Mrs. Averett's Classroom: Biochemistry and Photosynthesis

Learning Targets: 

• Demonstrate organizational skills such as keeping a daily calendar of assignments and activities and maintaining a notebook of class work.
  
• Keep your binder organized and updated. 
  
• Apply strategies before, during, and after reading to increase fluency and comprehension (e.g., adjusting purpose, previewing, scanning, making predictions, comparing, inferring, summarizing, using graphic organizers) with increasingly challenging texts. 
  
• Use graphic organizers to better understand the biochemical pathways discussed in class.
  
• Improve understanding of material by outlining material presented in class. 
  
• Use a variety of appropriate sources (e.g. Internet, scientific journals) to retrieve relevant information; cite references properly. 
  

• Apply active reading, listening, and viewing techniques by taking notes on classroom discussions, lectures, oral and/or video presentations, or assigned at-home reading, and by underlining key passages and writing comments in journals or in margins of texts, where permitted.  
• Stay on task during class, annotate provided PowerPoint notes and take additional notes during board discussions. 
  
• Outline provided materials and assimilate this information into material presented in class. 
• Apply knowledge of Greek, Latin, and Anglo-Saxon affixes, inflections, and roots to understand unfamiliar words and new subject area vocabulary in increasingly challenging texts.
•  Be able to define and correctly spell all vocabulary words.
• Actively participate in small-group and large-group discussions, assuming various roles. 
• Participate in class discussions  and ask questions when needed on a daily basis. 
  

• Show how chemical reactions (e.g., photosynthesis, fermentation, cellular respiration) can be represented by chemical formulas.  
• Understand that most cell functions involve chemical reactions.
• Explain what happens during a chemical reaction regarding reactants, products, direction and atom arrangement.
• Understand chemical equilibrium.  
  
• Understand the concept of a biochemical pathway or metabolic pathway.  List a few examples.  
• Understand metabolism and the two major categories of metabolic reactions.  
• Understand bond energy and activation energy and how these relate to endothermic and exothermic reactions.
• Be able to identify, draw and label graphs of endothermic and exothermic reactions. 
• Be able to list and explain the four factors that affect the rate of a chemical reaction. 
  
• Describe the function of enzymes, including how enzyme-substrate specificity works, in biochemical reactions.  
• Explain the effect of a biological catalyst on activation energy.
• Describe the function of enzymes, including how enzyme-substrate specificity works and the induced fit model.  
• Explain competitive and allosteric inhibition.
• Explain both negative and positive feedback and homeostatic control of metabolic processes.
• Explain the activity of an enzyme and how it is affected by general environmental factors such as temperature and pH.  Include a description of optimal conditions. 
  
• Explain how cells store energy temporarily as ATP
• Describe the molecular structures of ATP and ADP.
• Describe how cells release and store cellular energy using ATP and ADP. 
• Understand that different food sources contain different amounts of calories per mg and that the resulting amount of energy released during their breakdown differs.  This influences the amount of ATP that can be generated per molecule.
  
• Explain the functions of unique plant structures, including the cell wall and chloroplasts. 
  
• Be able to diagram a chloroplast, label all important structures and areas, and explain where the stages and steps of photosynthesis occur.
  

• Explain the interaction between pigments, absorption of light, and reflection of light.
• Explain the structure and function of Accessory Pigments and Photosystems and the role they play in photosynthesis

• Describe the light-dependent and light-independent reactions of photosynthesis.

• Relate the products of the light-dependent reactions to the products of the light-independent reactions. 
  
• Write the equation for photosynthesis and explain the process in detail. 
• Explain the light dependent reactions and the light independent reactions and explain how these two processes are linked.  Also identify the location, reactants, and products of each set of reactions.  Discuss the roles of ATP and NADPH. 
• Explain the structure and function of the Electron Transport Chain and the role it plays in photosynthesis.
• Explain NADP+ Reductase and the role it plays in photosynthesis
  
• Explain ATP Synthase and the role it plays in photosynthesis
• Explain Photophosphorylation and the role it plays in photosynthesis. 
• Explain the seven steps of the light dependent reactions in detail.  Be able to diagram this process to aid in your explanation. 
• Be able to explain the 3 main parts of the Calvin Cycle, explain the reactants and products used in this portion of photosynthesis as well as understand how many ATP and NADPH molecules are used in the Calvin Cycle per glucose molecule. 
• Explain rubisco.

• Revise, refine, and proofread own and others writing, using appropriate tools to find strengths and weaknesses and to seek strategies for improvement (using good writing methods). 
  
• State, elaborate, use an example and draw a connection when answering open - ended questions.  
• Design and conduct an experiment (including the calculations necessary to make dilutions and prepare reagents) demonstrating effects of environmental factors on photosynthesis
  

• Safely use laboratory equipment and techniques when conducting scientific investigations. 
  

• Manipulate variables in experiments using appropriate procedures (e.g. controls, multiple trials). 
  

• Collect, organize, and analyze data accurately and precisely (e.g. using scientific techniques and mathematics in experiments)

• Interpret results and draw conclusions, revising hypothesis as necessary and/or formulating additional questions or explanations.
  

• Use mathematics to enhance the scientific inquiry process (e.g., choosing appropriate units of measurement, graphing and manipulating experimental data)

• Write and speak effectively to present and explain scientific results, using appropriate terminology and graphics. 
  

• Use appropriate essay-test taking and timed-writing strategies that address and analyze the questions.  
  

• Demonstrate familiarity with test formats and test administration procedures to increase speed and accuracy. 
  
• Complete tests within permitted time limits. 

Online Resources:

Chemical Reactions

• Classzone 
  
• Reaction Rates and Why Reactions Take Time.  
• Endothermic and Exothermic Reactions with Graphs
• Explanation of Endothermic and Exothermic Reactions and Activation Energy
• Many examples of graphs.  Scroll down for some that should look familiar.  
• Reaction Rates with graphs
• Practice Quiz for endothermic and exothermic reactions!  Take this and turn in a print out of your score for extra assignment points!!!!
• More examples of graphs with explanations.  

Online Resources:

Bozeman Science:  Enzymes

Paul Andersen explains how enzymes are used to break down substrates. The correct shape of the active site allows a key/lock fit between the enzyme and the substrate. The enzyme catalase is used to break down hydrogen peroxide. The importance of cofactors and coenzymes is emphasized. Competitive and allosteric inhibition is also included.

Bozeman Science:  Positive and Negative Feedback Loops

Paul Andersen explains how feedback loops allow living organisms to maintain homeostasis. He uses thermoregulation in mammals to explain how a negative feedback loop functions. He uses fruit ripening to explain how a positive feedback loop functions. He also explains what can happen when a feedback look is altered. Diabetes mellitus is caused by an alteration in the blood glucose feedback loop.

Online Resources:

• Classzone  
• ADP to ATP animation

Online Resources:

Bozeman Science:  Photosynthesis