AP Environmental Science

AP Environmental Science is a college-level environmental science course. This course is taught as a traditional science course, incorporating laboratory activities, virtual activities, short-term projects, long-term studies, and field investigations. While not required, students will find it beneficial if they have already taken high-school biology and chemistry prior to this class.

Topics covered in this course include:

Ecosystems
Biodiversity
Populations,
Earth Systems and Resources
Land and Water Use
Energy Resources and Consumption
Atmospheric Pollution
Aquatic and Terrestrial Pollution
Global Change

Students should expect to spend time each week outside of class doing assigned readings, assigned projects, watching videos, lab work, and studying for the AP exam. This is a college-level class.

Please Note: It is not required to sit for the AP exam to take this class. Students can still list it on their transcript as an AP class, whether or not they take the exam. To be eligible for college credit, most colleges/universities require a 4 or 5 on the exam.

Required Materials

Environmental Science for the AP Course, ISBN: 978-1319113292, available through the Amazon Marketplace, or your preferred book seller.
There are 4 non-fiction books that are required reading for this class. These can be purchased or borrowed from your favorite library.
- Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert
- The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan
- Cod: The Biography of a Fish that Changed the World by Mark Kulansky
- Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Pandemic by David Quammen
An AP-approved calculator (see list here)
Computer access for Google Classroom
binder or notebook for notes
1 subject spiral notebook for lab notebook

Recommended Materials

An AP Prep book, like the 2023 Princeton Review AP Environmental Science Prep book (publishing in August 2022).

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