I am enrolled in my AP World History class for this coming school year and I was wondering which prep/review book to use to get a head start. Also, for those of you who have taken the exam and class before - how did you study for it? Did you retain information according to the themes and in chronological order? Thanks!</p>
Hi! I took APWH this past year (and just found out two days I got a 5 on the exam-whoo!). Anyways, I’d definitely recommend studying in a chronological order. I know that they’re altering the course for the upcoming school year (check out College Board’s website for more info and look at the new course description packet), but I’m pretty sure the core concepts of the class will remain the same. The key is to study the material chronologically but to keep track of the major themes and how they change/stay the same over time and how they’re mirrored in different parts of the world. It is VITAL that you understand what was going on in the world at a given time in more than one place (ie., what dynasty was China in during the Renaissance? How was Africa interacting in the global community?). I strongly recommend the Princeton Review; it’s hands-down the best review book for APWH. Also check out Barron’s and Princeton Review’s flashcards. I also found McGraw Hill’s 500 Questions to Know by Test Day to be quite useful. However, I really would wait to purchase these until you begin the course. It really isn’t necessary to begin studying quite this early (I know it can be tempting; APWH seems very overwhelming. Trust me when I say that I take my APs pretty seriously), however, it really is better for you to simply wait until you begin the school year in a classroom setting. If you really want to start studying go ahead, but I’d honestly just hold off for now. APWH is more about understanding the core, key themes than knowing specific information. It’s, obviously, simply not possible to cover the history of the entire world in detail in a matter of months. That’s why AP US History is much more difficult-since it focuses on only one nation for a much shorter time period, it dives into much more specific information. Anyways, my last piece of advice is to thoroughly learn the course material. It makes it MUCH more interesting. Depending on your teacher, the class can be a little dull at times, but if you actually take the time to do the readings and even do some outside research, the course can be quite enjoyable. So have fun, and good luck!</p>
Congratulations and thanks so much! (:</p>