33 Monarchs ...

I saw four Monarch butterflies today.  Two just outside of the school and two in our flower beds at home in Holland.  This makes a total of 33 Monarch butterflies for the month of September.  I am at school every day but outside a lot on the weekends.  I feel a little better about the migration south.  I did not see any all summer which was a concern.  We are still in a fall flower bloom so maybe we will see some more in October.  Our two chrysalises are still there but one has turned almost clear ... hoping it will come out tomorrow ... will have Sue Neal keep an eye on and maybe get a picture tomorrow since she starts her retirement.  We rode to school together on her last day.

Today at school was a eight period day.  We went over some lab data in AP Biology and worked on pedigrees in Selected Topics.  Computer programming is starting their first programs in qBASIC.

Tomorrow is the inquiry part of our respiration lab in AP Biology ... Good luck!

Genetics and Modes of Inheritance

Friday in Selected Topics, we continued our study of genetics.  We went over multiple allele problems and sex-linked.  We worked through two story problems during class.  Next week, we will wrap up our  genetics study with a few pedigree problems.

In computer programming we have started our study of qBASIC with small group demos.  This will continue next week as we will begin our first series of easy problems.  So long to our Karel programming ... a logic trainer.

This weekend, I saw a couple of Monarchs heading south and our two chrysalises in the garden are still there.  One has turned darker and I think about ready to come out and stretch its wings.

Tomorrow is Sue Neal's last day before retiring ... we will have to ride together.  I will be different with her not at school.  For over 23 years we have both worked there.

One more week until fall break and the end of the first 9-weeks period.   We need to squeeze in a lot!

Another field trip ...

Today, most of my AP Biology students were gone to SKYPAC for a play.  I had four students in each class so we tried out the LOGAL software - photosynthesis.   Below, Quinn uses three computers ... looks like the Matrix.

In computer programming, we had our small test to finish KAREL.  Next week we will start our Microsoft qBASIC problems.  We will be in qBASIC for awhile ... lots of problems, graphics, programmed animation, arrays and more.

Tomorrow, Selected Topics continues our genetics unit ... sex-linked traits, ABO blood type problems and pedigrees.

Respiration Lab today ... chrysalises still there.

Even though a few students were out for a late announced field trip, we did the first half of the cellular respiration lab (one of thirteen required labs).  Students used germinated pea seeds to measure aerobic respiration by measuring oxygen consumption.  We used respirometers under water with the carbon dioxide removed into a solid  with the help of potassium hydroxide.  The results were good and we will analyze the data on Monday since another field trip is scheduled for Thursday ...  Really! We only have class when we can't find anything else to do, or so it seems.

Students in my 5th period computer class showed me their solutions for Karel can Add and Mission Impossible.  Microsoft qBASIC on tap for the end of the week.

I saw on Monarch today for a total this season of 21.  Sue Neal and I mowed the yard ... rain forecasted for tonight.

Both chrysalises in the garden still there ...

Monarch, Tawny Emperor and Tests!

Today we met all eight periods.  We had our first tests in AP Biology and in Selected Topics in Science.  All went well.  Also, today in computer programming we started checking our last Karel programs ... test on Thursday and Friday as we move into Microsoft qBASIC.

Tomorrow we have our first required lab tomorrow.  The respiration lab has two parts.  Tomorrow is the directed portion of the lab using respirometers and germinated peas seeds.  There is an inquiry extension later.

Bozeman Science overview if you want to review the procedure ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9o_VdToClE

After school,  I checked the two chrysalises in our garden ... still there.  Two monarchs were flying around our butterfly plants and coneflowers ... a male and a female.  The female let me get a few pictures ...
Also, a tawny emperor (I think ...) was in the garden basking on a tomato.

Monarch, Gulf Fritillary and tests tomorrow ...

Tomorrow, we have our first tests in AP Biology and in Selected Topics.  All tests are abbreviated since we are only in class for 45 minutes each.  Computer programming will wrap up their Mission Impossible problems ...

Worked outside today after church planting some coneflowers and cup plants I had in pots.  A few butterflies flying around.  Got a picture of what appeared to be a new female Monarch on one of our butterfly plants.  Also, a picture of a Gulf Fritillary (their larva feed on passionflower (maypop) which is in abundance here) on a coneflower.  Both were beautiful and on the move.

I moved three more Monarch caterpillars from the flats near our house to nearby milkweed plants.  This makes a total of 52 caterpillars moved over the past three weeks.  It will soon be getting late for the trip down to Mexico.

Great Blue Lobelia blooming ...

John, Claire and their dog Cloe took a walk on Saturday afternoon.  The flowers in the shaded valley behind our house has a spring fed stream that runs year round.  Cloe was excited to romp in the water and get a drink.  The orange jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) is blooming on the banks of the stream and several Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) were in bloom nearby.  Looks like the bumblebee had been visiting the jewelweed. Both below ...  Also, further below was a small brownish butterfly ... maybe an Appalachian Brown or Little Wood Satyr or Carolina Satyr ... still undecided ... 

Monarch Chrysalis ...

This week we found two chrysalises in our garden.  Sue Neal found one in our wildflower patch (bee balm) and when we went down to look at it, we found another in the nearby asparagus bed. Both a little over an inch in length and we have periodically checked them morning and afternoon hoping to see a Monarch emerge.

We have now moved a total of 51 Monarch caterpillars from the flats of milkweed seedlings by our garage milkweed we planted earlier in the summer.  It is getting late and we are hoping they make it before the nectar flow dries up.

The two pictures at the top is the chrysalis on asparagus and the picture in the bottom is the chrysalis on our bee balm ... you can see monarch wings developed ... will update later!

PLAN test today and fall flowers ...

Bushhogged some of the pollinator/wildlife food plots this evening and will try and plant tomorrow before it rains.  I saw a second group of night hawks feeding near our house ... probably eating some of the many green darners.  There were about two dozen and there were zipping around like barn swallows on steroids ... diving and soaring, it was a great show!  Our fall wildflowers are starting to move past the peak blooming period ... lots of wingstem and goldenrod.  Pictures from our farm below.

Today at school, our sophomores took the PLAN test to establish a baseline for their ability to preform on the ACT test.  My junior flex class took a practice ACT.  They worked hard and took it seriously even though it was a practice ACT.  It will be scored and returned to them to analyze at a later date.   My computer class met fifth period and we are now about two days ahead of my other computer class which will miss some class time again because of a pep rally.

My AP classes met for about 50 minutes each at the end of the day.  We finished cell communication ... signal transduction, apoptosis and more.  Next Monday we have a test on Chapters 2-10.  Tuesday will be the start of the respiration lab, using respirometers and germinated seeds to measure aerobic respiration (oxygen consumption).  A little harder to do the labs on our new schedule.

Tomorrow in Selected Topics in Science, we are working on protein synthesis, how proteins are made and what happens when there are mistakes (mutations) in your DNA.  Genetics is around the corner next week and after fall break we will wrap up our biology unit and head to earth science.

Now 44 Monarch caterpillars and testing tomorrow ...

Today in Selected Topics, we went over the data we generated from our Logal Photosynthesis Lab.  Afterward, we worked on aerobic and anaerobic respiration with applications in real life.  We finished with some vocabulary work on photosynthesis and respiration.  On Friday, we will work on Crick's Central Dogma and how DNA can be changed as related to cancer.

Tomorrow in AP Biology, we will only have 55 minutes because of testing in the AM.  We will finish our Chapter on cell communication, review for our test Monday and go over sample questions.  Respiration Lab will be on Tuesday and Thursday next week.

Computer programming is finishing up the problem Mission Impossible, our last problem in Karel.

Today I moved four more Monarch caterpillars to milkweed plants on our farm.  This makes a total 44 caterpillars moved to greener milkweed.  Also green darners are still migrating ... dozens were out eating bugs yesterday and today on the hill facing Long Creek.  Green Darner ... not my picture below ...



http://www.birdsofoklahoma.net/images/GreenDarner3868.jpg

Back to school and schedule change tomorrow ...

We had a PD day today.  Found out that tomorrow, we will have a schedule change to get our sophomores ready for the PLAN test.  Students will go to their first period class before moving on to testing sites.  PLAN test will be on Thursday and my junior homeroom/flex students will be taking a practice ACT.  It will be scored and returned at a later date.

I moved another 6 Monarch caterpillars from my small plant nursery.  Most were about two inches long.  This make over 30 caterpillars I have moved to milkweed plants in our garden.  I did see a Monarch butterfly nearby this evening so maybe one I was watching several days ago has emerged from a chrysalis. 

Ragweed pollen is very high ... I bush hogged for awhile after school and it was not good!

PD tomorrow at school and fed bees PM today ...

Tomorrow we will have PD at school.  I do not know what we will be doing but I have a lot I could do in my classroom to get ready for starting up AP labs.

On Tuesday in AP Bio, we will wrap up our study of respiration and discuss Chapter 11 in Campbell ... especially signal transduction with examples.  We have study questions for this chapter and we will have to prep up our first of thirteen required labs ... Cellular Respiration.

Today after church, I checked our beehives and fed the bees (about 1/2 gallon of sugar water in a ziplock freezer bag.  I laid these bags in the top of the hive and then cut a couple of slits on top with a razor blade to allow the bees to get to the sugar water (5lbs brought to a gallon with water).  Most hives looked to be doing well.   One hive was in trouble with hive beetle larva ... it appears the queen had died.  I cleaned it up and will check it later in the week.

The goldenrod is in full bloom and our bees have been visiting it and the wingstem.  Also blooming is wild ageratum and ironweed (fading fast).

This caterpillar was under the outer cover of one of our hives but, on the outside of the hive.  Looks alittle like a white marked tussock caterpillar but I am still looking for a better match.  It was about two inches long.

Monarch Caterpillars - 26 and a Katydid ...

Today after it warmed up, I moved some of the Monarch caterpillars from the flats outside our garage to our wildflower gardens where I have several milkweed plants.  To my surprise, I found 29 and moved 26 of the them to new homes since they would soon be out of leaves from the plants in the flats.  Flats below ...  Evidently a female Monarch thought I would take good care of her larva.

I moved them to their new homes 6-8 at a time in a pan by removing the leaf or stem they were on and using a small piece of tape to tape that leaf to a leaf on their new host milkweed plants.

By this afternoon they seemed to enjoying their new homes ...

I checked some milkweed patches on Aunt Nell's farm (east side of Holland) but did not find any larva there.  A katydid did pose for a picture.

At school on Friday, the Selected Topics classes used our old Mac laptops to do several plant simulations with Logal software.  It was an effort but we collected good data.  

In computer programming 8th period, we started checking our Hurdle and Carpet problems.  This class is about two days behind my 5th period class.  We will soon be finished with our logic trainer (Karel) and move on to Microsoft qBASIC.  

Students do not have school on Monday but teachers have a PD day.  Students return on Tuesday, AP Biology will be working on aerobic respiration and prepping a lab for Thursday.

Nine more Monarch caterpillars ...

This evening I was getting ready to clean up several flats of flowers that I did not get a chance to plant ... bee balm, butterfly weed, climbing milkweed and common milkweed ... when I noticed a Monarch caterpillar on one of the milkweed plants.  After looking around, I found nine in total from the late third instar stage to the early fifth instar stage.  Evidently, a Monarch female visited my plant nursery outside our garage and laid several eggs.  I may move some to the common milkweed plants we have in the garden.

We did not have school on Wednesday due to an electrical problem at the middle school.  Sue Neal enjoyed a "snow day" in September right before she retires!

Today was the AP Bio day for me.  We reviewed photosynthesis and spent most of the block working through aerobic and anaerobic respiration with applications to ecosystems.  We had sample questions toward the end of class.  We will meet again on Tuesday to finish up our first unit with Chapter 11 - Cell Communication.  Test either next Thursday on the following week over Chapters 2-11 and our Milkweed Lab. Genetics on the horizon!

Our labs are ordered and when they come in we will stop and lab it up for a few weeks.

In Computer Programming, we are on our last two Karel problems and making good progress ... a couple of freshmen are already finished.  Go freshmen!

Mist Flower, Ironweed and Photosynthesis

Today in AP Biology was photosynthesis day ... Light Reactions and the Light-Independent Reactions ... C3, C4 and CAM ...  We finished the class with sample questions from our Campbell Test Bank ... still lots of students not doing their questions before class voluntarily.  A lesson soon to be learned!

Checking problems today and tomorrow in Introduction to Computer Programming as we begin to wrap up Karel programming with the final two problems ... Karel can Add and Mission Impossible.

Stayed after school late to work and was hoping it would rain but, no rain in Holland.  Fall wildflowers are in full bloom, especially wingstem.  Below are close ups of ironweed (some ironweed plants I have seen this year are over ten feet tall) and mist flower (wild ageratum).

The two Monarch caterpillars I have been watching have crawled off and have pupated into a chrysalis ... or was eaten.  I have not been able to locate them but will keep looking.

Eight period Monday ...

Today was eight period Monday and also, the first Club Schedule of the year.  Each class met for 45 minutes except for lunch period which was 60 minutes.  Each period has 1-4 clubs meeting.

Environmental Club will for the second year help with the Patriot Pollinator Project which supplies milkweed and nectar plants to area gardeners and farms.

I had most of my students so we continued on ...

In AP Biology, we had a morning quiz followed by an overview of photosynthesis and respiration.  Tomorrow, we will dig a little deeper into the steps and particulars of photosynthesis ... proteins, pathways, chemiosmosis and some sample AP questions.  If time permits, we will start on aerobic respiration.

In Selected Topics we wrapped up our Great Plant Growing contest ... I will put the winners picts on tomorrow.  We finished the lab write-up and handed it in at the end of the period.

Computer programming classes wrapped up their carpet problem and we will start checking their programs tomorrow.  Karel Can Add is next ...

Fifth Instar, DNA Baby and Skyscraper ...

Today was Selected Topics day.  In these classes, we went on tour of a couple of classrooms to sing our DNA song ... you can thank your Dad and thank your Mom for your DNA ... it was fun and a little break from our microscope lab.

We got good classroom data in the cell count of onion root tips in both classes with nearly 90% of the cells being in interphase ... we made a pie chart of our results and wrapped up this lab.  The Great Plant Growing Contest will conclude on Monday.  Monday will also be club schedule so, a disrupted day.

Most students are working on the skyscraper lay the carpet problem in programming today.  We will check the problems some time next week.  Karel programming will wrap up next week before we go on to Microsoft qBASIC.

Checked out my two Monarch caterpillars on the butterfly weed in our garden.  They are in the 4th or probably 5th instar larva stage (they are over two inches long ... five instar larva stages for Monarchs).  They might form a chrysalis this weekend.   They need to hurry up and head on down to Mexico!  My pictures below ...

http://www.monarchwatch.org/biology/cycle1.htm

Goldenrod and Enzymes ...

Today after school in the evening I took some pictures of flowers on our farm.  I chased a buckeye butterfly around for several minutes trying to get a good shot before it became annoyed and flew over some blackberry briars and out of sight.  Below is a coneflower beginning to bloom and a picture of the goldenrod and common milkweed pods in the long field beside Highway 100.  The honeybees were still working the goldenrod late in the evening.

Also, the two monarch caterpillars on our butterfly weed plants in the garden have quadrupled since Monday. I put them on separate plants so they would have more leaves to eat.

At school today, it was AP Bio day.  We worked through Chapter 8 ... Enzymes and biochemical pathways.  Afterwards, we had time for some sample questions for a quiz score.

Most of the computer programming students are working on the skyscraper problems which requires nested if-then statements and is proving to be difficult.

Tomorrow is Selected Topics day and we will finish our microscope / mitosis lab.  The Great Plant Growing contest continues.

Microscope and Mitosis Lab

Today in Selected Topics, we started our microscope lab which included several slides of interest, a wet mount of algae and prepared slides of onion root tips for collecting mitosis data.  We have a little left to do on this lab for Friday.  The Great Plant Growing contest continues with seedlings about 6" tall.  This contest/lab will wrap up on Monday.  Students in action this morning ...

This evening I disked our turnip patch and then watered some of our plants ... fall flowers are about in full bloom ... goldenrod, wingstem and ironweed.

Tomorrow in AP Biology we will review Chapter 7 - cellular transport and discuss Chapter 8 ... enzymes and chemical reactions.  We have questions for Chapter 8 and a quiz.

PSAT is just around the corner ... sign up!

Deer and back to school ...

After plowing the turnip patch late this evening I saw two bucks with a few does grazing on buckwheat in the small field behind our house.  It was pretty dark so the picts were not that good.

Today it was AP Biology day and we worked on review, cell transport questions and a sample free response question from 2011 on cells.  We have enzymes, chemical reactions and feedback pathways for Thursday.

Tomorrow is Selected Topics and we have a microscope lab with mitosis slides as the main focus.

Computer programming classes are wrapping up their first three problems with decision statements and a second set of two advanced problems were assigned for this week ... The Hurdle problem and Carpeting Skyscrapers.

Red Spotted Purple and more Monarchs!

Over the Labor Weekend I saw five more Monarch butterflies (total this year ... 13) and found two Monarch caterpillars on the butterfly weed I planted in the garden.  The the big show for butterflies this weekend was the Red Spotted Purples ... there were several flying around.  They are very active and it was hard to get a good picture ... my best pict is below and a picture of the Monarch caterpillar was only about 1.5" long.

Also this weekend, we set up a bright light covered with sheets to draw in some moths.  We had several attracted to the light including some European hornets.  Rachel got our best picture ... a Southern Tiger Moth below.  Caterpillars feed on tobacco and watermelon.  

Friday at school, Selected Topics in Science finished our study of cells and prepared for our microscope lab on Wednesday ... mitosis and meiosis.  The Great Plant Contest continues!

Tomorrow the AP Biology classes will meet.  Tomorrow, we will finish cell transport and work on Chapter 8 - Enzymes, Biochemical Pathways and Metabolism.  We have questions assigned for tomorrow.

In Computer programming, we will check the first three problems using if-then and while do statements.  On to some tougher programming techniques later in the week.