<p>Hey guys!</p>
<p>Tentatively, I'll be planning on taking the follow AP Classes next year and was asking for any pointers, tips, tricks, advice, book choice, and etc on the following APs.</p>
<p>AP United States History
AP English Language and Composition
AP Chemistry
AP Calculus BC
AP Latin Virgil</p>
<p>Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>I’ve took all of these but Latin, so hopefully I can provide some helpful feedback.</p>
<p>US History - Majority of the class is memorizing, but don’t get lax on just this part. The free response requires you to do analysis of events, which is why it’s important you need to understand HOW and WHY it happened. This is definitely a class you should take thorough notes on, as I’m aware that you can survive certain classes without them. </p>
<p>English Lang - First off, I’d recommend NOT sparknoting your assigned readings, as understanding them will provide you great help on exam day. This class goes in depth with analysis. It may drive you crazy but don’t get discouraged! For me personally, I did extremely horrible with my essays. I recommend visiting your teacher and get feedback on all your essays, even if you receive a decent score.</p>
<p>Chemistry - I thought the general consensus for most of my peers was that it was hard to grasp the concept and understand the math behind it. I think that it’s impossible to go on without the other so you should definitely learn both aspects. If you don’t understand a concept, ask the teacher! If you understand a concept but don’t understand the math, ask for help again!</p>
<p>Calculus BC - Just like with any math class, a simple algebraic mistake can turn the entire problem haywire. Take problems slowly and try not to rush it. Also, do NOT get intimidated by some of the notations your teacher may post. I feel like a lot of people get scared cause a teacher writes derivative in a fancy way or writes out a long formula that’s actually really simple. Calc BC is pretty much Calc 1 and Calc 2 smooshed into one year so you’ll be ranging in topics such as derivatives, integration, infinite series, taylor expansion polynomials, etc.</p>
<p>Check out [Khan</a> Academy](<a href=“http://www.khanacademy.org/]Khan”>http://www.khanacademy.org/) it’s a website that has step-by-step tutorial videos on all the classes I mentioned. Very helpful with calculus too especially (the tutor got a triple major at MIT undergrad and also went to Harvard Business school).</p>
<p>Best of luck and feel free to PM me with any questions!!</p>
<p>Buy your review books right when school starts, and start reviewing for whatever tests you’re taking in December.</p>
<p>For USH: I used Kaplan 2011, Barrons 2007, and REA
I got a 5.
For Eng Lang: I used Princeton Review.
I got a 3, but for that test a book won’t help much.</p>
<p>Thank you guys. If there are any more people out there. you are welcome to add in!</p>
<p>APUSH - A lot of it is just reading and storing information and then trying to connect the historical dots. I used the Brinkley textbook and read that, but looking back I wish I had used a more concise prepbook (though, the textbook did help me take many a nap in junior year).</p>
<p>AP English Language - This is one of the AP tests were it’s hard to prepare. It’s mainly about getting used to the analytical thought process that CB requires. If you have a good teacher, the class alone should be enough. If the teacher isn’t so great, I’m not sure how you could learn it on your own.</p>
<p>AP Chemistry - I strongly recommend 5 Steps to a 5. It has a good overview of the material and the practice tests are harder than AP (which I think is a good thing). Oh, and please don’t try to just memorize information without understanding it. For example, lots of people memorize periodic trends but don’t understand the underlying science (i.e. atomic radii decreases over a period. This is because the valence electrons are at the same energy level throughout the period, which means they’re roughly the same distance from the nucleus. However, as more valence electrons are gained, that means more charge (one more proton and electron). More charge and constant distance results in greater electrostatic attraction which pulls the electrons closer to the nucleus). While memorization can work for MC, it will fail you in FR, where they ask you to explain the conceptual science behind such pheonmona.</p>
<p>AP Calculus BC - If you’re strong at math and have a good teacher, you will be more than fine. That was my situation, so I can’t give any advice beyond that.</p>
<p>Thank you so much for the advice Jalmoreno! Is there any other advice from people out there? :D</p>
<p>I only took APUSH and AP English Lang last year, but i’ll tell you what i heard from the other classes.</p>
<p>AP U.S. History - This class is mostly memorizing key events, dates, etc. My teacher was REALLY BAD at teaching it, as he taught regular history in past years. As much as you will hate it, the textbook has to become your best-friend. It helps a lot when the teacher doesn’t explains stuff ambiguously or if he doesn’t even touch on it. The tests will be pretty hard, but if you have a good understanding of the chapter, then you should be fine. For the AP exam, i recommend using REA’s Crash Course and/ or Direct Hits.</p>
<p>AP English Language - You will have to put you BEST effort in this class. My teacher was nice, but a BRUTAL grader. From getting 4-6’s (from the AP scale rubric) to 7’s and an 8 (yay!), i knew that it was because of my teacher that my writing cultivated. If you get a bad score on an essay you did, don’t be discouraged; just do better next time. For the AP exam, you either know that content or you don’t. I got the Princeton Review’s book, and it hardly helped.</p>
<p>AP Calculus BC - I heard that if you don’t get one topic on something, then you’re screwed. Get help from your teacher if you don’t get something, because then you will know what you are doing. I am taking Trig over the summer right now in school to get into AP Calc BC, and it was a little difficult for me, but i asked for help and everything is good.</p>
<p>AP Chemistry - I heard that this class is pretty hard if you weren’t good in honors Chemistry. My friend took the AP exam, and she said it was brutal, so remember to study for this class.</p>
<p>For APUSH, I’ve heard that AMSCO is one of the best books to use. Our school actually uses it as a textbook!</p>
<p>APUSH - Keep in mind, if you AP teacher is NOT preparing you adequately, take matters into your own hands. I wish I had realized that your teacher does not have to set the pace for your studies. My AP class spent the last three days before the AP test comparing the incomes of 1920-1940s Americans against the price of a car. Needless to say, all the Nixon stuff, anything post-Great Depression, he had not covered. I managed to escape with a 4, thanks to the help of an online cram packet and a lot of “****, so glad I’ve watched a lot of History Channel.”</p>
<p>AP English Language - I think stamina is pretty important here, particularly with your essays. It isn’t like other fact-based courses where you can just regurgitate what you’re thinking, you have to use original and critical thinking to excel. My English teachers in the past gave formulaic essays, and I did terrible on them, but AP allows for more emphasis on content and things being said rather than strictly being “Statement, quote, example, analysis. Statement, quote, example, analysis.” Be time-conscious, make sure you know your vocabulary and how the English language actually works. Read, read, read, read. It helps vocabulary, it’s fun; analyze your novels, and why authors do the things they do - the Rhetorical Strategy essay was most difficult for me.</p>
<p>I’m not a STEM person, so my other AP Test knowledge won’t help much, but for most of my AP tests, I’ve found that the questions on the actual test were much easier than those on tests we took in class. I never thought I’d thank my Human Geography teacher for giving me quizzes every other day. Challenge yourself to go above and beyond what is expected of you to know in class. Understand concepts, comprehend, analyze them. And take good notes; sometimes I feel like I’m reading a boring novel when I read those Kaplan, 5 Steps, Princeton Review, etc. At the end of the year, it was so much easier to look at the spirals of notes I kept, particularly because I write concise notes and don’t waste time putting things word for word. Good luck!</p>
<p>AP United States History</p>
<p>I had a pretty crappy teacher and kinda cheated my way to an A. However, I crammed Direct Hits and Crash Course the week before the exam. I’m not sure how it turned out to be this way, but the APUSH test was the easiest of my nine 5’s. Probably because DH and Crash Course are a killer combo.</p>
<p>AP English Language and Composition</p>
<p>Self-didn’t study. I just took my CR skills and my mock trial skills and went for it. </p>
<p>AP Chemistry</p>
<p>I had a great teacher. Not sure what to recommend other than doing released FR and MC problems.</p>
<p>AP Calculus BC</p>
<p>See my comments for AP Chem.</p>
<p>USH - Wikinotes and read the textbook (Pageant? I would assume your using) and you’ll be set for the test, I slept for half the classes, but then again my teacher rarely gave out essays. This info actually does stick in your head when you review it the 2nd time in may.</p>
<p>BC Calc - Everything is easy, just study infinite series. A lot. Omg I hated them with passion…</p>
<p>For English Lang, hardly any of the review books are that helpful. They usually focus too much on terminology and test gimmicks. In reality, if you know basic lit terms and basic rhetoric terms, you’re fine for multiple choice. In fact, I found AP English Lang multiple choice to be remarkably similar to SAT critical reading. For essays, either you know how to write persuasively by now or you don’t.</p>
<p>@cheng.</p>
<p>My school doesn’t use Pageant; we use a narrative history.</p>
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<p>How exactly did you do that?</p>
<p>Is it also seems like most of your APUSh teachers sucked; this is making my feel scared that mine will just be as terrible.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the advice guys. If anyone else has anything, he/she can also add his/her two cents. :D</p>
<p>I had an amazing APUSH teacher, so they definitely don’t all suck.</p>
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<p>Copied pretty much all of my homework. Homework was worth about 30 points a chapter while the quizzes were only 10. So I just copied and did the quizzes to the best of my ability. I would pull off 28-30 on the homework and 7-8 on the packets, so an A wasn’t hard to maintain.</p>
<p>@Jordan, my teacher thought Andrew Jacksona and Stonewall Jackson were the same person, was mine worse?</p>
<p>You guys and your homework grades. :P</p>
<p>Almost all the teachers in my school make tests worth about 60-80% of your grade.</p>
<p>Homework is just grade inflation. :P</p>
<p>I wish my school was like that. Homework kills me in all my classes.</p>
<p>Disclaimer: I got all 5s.</p>
<p>AP United States History
Read AMSCO and you will get a 5. Take the SAT II in May, which you can also use AMSCO for. If you want the 800, just make sure you know everything.</p>
<p>AP English Language and Composition
Take some released exams. Definitely practice the essays. I didn’t study much; I guess you kinda have to build reading comp skills over the years.</p>
<p>AP Chemistry
PR is pretty good. Take the SAT II in May, and whatever you study for the AP will carry over. I got an 800 just using the AP Chem PR.
Also, make sure you thoroughly understand all the concepts.</p>
<p>Thanks guys for all your help!</p>