Good AP Biology Review Book

[AFwife Claire]

This is the season for ordering AP test review books, and I finally found a good one for the AP biology exam!  The exam was redesigned 3 years ago, and the "big names" in test prep books simply haven't gotten the memo.  It's called "Pearson Education Test Prep Series for AP Biology:  To Accompany Pearson'sCampbell Biology Program".  Here is the amazon link.  I just submitted a review for it, so I thought I'd go ahead and paste it here too, in case anyone was interested.

 

"I teach AP biology for our homeschool co-op, and I have been looking for a good AP biology review book since the test was redesigned a few years ago.  Barrons, et al, didn't seem to have questions that really prepared the kids for the questions on the actual exam, and all those review books definitely focused on lots of nit-picky details that were no longer required things to memorize.  This book is clearly head and shoulders above the rest.  It is written by the Holtzclaws, who also write guided reading questions to go along with the Campbell biology book.  There are 10 topics, or chapters, that review content, and they include boxes called "You Must Know" that state bullet points that you should be able to explain to yourself.  If not, some more time spent on that topic with your book is probably in order.  Then there are several types of questions at the end of each chapter.  Level one contains knowledge/comprehension questions that "review essential content knowledge but don't represent the type of question you will see on the AP exam.  Level 2, application/synthesis, questions are similar to those you will see on the exam."  Based on the questions I have seen on the practice exams released to approved AP bio teachers, these questions *do* look like the ones on the exam, unlike the questions in the other review books.  Very good practice, and worth its weight in gold right there!  Then there are at least 2 grid-in questions for each chapter, which again, the other books don't really focus on at all, and one free response question.  You may need your textbook or whatever to review the topics more in depth, but this review book will help you figure out what areas you don't know well but should, and it will give you lots of practice in the kinds of problems you will actually encounter on the exam."