Microscopes...

This week will focus on several things: Microscopes, Adaptations, and Natural Selection. Honors ICS will also be initiating the Planaria Regeneration Lab on Friday! All classes will be taking their Ecology Test on either Tuesday, June 2nd (Period 5) or on Wednesday, June 3rd (Period 1). The Review Sheet can be found HERE.

The 2-week calendar can be found HERE.

Weekly Calendar

We are continuing to cover Ecology in class. I will be out of the classroom this week due to a last-minute trip to tour Fort Sam Houston and the US Army Medical Center in San Antonio, TX. This is the 2-week calendar for this week & next, including alotted days for CST testing. Click HERE.

Succession, etc.

This week we discussed several concepts: population dynamics (the rise & fall of a population), ecological relationships (Who are your parasites???), and the re-establishment of a community once its been destroyed (Succession). You can find the in-class Succession PowerPoint HERE.

Pizza!

Period 1 Honors ICS students interested in participating in our Pizza Lunch on Thursday, May 14th should plan on bringing their $5 to me by Thursday morning. I am only placing orders for those who have paid for pizza. I will issue change based on the total bill.

I'll supply the soda and/or non-caffeinated drinks (lemonade & Kool-Aid). See you then!

Ecology - Week 3

During these next 2 weeks we'll be focusing on what happens to a population when certain effects change their habitat. You will have a graphing homework assignment, and will be doing some in-class Internet research and creation of a PowerPoint during Week Two.

All of this material is gearing you up for the administration of the CSTs (California Standards Tests) during the week of May 18th. For now, you may find the next 2-week calendar by clicking HERE.

This week!

This week & next we'll be focusing on Ecology, the study of the interactions of organisms in their environment.

The 2-week calendar can be found HERE.

Extra, Extra...Read All About It!

Extra credit that is! I have 2 opportunities for Extra Credit that I wanted to extend to students...


1) We are in desparate need of KLEEENEX Tissues (aka "napkins" as the students call them). 5 points per box, please! Limit 2.

2) Disney is coming out with a new movie called, "Earth." If you click on the word "Earth" you will be taken to the website to watch the Trailer and buy tickets! It premieres on Wednesday...EARTH DAY! Every ticket purchased in the first week is rewarded by Disney planting a tree! I will reward 10 extra credit points to anyway who can show a movie stub from the viewing, and an additional 10 points to anyone who goes during the 1st week (up to Wednesday, April 29th, I believe) and has the tree planted! What an awesome opportunity!

Last week of Term C

This week we'll be wrapping up our Chemistry Unit, and finishing out the week with our District SPA assessment. We will spend some time doing a Practice Test and reviewing before you take your exam at the end of the week.

This week's calendar can be found by clicking HERE.

Balancing Chemical Equations

We will be learning to balance chemical equations today in class. Click on this link to find the page that has the tutorial.

BALANCING CHEMICAL EQUATIONS TUTORIAL

Studying for your SPA Assessment...

You may wish to find the class PowerPoint presentations to look over. You can find them here...

Introduction to the Periodic Table

Lewis Dot Structures

Acid Base Powerpoint

Best of luck studying!

Extra Credit!

It's that time of the term when students have just received their 5-week progress report, and are celebrating or are being punished at home :-(

Nonetheless, many are asking about Extra Credit opportunities. A list of options can be found here (click "here").

For the extra credit article, you will need to search online or in a newspaper for articles related to Science. You can then attach the article to a 5-6 sentence summary, plus this cover page (the summary can be written right on this page). Each article + summary is worth 5 points; you can do 25 points of articles each term (5 articles total).

The Uni High School library has access to multiple subscriptions through LAUSD. You can find the links to the subscription services here. If all else fails, you can always see Ms. Whitham in the school library, and she'll point you in the right direction.

The next series of calendars...

Calendars for this upcoming week (Week of March 16, 2009) and the following week (Week of March 23, 2009) can be found by clicking here.

In addition, a special notice...on Tuesday, March 17th (Happy St. Patrick's Day) and on Wednesday, March 18th my 1st and 5th period classes will be meeting in Room H43 so that CAHSEE tests can be administered in my classroom. A note will be on the classroom door for all late arrivals!

ALSO: NOTE TO PARENTS
If your son/daughter did NOT complete their Periodic Table Project (due at the end of last week, March 5th or 6th), expect that their letter grade has dropped TREMENDOUSLY. In some cases, students who earned a ZERO for their project dropped from an "A" to a "F". Students had 5 weeks notice about this project, were shown grading rubrics, discussed ideas with their peers, received commentary from me on their ideas, and saw sample projects from years past. If they still chose not to do the project, their grade will reflect the consequences.

Periodic Table Game Ideas...

You can find a list of topics we've covered so far by clicking here. Try to include as many questions covering topics from this list as you can!

Let the games begin!

Don't forget...your Periodic Table Project (game) is due this week!

Period 1: due on Friday (3/6)
Period 5: due on Thursday (3/5)

Please remember to include a variety of questions about Chemistry, an answer key for your trivia questions (I want to see that you know the answers too), and a set of directions so that players will know how to play!

The next 2 week calendar can be found here (click on the word, "here").

Updated Calendar: Week of 2/23/09

I've updated this week's calendar to reflect what we'll be doing. You can find the updated version here (click on the word "here").

Also, I have changed the DUE DATE for your Periodic Table Game. It will now be due on either Thursday, March 5th (Period 5) or Friday, March 6th (Period 1). What game are you going to create????

Life's a Zoo!

The day is finally upon us...the Atomic Zoo is due tomorrow for 1st Period & on Tuesday for 5th Period! What have you come up with?

A Bee???

No, that can't be made by the Chemical Symbols!

A Koala?

Nope...that doesn't work either!

What about a CHUCKWALLA????

It's not like we're splitting the atom!

This is a common phrase, and many believe that an atom cannot, in fact, be split. The other day in Honors ICS a student defined an atom and mentioned that it cannot be split. But, it can. It produces quite a violent energy eruption during the process as well. Here is a video I found online that shows "How to Split an Atom at Home." Enjoy, but be careful...and wear your safety goggles! ;-)

Calendars: Weeks of 2/2/09 - 2/23/09

The calendar for Weeks 2/2/09 & 2/9/09 can be found here.

The calendar for Weeks 2/16/09 & 2/23/09 can be found here.

Important Due Dates...

Okay, so we've got a number of important things coming up, including...

- The Atomic Zoo: due either Thursday, February 12th (Period 1) or Friday, February 13th (Period 5)
- The Periodic Table Game Project: due either Thursday, February 26th (Period 1) or Friday, February 27th (Period 5)

Prizes (including a $25 gift certificate to a restaurant*) for the Atomic Zoo contest will be given for the following:
- Heaviest animal
- Longest animal name
- Most animals listed

Remember that spelling counts! Be sure to be creative with your animal names. Use scientific & common names!

* I will ask you to tell me the neighborhood in which you'd like to dine, and I will locate a few restaurants from which you can choose! *

Welcome!

Welcome to the start of the 2nd half of the 2008-2009 academic year! Hopefully by now you've learned a lot about adjusting to Uni's "different" schedule, and are well under way to developing the maturity that comes during high school. If you are a student in my class, I'm very happy to have you. And, if you're just browsing...well, then, so be it!

I hope that you're ready for some serious bum-kicking learning in this course. No Science is easy. Science at twice the pace is even less easy. You will be expected to participate in class. You will be expected to complete homework (at least give it a faithful try). You will be expected to study for quizzes & tests.

So sit back, strap yourself in, and get ready for a wild ride!

READY, SET, GO...

About your teacher...

I've taught high school Science for over 5 years...in Chicago, Los Angeles, and overseas. Last year was my first year teaching at Uni, and I had the pleasure of teaching both 9th grade ICS and 10th grade Biology. In June of 2008 I moved from LA to live in New York City for the Summer, and then continued on to live in Australia until this past December. After the holidays I returned to LA, and am happy to return to Uni as a teacher.

I am a Chicago girl at heart, having spent 18+ years of my younger years in the suburbs. I earned my bachelor's degree in Dietetics and Nutrition, Fitness & Health from Purdue University in Indiana. Go Boilers! I later went back to graduate school, and earned a Master's degree in Secondary Education from DePaul University in Chicago. My husband is a full-time MBA student at UCLA, so in 2007 we picked up to move to the west coast. I'm happy to call the sunny state of California my home now.

In my spare time I enjoy spending time with my husband and my Australian shepard dog, running on the beach (I'm training for my 2nd Half Marathon), kayaking, or traveling. Some of the more unique things I've done were conducting research at the Great Ape House at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, and researching chimpanzees who know American Sign Language (ASL) at The Chimpanzee & Human Communication Institute in Washington. Jane Goodall (chimpanzee behaviorist extraordinaire) is an idol of mine, and I had the pleasure of meeting her in 2007 when she visited Chicago on a book tour.

Some photos...

(After finishing the Sydney Half-Marathon)

(With my husband who likes to drive Indy race cars for fun)

(Kayaking in the Milford Sound, New Zealand)

(Meeting with Jane Goodall)