Tips for getting started in biology:

1. Segment 1 Biology is modules 1, 2-4 only. Segment 2 Biology is modules 1,5-7 only. Please note that you only have to do the honors assignments if you are going for honors credit. Also, students that are working towards honors credit must complete both the honors and standard assignments, however, they only complete the honors exams (for biology only).

2. Click on the Lessons button and begin reading through Module 1. It will show you how to navigate through the course, important downloads necessary for the course, where to find your assessments, etc. You must read through the lessons before moving onto the assessments or they won’t make any sense. Please complete the modules in order. If you are taking the course for one full credit, semester 1 (modules 1-4) needs to be completed before moving on to semester 2 (modules 5-7). (If you are semester 1 only, you will complete modules 1 and 2-4. If you are semester 2 only, you will complete modules 1 and 5-7)

3. If you are new to FLVS, please be sure to attend the New Student Orientation and then send me the password they give you at the end of class. (The link to the New Student Orientation can be found under Announcements on your Biology course dashboard.)

4. Explanation of the links in the blue area on the left side or your screen (underneath the Florida Virtual School logo.) a. “Lessons” i. This is where you’ll go to get your class work—it’s like your textbook. The lessons are divided into modules, which are like chapters in a book. If you are working in semester 1, you will begin in module 1 and complete modules 2-4. Then you’ll take the final exam for segment 1. If you are segment 2, you will complete modules 1 and 5-7, and then take the exam for segment 2. b. “Assessments” i. This is where you can see your assignments. However, you will NOT submit assignments from here. You will submit assignments from MY PATH. c. “My Path” i. THIS IS WHERE YOU SUBMIT YOUR WORK! ii. This is where you can go to see your current grade in the course and how far along you are in the course. It will also display if you are or are not making adequate progress in the course. (Please note: At week 4 it will give you an accurate reading on whether or not you are making progress in the course.) d. “My Grades” i. This will also show you your grade and progress in the course. This is a more DETAILED report. You will be able to see your grades on each assignment and any comments that I may leave for you. e. “Course Information” i. This is like your lifeline for the class—you can find out how to submit assignments, check your grade, resubmit work, and much more by clicking this tab f. “Class Resources” i. Click this button to get to helpful links for each module. Just click the module you are currently in, to see what is available for that module. g. “Class Tools” i. Click this link to get to tools for the course. This is also where you will find e-mail so that you can email me questions about the course. You will also find the class glossary, discussion board, etc. ii. My direct e-mail is [email protected] h. “Web 2.0 Tools” i. Click here to find out about more tools to help you with your collaborative assignments (partner assignments). (It is a requirement to participate in ONE collaborative assignment per semester).

5. Remember, your assessments for the week should be completed by Sunday 11 pm. 2-5 Assignments per week is what you’ll need to submit to maintain your pace and stay current in the course.

6. You can always move ahead (in fact, that would be great!), but you may not do less than the required amount of assignments each week (3 assignments). If you complete 5 assignments each week, you will complete the semester in half the allotted time (8 weeks instead of 16!). I do ask that you be on pace by the end of your grace period.

7. When you log into the course, check ANNOUNCEMENTS and your email for any important information. You can find my contact information on the banner AND under Announcements – Welcome to Biology. You can call from 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. EST If I am assisting another student, please leave a detailed message, including your first and last name and phone number with area code, and your call will be returned within 24 business hours. (Please do not call repeatedly, leave a voicemail the first time. If you keep calling back to back you are interrupting a phone call with another student/parent. – Think about it, if you were trying to ask a question in the classroom, you wouldn’t want someone to be talking over you).

8. Please check “My Grades” to view your progress in the course. You will see scores for assessments that have been graded. Please allow at least 48 business hours for grading. Your grade will appear lower if you have assignments with essay questions that have not yet been graded. Once an assessment has been graded, please click on it to read the instructor comments. I often make suggestions for improvement. You may make the suggested changes and resubmit for a higher grade (most assignments are set to allow you 3 chances).

9. Re-submitted assessments DO NOT count towards weekly progress. I do encourage you to re- submit assessments, but you must also submit new assessments to continue to make progress in the course. 10. While taking an exam or completing a worksheet, you can't leave, minimize the screen, or look back at the module information until you finish the exam or you will be locked out. Please print out any information that you would like to refer to while taking the exam.

11. You must choose one of the collaborative (partner) assignments per semester to complete. Modules 2 through 7 have a collaborative assignment, so if you are first semester, you will need to choose one of the collaborative assignments from Modules 2-4 and if you are second semester, you will need to choose a collaborative assignment from 5-7. You may want to post to the discussion board that you are looking for a partner a few days before you get to that assessment. Please check daily to see when another student replies to you. While waiting for a partner, please move on to other assignments.

12. Discussion Boards: This is where you are going to post the need for a partner. Please remember to check daily to see if anyone posted to your discussion. Remember, that these are monitored!

a. To participate in a discussion board: i. Click Class Tools ii. Click Discussion Board iii. Click the name of the Discussion you want to post in iv. Read the posts and click REPLY to the student you want to work with v. Type in your comments (which are always SCHOOL APPROPRIATE) vi. Click Submit

13. PRE-TESTS are requirements for modules 2-7. It is your pre-tests that release your assessments to you. You must answer all questions or your work will not generate properly. Remember, that even if you do not submit an assignment for that lesson, you still MUST READ ALL LESSONS as ALL LESSONS are assessed on DBAs/tests/final exams.

14. Please call for your monthly call, before the date turns red in the dashboard (I recommend that you call every 3 weeks to do a monthly call). I must speak to you and a parent or guardian. It will only take a few minutes. This is a great time to ask me any questions you may have or to complete an oral assessment. Once you are overdue for a monthly phone call, you will be temporarily locked out of the course until the call is completed.

15. Tech Help:

Please save all work as an .rtf or .doc file. IF you are submitting an attachment, it cannot contain a period in the file name. Please use an underscore. (_) For example, an attachment for assignment 3.2 should be titled, 3_2.doc, not 3.2.doc. If you use a period in the file name, your attachment will be lost in the system.

When signing out of the course, it is very important that you log out and not click the "x" when leaving Blackboard to avoid having a “cookie” issue that prevents you from viewing the lessons. If you are having a problem with cookies or another technical problem, please call technical support..1.866.322.8324 (toll-free).

16. To prevent having problems with “cookies”: Please remember to always click the logout button and not the red x in the corner of your screen. If you do have issues with cookies, please try the below.

How to delete your cookies:

Open Internet Explorer

Go to Tools/Internet Options/

In the Browing history area, Click Delete, then follow the prompts to delete your cookies. Restart your computer.

If this does not, please contact Tech Support.

17. How do I begin? a. This is how you begin--You'll log onto the course using the same username and password you created when you first set up your Florida Virtual School account. Click on the blue hyperlink that says "biology" and that will take you to the course.

b. On the left hand menu go to the top button - lessons. Click into lessons and then click Foundations of Biology (module 1). Lesson 1.00 Welcome to Biology will come up, read the page and then click the right arrow to go the next page. This lesson will go over what Biology is and how to navigate the course. Once have read all the pages for 1.00 you will see a summary of the lesson.(You will not submit an assignment to be graded for this lesson). c. When you click the right arrow again, you will enter lesson 1.01 (Introduction), which is a one page lesson that is a checklist for module 1 (Foundations of Biology) . This checklist tells you the points possible for each assignment and approximately how long each lesson will take. d. Click the right arrow again and you will enter 1.02 (Exploring Life). Read the lesson and keep moving forward in the course.

1. As a side note, you can also click Lesson on the green bar and move to the next page as well – I recommend though using the right arrow button so that you do not accidently miss a page. e. When you get to lesson 1.03 (New Technology), you will be submitting an assignment to be graded. Please remember that you MUST read the whole lesson before doing the assignment. When you get to the summary page, you will find that you will complete the 1.03 New Technology assessment. f. To access the 1.03 New Technology assessment, you will:

1. Click MY PATH 2. Click Module 1 3. Click 1.03 New Technology 4. Take your quiz 5. Click Submit (Please note that once you enter a quiz/worksheet/exam you MUST complete it. You may NOT leave the assessment, open another window, etc…It is set up this way for Academic Integrity reasons.) g. Once you have completed your assessment for 1.03, you may go back to Lessons and start on lesson 1.04 and keep moving through the course. h. Remember, all assignments must be submitted through MY PATH. i. When you start your next module…Module 2 (for first semester students) OR Module 5 (for second semester students)…You will be asked to complete a pre-test. This pre-test MUST be completed in order for your assignments to be released to you. (Please remember that even if you do not have an assignment to submit for a lesson, you still must READ ALL THE LESSONS. All lessons will be assessed on DBAs/exams/worksheets/final exams.)

j. There are pretests for every module 2-7. Remember to work in sequence in order to build and retain knowledge in the course!

18. Remember, I am here to help! My phone/text number is 813-658-8202.

Talk to you soon!

Mrs. Glusica

813-658-8202