MCAS Biology study plan

Define the four macromolecules (carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids) and state the monomers, polymers, and one biological function of each

Diagram the structure of a prokaryotic and a eukaryotic cell and label at least eight organelles with their functions

Explain the role of the cell membrane in transport, distinguishing passive diffusion, facilitated diffusion, and active transport

Describe how enzymes lower activation energy and predict the effect of temperature and pH changes on reaction rate

Write the balanced summary equations for photosynthesis and cellular respiration and identify where each occurs in the cell

Trace the flow of energy from light reactions through the Calvin cycle to glucose

Compare aerobic respiration and fermentation in terms of ATP yield and products

Explain how ATP couples energy-releasing and energy-requiring reactions in a cell

Describe the stages of mitosis and identify the key event of each stage

Explain how meiosis produces genetically varied haploid cells through crossing over and independent assortment

Compare mitosis and meiosis in chromosome number, purpose, and number of divisions

Predict offspring genotype ratios from a monohybrid and a dihybrid cross using Punnett squares

Distinguish genotype from phenotype and apply dominant, recessive, codominant, and incomplete-dominant patterns

Interpret a pedigree to determine whether a trait is autosomal dominant, autosomal recessive, or sex-linked

Explain how DNA replication, transcription, and translation move information from gene to protein

Describe how a mutation in DNA can change a protein and therefore a trait

Explain natural selection as differential survival and reproduction acting on heritable variation

Distinguish the evidence for evolution from fossils, comparative anatomy, embryology, and molecular data

Describe how allele frequencies in a population can change through selection, genetic drift, and gene flow

Interpret a cladogram or phylogenetic tree to identify common ancestry and relatedness

Map the trophic levels of a food web and explain the movement of energy and matter through an ecosystem

Explain the carbon and nitrogen cycles and identify one human impact on each

Distinguish biotic from abiotic factors and predict how a change in one factor affects a population

Describe how energy is lost at each trophic level and why food chains are limited in length

Describe how the immune system, nervous system, or endocrine system maintains homeostasis using a feedback loop

Explain how a specific feedback loop responds to a change such as temperature or blood glucose

Identify the levels of biological organization from molecule to biosphere

Practice reading data tables and graphs and stating a trend and a conclusion in one sentence each

Take two full-length timed practice tests under exam conditions

Categorize every missed question by topic and rank the three weakest topics

Re-teach each weak topic using notes and self-written examples

Build a one-page final review sheet of the highest-frequency concepts and vocabulary