<p>What should I know by heart before I step into my AP Bio class?</p>
<p>Functional groups? </p>
<p>Prefixes? </p>
<p>Everything in the Campbell book? </p>
<p>I have the CliffsAP Book but it doesn't exactly tell me what to memorize ... or is it implied that I memorize everything in the CliffsAP book :o?</p>
<p>If you want a guaranteed five, read through the CliffsNotes a couple times before you go to class and supplement your AP Bio class with Campbells and/or Khan Academy videos. </p>
<p>Khan Academy videos + CliffsNotes was enough for me to self-study AP Bio and get a 5, but the test seemed like a joke compared to the CliffsNotes practice tests. I don’t know if that’s the norm or what, though, so it’s good to over-prepare.</p>
<p>Thank you! I never knew that Khan Academy had bio-related videos :)!</p>
<p>Use sparknotes for extra prepping ^_^</p>
<p>They were extremely helpful and covered a great portion of knowledge required for the AP Bio test. There are, however, areas that aren’t yet touched by Khan Academy, and for those you will need to read through CliffsNotes or Campbells. </p>
<p>If you’re preparing for it before you even start the class, I’m sure you’ll do fine. Good luck!</p>
<p>The problem is that I don’t understand much of the stuff in Cliffs AP Bio :(. Like what do those polygons mean in the structure of nucleic acids?</p>
<p>The five-sides polygons in nucleotides represent the sugar base “deoxyribose”, a 5 carbon sugar (hence the 5 points) - at least with DNA. RNA uses a similar 5 carbon sugar base called “ribose”.</p>
<p>So, the polygons you’re seeing are simply a physical representation of the 5-carbon sugar base. </p>
<p>For help in CliffsNotes, turn to the bottom section of page 20 entitled Nucleic Acids, page 21, and Figure 2-11 on page 22. For help on Khan Academic, go to a video under Biology entitled “DNA”.</p>
<p>Honestly, don’t fret about it. I was all worked up about the class last summer and even bought some AP bio flashcards and the Princeton Review’s Cracking the AP Biology Exam, but I never touched them and it didn’t make any difference whatsoever. Remember, it’s still high school; unless your bio class is renowned for having a tyrant of a teacher, he/she will expect people to begin recalling information from their regular bio classes as you all progress through the units. </p>
<p>Just another piece of advice: DON’T go crazy and buy giant review books like Cliffs or Barrons. The Princeton Review’s book has, in my opinion, the best amount of review material, and they present it in the least complex way. Simply put, reading the book is fun (well, I think reading about biology anywhere is fun, but the PR definitely makes in more informal). It’s a lot shorter than the other books, and after knowing most of the material in there front-to-back, I thought the actual AP test was a joke.</p>
<p>I’m scared for ap bio too since I’m taking anatomy as well, im screwed I can’t memorize that much x.x</p>
<p>@cowboycliche022: I definitely found PR devoid of necessary information for the AP Bio test. Cliffs is definitely the best in this category.</p>