Being prepared for an exam is critically important and one of the most useful tools is the Exam Study Guide.  Generally, students can expect to receive their Biology Study Guide two weeks in advance of the midterm or final exams.  Plan your study preparations so that you spend 30-40 minutes a night reviewing the chapters, vocabulary and any research projects covered during the grading period.  Do not wait until the last minute to begin your exam preparation.

      The Biology Exam will not by any different from that of a regular quiz or assessment- just a bit longer. There will be approximately 90-100 short answer problems that will titillate your curiosity and excite your interest.    Students will find it very helpful to use their outlining skills during the exam in order to complete each essay.  You are going to just love it! 

What do I study?

I.     The exam will focus on the following textbook chapters and vocabulary:

Chapter Nineteen: Bacteria and Virus            Pages 471-493

Prokaryotebacillus         spirillium

Chemotrophphotoheterotrophphotoautotroph

Obligate autotrophobligate aerobeobligate anaerobe

Facultative anaerobebinary fissionnitrogen fixation

Conjugationendospore lytic infection

ArchaebacteriaCapsidbacteriophage

Lysogenic infectionretrovirus        vaccine

PrionsViroids        antibiotics

Coccus

Chapter Seventeen: The Fossil Record        Pages 417-445

Paleontologistfossil recordextinct

Index fossilhalf life        radioactive dating

Era        geologic time scale microfossil

Macroevolutionadaptive radiationconvergent evolution

Coevolutionpunctuated equilibriummass extinction

Relative datingperiod

Chapter Eighteen: Classification                                                Pages 447-465

        Taxonomy                    binomial nomenclature    Carolus Linnaeus

        Cladogram                    phylogeny                        domain

Chapter Fifteen: Darwin’s Theory of EvolutionPages 369-390

Evolution TheoryFossilartificial selection

Struggle for existencenatural selectionadaptation

Survival of the fitnesscommon descentvestigal organ

Charles DarwinJ.B. LamarckAlfred Wallace

James Huttonspeciation

Please note that these list might not include some vocabulary found in each or all of the listed chapters.  Do not use this guide exclusively but be sure to read each chapter carefully and practice using the questions at the end of each section.

Is There Anything Else I Need to Prepare?

     By all means, use your end of chapter practice quizzes which are found in the textbook, old “assessments” or research efforts and homework worksheets to help you prepare.  Index cards are an absolute MUST in reviewing select vocabulary. Use the chapter highlights for vocabulary!!!

The Biology Trimester Exam will not by any different from that of a regular quiz or assessment- just a bit longer. There will be approximately 40 short answer questions with a delightful mix of true/false and multiple choice problems.  There will be plenty of definitions taken from each of the chapter highlight sections as well.

What do I Study?

I.The exam will focus on the following textbook chapters:

Chapter One: The Characteristics of Life        Pages    15 - 34

Name the characteristics of life

Chapter Two: The Chemistry of Life…                             Pages    35 – 57

The Nature of Matter

Properties of Water

Carbon Compounds

Chemical Reactions and Enzymes

Chapter Three: The Biosphere…                             Pages    63 – 85

What is ecology?

Energy Flow

Cycles of Matter

Energy Levels, the food chain and food web

Chapter Four: Ecosystems and Communities…               Pages    87 – 115

The Role of Climate

What Shapes and Ecosystem?

Biomes

Aquatic Ecosystems-freshwater and marine

     Students should study ALL vocabulary at the end of each chapter found in the Chapter Highlights.  Construct a word bank using index cards and carry them with you at all times.  Students should also student the questions not only at the end of each section, but also the questions found in the Chapter Review.  This is very important.

Is There Anything Else I Need to do to Prepare?

     By all means, plan your attack carefully. Organize your study effort by assigning one chapter per night and plan on preparing at least five-seven days in advance of the exam date.  This will save you the hardship and anxiety of “cramming” the night or two before the exam which usually results in poor scores and bad breath.