroom. I halso have a Ca. scientific collector's permit; which I use to stock the tank. We try and do at least one lab per week. We also take five field trips during the year. Two whale-watching trips (out of Monterey; ca.)- one for gray whales another for humpbacked whales. We take a trip to see the elephant seals at Ano Nuevo State Reserve and a trip to Half-Moon Bay to go tidepooling. We also take a trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Syllabus for Marine Biology:
Douglas Mason
Class test: Marine Biology; authors Castro and Huber
Aug. 26 -28 Intro to course; class policies; seating charts; lab teams
Aug. 31-Sept. 4 Marine mysteries lab; Importance of the Oceans powerpoint lecture; Articles covings the Ocean’s importance (
Sept. 7-11 (Sept. 7 Labor Day Holiday) Finish importance of the Oceans powerpoint; Importance of the Ocean’s station lab; DVD-Eyewitness Oceans
Sept. 14-18 Field trip to Monterey Bay Aquarium; test on Importance of the Oceans; More reading articles
Sept. 21-25 Begin Powerpoint lectures on currents ;waves and tides; On-line research NOS currents lab activity; DVD Maverick’s waves
Sept. -Oct. 2 More powerpoint lectures on currents waves and tides; On-line TOPPS tracking buoys lab (computer modeling and how currents are plotted and followed using satellite imagery); DVD How climate is influenced by winds; currents and sea-surface temperatures
Oct. 5-9 Powerpoint lecture on Global climate change: Lab: How you can reduce your carbon footprint. DVD: “Too Hot Not to Handle”
Oct.12-16 Test on currents;waves;tides; and global climate change; Intro to plankton. Lab: Identifying live marine plankton; Begin powerpoint lecture on plankton
Oct.19-23 Continue plankton lectures; DVD: “Blue Planet-Seasonal Seas” Articles: “Ocean’s Invisible forest“; “ Phytoplankton; Grass of the Sea” and “Out of Sight “Activity
Oct. 26-30 On line lab: “Plankton- the Vertical Migrators” (Bridge Oceanography Website); Another lab with live marine plankton; Plankton test
Nov. 2-4 Taxonomy powerpoint lecture; Lab: “Classification Using a Dichotomous Key” Taxonomy reading articles
Nov. 9-15 Sponge Bob Squarepants TV episode; Sponges powerpoint lecture; Sponge lab: “The Uses of Spicules” DVD: “ The Shape of Life-Sponges”
Nov. 16-20 Continue sponge lecture and DVD; sponges and their contributions to the pharmaceutical industry; sponge reading articles
Nov. 23-27 Thanksgiving Recess
Nov. 30-Dec. 4 Sponge test; Cnidarian powerpoint lecture; Lab: Identifying live local cnidarians; cnidarian reading articles TV episode-”Friends-Monica is stung by a jellyfish”
Dec. 7-11 More Cnidarian lecture; Nematocyst lab; Cnidarian structure and function activity; Cnidarian reading articles; DVD-”Box Jellies”
Dec. 14-18 Cnidarian station lab; DVD-”Shape of Life-Cnidarians” Cnidarian test
Dec. 21 -Jan. 1 (Winter Break)
Jan4-8 Intro to worms (included in this unit will be the phyla Platyhelminthes; Nematoda; Echiura; Sipuncula; and Annelida); combined worm powerpoint; On-line activity on the 10 year marine microbe census; DVD “Shape of Life-worms”
Jan. 11-15 Field trip: whale watching-Gray whales; More worms lecture; Lab: Osmoregulation in worms; worm reading articles
Jan. 18-29 Test on worms; review for semester final; Semester final
END OF FIRST SEMESTER
Feb. 1-5 Mollusc powerpoint lecture; activity-“the shelled animals”; malacology lab-the structure and function of shells; reading article=Larvaceans; mucus and their contribution to deep sea food webs
Feb. 8-12 Mollusc station lab; continue powerpoint lecture; DVD-“The Octopus Show”; Lab: Squid dissection; Article- “Nudibranchs; Orchids of the Sea”
Feb. 15-19 Field trip: Elephant Seals at Ano Nuevo St. Reserve; Nudibranch lab; Finish mollusc powerpoint; DVD “Search for the Giant Squid”
Feb. 22-26 Test on Molluscs; Powerpoint lecture on Echinoderms; DVD-”The Shape of Life-Echinoderms”; Activity-”The Spiny-Skinned Animals”
March 1-5 Echinoderm station lab; Continue Echinoderm lecture; Echinoderm reading articles; On-line activity on the pentamerous symmetry of Echinoderms
March 8-12 Field trip to Half-Moon Bay; Observational lab based on our collections of invertebrates on the field trip; Echinoderm test; Introduction to Meiofauna; Meiofaunal lab with preserved meiofauna from our field trip
March15-19 Meiofauna lecture (no test); Algae powerpoint lecture; Seaweed lab; Kelp forest ecosystem article; Kelp forests on-line activity
March 22-26 Algae pressing lab; finish algae lecture; “Uses of Seaweed “reading article; Bring in products that have algal derivitives; Algae test
March 29-April 2 (Spring Break)
April 5-9 Fish powerpoint lecture; DVD-Great White Sharks of South Africa; On-line National Geographic article-”Saving the Seas Bounty” (April 2007); Lab: Using scales to determine a fish’s age
April 12-16 Continue fish lecture; Overfishing article; Lab; So; How Does Blood Flow through a Fish’s Tail?”; Reading article on the class Agnatha--jawless fish
April 19-23 Finish fish lecture; Lab: Shark dissection with the dogfish; DVD-”Blue Planet” Coelacanth reading article”
April 26-30 Lab: Gyotaku (fish prints); Test on Fish; Intro to marine mammals; Powerpoint lecture on marine mammals; DVD- Magnificent Diving Machines (elephant seals)
May 3-7 More marine mammal lecture; Lab: Marine mammal insulation with blubber mitts; DVD-Sea Otters; reading article-”What’s Killing Sea Otters?”
May 10-14 More marine mammal lecture; Lab: Diving adaptations-bradycardia; DVD “Mystery in Alaska-disappearance of Stellar Sea Lions” ; Reading articles
May17-21 Field trip: whale-watching (Humpack Whales in Monterey); Reading articles; DVD “Killer Whales; Wolves of the Sea”; Finish marine mammal lecture
May 24-28 Activity-evolution of marine mammals; Marine Mammals test; Intro to Human Impact on the Marine Environment; Lecture: Human Impact on the Marine Environment
May 31-June 4 Review for Finals Week
June 7-11 Finals Week
School Country
United StatesSchool state
CaliforniaSchool city
DanvilleSchool Address
9870 Broadmoor Dr.School zip code
94583Requested competency code
Lab ScienceDate submitted
Approved
YesApproved competency code
- LBIO
- Biology