BRIAN MASON

Biology, AP Biology, WDS Biology

Homeroom: Rm. 227

Phone: (907) 742-3164

Hello students and families! This email is being sent to all students, but since not all students have an email address in our system, I have CC'd parents as well. Parents, please forward this message to your student if they didn't receive it. Students, I miss you all. Seriously, I genuinely hope that we're able to get back to school sooner than later. I don't have any information as to when that might be realistic, though. As such, I wanted to provide you with a basic update and I'll follow that up with further information as soon as I receive it. With regards to our class, starting tomorrow I am going to start providing learning opportunities via email and my website. Due to the state-mandated closure, we are not currently allowed to make these assignments required - as such, all work will be optional. That said, these tasks will be focused on helping you to review previous material in preparation for the AP exam and in reinforcing understanding of science practices. If the closure lasts beyond next week, we will then move to a more formal class structure which will include new material and required assignments. I don't yet know what that will look like, but again, I'll provide information as soon as possible. With regards to the AP exam, it is my understanding that the College Board will be making an announcement tomorrow outlining their plan for AP testing. Previous announcements made it clear that they intend to still offer AP exams this spring, but the exams might be delayed. They also mentioned that there might be an option for at-home testing, but nothing is certain yet. The good news is that we have already covered the vast majority of the AP curriculum. We have a little bit of material to finish up on our evolution unit and we need to spend some time on cell communication, but otherwise most of our remaining time will be spent on review and focused science practices. Unfortunately we will likely have to forgo a couple labs that we had planned, but otherwise we're in pretty good shape. As far as the individual lab report is concerned, that is now an optional assignment. I realize that completing an independent investigation may be difficult without having access to lab resources and without being able to refine ideas through conversations with me. If you still want to do an independent lab, you are certainly encouraged to do so. As a reminder, directions and examples are located in a shared folder in your Google Drive account. I will be hosting an optional videoconference via Zoom on Monday. I will send out a link to join via both Remind and email along with a scheduled time. I'm aiming for 10am on Monday, but that is subject to change. No special program is required to use Zoom. I think that's all for now, but please feel free to email me if you have questions. In the meantime, find a way to get outside for some fresh air and exercise. According to the CDC it is safe to get out for a walk/etc. as long as you maintain appropriate social distancing practices. I hope to see you all soon! Mr. Mason