Science Sequences – please email [email protected] for any questions

Go to 4 year plans UMD and click on the college of your choice. Then look at the majors. This site will show you what courses are required each year, for each major. Look at the freshman courses – OHS is a good school. Use our programs to help you rock your freshman year!

The script for the video is below:

There is no one correct path in science, just options. But there are some things you need to consider so that your path is more manageable

Freshmen – are you into science and thinking of a future in medicine, engineering, or science? Next year try double up in biology and chemistry your sophomore year. That’s not for you? You still need to take biology, but you will also need to take either environmental science or chemistry. 

Upperclassmen – Have you taken the  three science courses that you need to take and want more, but don’t want to take a year long AP science class? 

Science is offering four elective science courses that might be of interest to you!

Interested in sports medicine, nursing, or just like dissecting? Anatomy and Physiology might just be a good fit for you! 

• Study the relationship between structure and function in the human body. 
• You’ll study the basic concepts of anatomy, physiology, genetics, diseases, disorders, immunology, aging, and/or related topics. 

Does your interest lie more in the direction of criminology? Do solving the puzzles of crime scenes interest you? Forensics might be for you!

• You’ll learn the principles of collecting, preserving, and examining evidence and developing leads in

If that doesn’t interest you perhaps studying about the climate, the Earth, and the universe is up your alley — look into a new course being offered at OHS next year — COWSS. Climate Ocean Weather Space Systems. In this hands-on course you’ll study about:

• How do we know the age of the universe?
• How do we know the earth is changing?
• How do we know the age of the earth?
• How do we determine the past, present and future climates of the earth? 

You’ll will examine these questions through a variety of projects, presentations and cool labs!

Looking at some college level science electives?

Maybe you’re into the environment and ecology, or want to take an AP science course but don’t have the time in your schedule for a year long course. Are you concerned about environmental issues? The prerequisite for APES are Biology and chemistry. 

In APES you’ll  gain the knowledge and analytical skills necessary to deal critically with the sciences of the environment. You’ll do labs and long-term projects on a number of topics such as the interdependence of the Earth’s systems and human population dynamics. You’ll also study the ins and outs of  renewable and nonrenewable resources, environmental air/water/soil quality, global changes and their consequences, environmental trade offs, and societal decision making. 

If you are interested in a STEM field or in Medicine – Consider the following year-long AP science courses. 

For those of you who are more interested in the life sciences fields of biology or medicine – consider AP Biology. The prerequisites are honors biology and honors chemistry

• The lab based course centers around evolution, cellular processes, genetics and information transfer, and interactions of biological systems. 
• Although both AP Biology 1 and AP Biology 2 must be taken to complete the course content necessary to prepare for the AP examination, AP Biology 1 may be taken without continuing through AP Biology 2.

Are you interested in going into either a life science or physical science field such as medicine or engineering? Consider AP Chemistry. It will support your studies of biology, and if you’re going into engineering it is one of your freshman “weed out” classes.

• This lab based course atomic theory, quantum mechanics, atomic and molecular structures, chemical bonding, kinetics, thermodynamics, equilibrium, solution chemistry, periodicity, and electrochemistry.
• Although both AP Chemistry 1 and AP Chemistry 2 must be taken to complete the course content necessary to properly prepare for the AP examination, AP Chemistry 1 may be taken without continuing through AP Chemistry 2.

Perhaps you like to design and build – you want to be an engineer or a physicist – you truly need to consider AP Physics C.  It’s is a calculus based physics course that is comprised of two separate courses: Mechanics and Electricity & Magnetism. The co-requisite is Calculus

• In AP Physics C 1: Mechanics, you’ll expand on your study the  concepts of motion, force, and energy to include topics such as rotational mechanics 
• This course prepares students for the mechanics portion of the AP examination.
• In AP Physics C 2: Electricity & Magnetism, you’ll learn the math behind a number of concepts and test your learning  of a variety of topics including alternating current circuits and semiconductor devices.
• This course prepares for the electricity and magnetism portion of the AP examination.

And last but not least – FCC Biology. This course is a semester long biology course. Successful completion of this course will earn you credit at any college in Maryland. Unless you are actively planning to pursue a career in medicine or biology consider taking FCC Biology.