Course Description
This Honors Biology course is designed to prepare STEM interested students for college-level sciences. This course includes labs.
If something affects everything you do every single day of your entire life, it is probably worth learning about. That is true of the living things in our world. Honors Biology is the study of the intricate and complex systems that make life possible on our amazing planet. From the tiniest single-celled organisms to the largest mammals, we share our planet with diverse and fascinating life forms. They are everywhere, and they affect us in amazing and wonderful ways.
In this honors-level course, we will learn about the basic unit of all living things – cells, and we will discover the ways that different cell types work together to form different organisms. We will discover the ways genes direct the construction and function of living things. Once a foundation is in place, we will take a deep dive into the worlds of microorganisms, plants, and animals, including human beings, as well as the ecosystems and communities that they inhabit.
Join me in Honors Biology as we learn about living things, their interactions with one another, and their impact on everything we do.
Course Structure
A typical week contains one 1-hour live Zoom class and four daily lessons. The live classes may include a review of the previous week’s topics, an introduction to the coming week, and/or a case study that brings the current topic to life. Although it is always best if students attend the live classes, I will post the recording of the class so that students who can’t attend can watch it later.
The daily lessons will include an online introduction as well as a section to read in the biology textbook. I use many audio and video recordings to help students learn the correct pronunciation of new terms as well as to reinforce content from the book. Since this course provides a high school credit, there will be some lab activities, one or two lab reports, and a few additional short writing assignments. Students generally spend about 30 minutes per day doing coursework.
Honors Biology will cover the same topics and use the same textbook as Biology but with more detail and depth. A higher level of student performance is expected of honors students, and grading criteria will be more stringent. Honors students will do more reading, writing and research, and an additional lab report may be assigned.
Who should enroll?
This class is for students in grades 9-12 who have exceptional abilities and high achievement levels. Contact Dr. Joseph with any questions regarding enrollment.
Technology Requirements
- High speed, broadband Internet
- Sound card, microphone, webcam (for live sessions)
- Streaming video capabilities to watch recorded lecture
Evaluation and Feedback
I respond to emails containing questions from students within 24 hours, and I make every attempt to grade assignments within 48 hours. Lab reports and longer essays are graded within one week.
Communication
Parents and students may contact me with any questions or concerns. My goal is to partner with you in your student’s education, so if at any time you have questions or concerns, my virtual door is open.
Jeni Barbas –
My son really enjoyed Dr. Joseph’s Honors Biology class. Dr. Joseph has a great enthusiasm for science and it showed throughout her presentations. The labs were informative and my son enjoyed the hands-on experiences and even learned that he liked writing lab reports! Dr. Joseph was quick to respond to questions and made accommodations when appropriate. My son retained the information he learned from Dr. Joseph’s weekly live class sessions and the short videos she shared that complimented the textbook readings. Would definitely recommend this class to others!
Ben –
I really enjoyed taking Dr. Joseph’s class. She was an excellent teacher and made everything interesting, exciting, and easy to grasp. Going into this class, I was not a fan biology, but after taking her class, I was astonished at how much I actually enjoyed it and wanted to continue learning! Dr. Joseph did an incredible job of explaining topics during class. She made even the most complex subjects understandable. After hearing Dr. Joseph explain the material during class, I was able to easily understand the reading assignments. Dr. Joseph is an incredible teacher and I would definitely recommend this class!
Debra Bell –
Beginning in 2021-22, Dr. Joseph is teaching Honors Biology for Aim Academy. The following reviews are for Dr. Terri Kanner and we wish her well in her future endeavors. We are sorry to see her move on to other things, but we are grateful Dr. Joseph is just as capable and beloved by students.
Alexa W. –
This class was incredible! I was really nervous to take this class at first because it was honors level. I never thought that I would be able to actually understand such complex things, but I was! Also, I have never taken or even seen a class that uses guided notes, but they are so helpful. They point out the information that you need to focus on so you don’t go memorizing things you don’t need to know. I’m going to miss this class next year. 🙁
Luke –
This is a great class. I loved learning from Dr. Kanner. The class was fun, informative, and entertaining. I would recommend this class to anyone who wants to take biology next year. Dr. Kanner did a very good job of explaining all the topics we learned about from animal behavior to photosynthesis, and everything in between. The assignments were perfectly balanced between fun and challenging. Dr. Kanner always responded quickly to any question I had. Dr. Kanner also added lessons and information to respond to the coronavirus pandemic so that we could better understand what was happening in the world around us. Honors Biology was my favorite course this year!
Leigh Stern –
I took Dr. Kanner’s class in the 2017-2018 school year, and was very pleased. Looking for someone who would continue my love of biology as I remember liking it in Middle School, Dr. Kanner certainly did keep us engaged and interested in the material. The use of a college-level textbook helped in keeping the material serious as well as offering as much information as one could possibly want on the subject, and I also very much appreciated the periodic quizzes that we took to make sure our understanding of the material was solid. I especially liked doing the labs since they were formulated for an AP class and thus were quite engaging while also being a challenge. Although they all took some time to complete (I usually spent a minimum of 2 to 2.5 hours on any given lab), I felt that my understanding of the subject increased after I had completed my reports. Dr. Kanner always was quick to respond and helpful in answering any questions that I might have. As I decided against taking the Biology SAT subject test I couldn’t say whether or not this class would have prepared me for it. However, what I can state with absolute certainty is that if you want a class where the teacher continually brings in real-world examples into any subject you study, makes you genuinely excited for each upcoming class, and makes you feel entirely confident in tackling the homework assignments, then this is definitely a fantastic class. I would absolutely recommend it.