AP Exams are Getting Closer

​Now is the time to start thinking about the AP exams that will come up in about two months. You don’t want to cram all the preparations into the last two weeks before the exam, but give yourself time to review the concepts and get used to the kind of questions typically asked. There are a lot of ways to prepare besides the practice that the college board provides. Here are a few resources you can use to get ready. My experience with them is in math and science, but you can check them out for other AP courses as well.

1. Get one of the AP prep books. The best known prep books are probably the ones by Barron’s and Princeton Review. They both contain short summaries of the concepts, practice problems, as well as some AP practice exams. Even though most of my students only use the prep books for extra practice problems, it is well worth looking at the concept summaries, especially in the Princeton Review books that I personally find very concise and comprehensive. On the other hand, the advantage of Barron’s prep books is that you can get most of them as an e-book.
2. Use a textbook. This sounds obvious, but many of my students do not use a textbook in their classes and are unaware of how much useful information they can find there. The textbooks contain summaries of concepts, example problems with solutions, review sections, etc. that can be used very efficiently to get a good understanding of everything. If you want to dig in deep and don’t have a textbook, have a look at some of the free textbooks on openstax.org. Most of their textbooks are geared towards college courses, but they have some especially for AP couses. They can be a good resource if you stumble across problems or concepts that aren’t clear.
3. Practice on Khan academy. Khan academy offers online preparation for most AP courses. You can either do the full course or practice specific concepts. The full course includes videos that you can watch, practice problems for each concept and exams. I like the problems offered by Khan academy a lot because they are challenging enough to require a good conceptual understanding of the material.
4. Use flash cards. I have always liked using flash cards as a student, and I still use them to summarize my thoughts in all aspects of my work, including math concepts, teaching, etc. You can either use the flash cards as a reference when you need to look up something you forgot, or you can use the flashcards specifically for concepts that are challenging and that you need to get back to later.
5. Get a laminated quick study guide, available for a few dollars on amazon. These are very condensed versions of concept summaries that are not sufficient but a good reference while you are still learning the concepts and practice for your exam.
6. Form a study group. The discussions that come up while studying in a group reinforce the learning for everybody. Students that need a bit more help receive it from their peers, and the students with a good understanding benefit from explaining concepts to others. I always found that the ability to explain a concept is the final test of whether you understand it yourself.

Getting prepared early will take the edge off those last two weeks before the exams a bit. And hopefully you can go into the exam knowing that you are well prepared and ready.