suggestions for AP study guides?

[lwilliams1922]

I have an 8th grader that does very well on tests (well, she's not ready in math yet).

Do you have any advice on study material for AP exams? I'm thinking of having her take 3 exams per year starting next year /9th grade.

Initially these are the following tests I see as possibles:

US history

world history

Euro his

bio

env science

human geography

psychology

art history

eng lan

eng lit

possibly Latin?

 

can someone post info for suggested study guides?

 

 

thanks

[Jane in NC]

What an ambitious plan! I assume that you have read the AP syllabi over the college board and know what you are in for!

 

When my son did AP Biology in 10th, the subject required at least two hours of study per day. If a child is doing three AP courses, then he must dedicate roughly six hours a day to these courses plus his other school work. And I thought I was Draconian!

 

Anyway, guides vary by publisher. My son was turned off to the Princeton guides which seem to focus on a score of '3' strategy which was not his goal. Others like the Princeton guides. I would spend some time at your nearest Barnes and Noble looking over the different publishers to see what resonates. You'll probably want two guides for each subject.

 

I would also suggest that you read through these boards to find more information on specific AP exams. For example, AP bio is tough to do on your own as my son discovered. You might want to enroll your student in a SOL class.

 

Best,

Jane

[lwilliams1922]

I don't want to teach an AP course as I understand there is quite of bit of work in getting approval. I am looking to use study guides to get a feel for the content and to see if she knows enough to attempt the test and brush up on any info she made need.

 

I'm not having a lot of luck with searching for AP threads :(

thanks

 

 

What an ambitious plan! I assume that you have read the AP syllabi over the college board and know what you are in for!

 

When my son did AP Biology in 10th, the subject required at least two hours of study per day. If a child is doing three AP courses, then he must dedicate roughly six hours a day to these courses plus his other school work. And I thought I was Draconian!

 

Anyway, guides vary by publisher. My son was turned off to the Princeton guides which seem to focus on a score of '3' strategy which was not his goal. Others like the Princeton guides. I would spend some time at your nearest Barnes and Noble looking over the different publishers to see what resonates. You'll probably want two guides for each subject.

 

I would also suggest that you read through these boards to find more information on specific AP exams. For example, AP bio is tough to do on your own as my son discovered. You might want to enroll your student in a SOL class.

 

Best,

Jane

[Michelle in AL]

I think your best bet is to actually begin the class first. See what the material is covering and what the text is emphasizing. Then after a couple months into it take your dd to a bookstore and sit down and see which guide appeals to her, some will seem way easy and others more on what you might think an AP level test may bring, but I think it's pretty hard to know which guide is best until your into the class. If she takes an online course, the instructor may insist on a certain guide, and if you buy one early you may waste your money.

 

I would highly recommend starting with one course. It truly is a shocker how much material is covered and the depth of knowledge that is needed to succeed even for an advanced student.

 

Keep in mind though that AP proves mastery of college level material, so to do her justice you would really have to provide a college level course either yourself or through an online class. Hopefully, the college she attends will give her credit and she'll need to have a good foundation in these courses in order to continue on to the higher level college classes. I worry about my dd possibly being able to skip college biology and going on to higher levels when she hasn't taken biology in 3 yrs.

 

My dd is taking AP Biology and with this course, I really don't think it's necessary to start studying the guides until at the earliest January. Until then, they're learning how to deal with the enormous amount of material covered and how to study and retain information. Adding additional studying at the beginning would have been futal.

 

I hope my post doesn't sound harsh. As my dd goes through her AP class it really causes you to think whether this is the best method of learning for this age: plow through a ton of material, without being able to pause and dig deeper. My dd has truly thrived from the challenge, but I also see the toll it takes on her, not having weekends free, schooling the whole day sometimes. No energy left for creativity. My youngest dd is probably slightly more gifted than my oldest according to test results, but I don't think I'll be going AP in certain subjects with her. It would crush her spirit, she's very talented in other areas such as music and AP would take that away from her. Some courses I would consider because they're reported to be not as intensive, but not others.

 

I want both my to take AP English.

[FloridaLisa]

If you go to http://www.collegeconfidential.com forums and click on the AP discussion, I believe there is a sticky with suggested study guides for the AP classes. I usually check my library for study guides to get an idea of what the class will entail. Though they may be a couple of years old, I'm able to check out several different guides. Also, I followed Gwen in VA's advice to sit down at B & N and let ds decide which guide he wanted.

 

HTH,

Lisa

[Gwen in VA]

As you poke around, you will probably find out that some AP courses/tests are easier than others. AP Bio is supposedly about the toughtest one out there. APUSH is also supposed to be more difficult. I have heard that AP Psych is in the "easier" category, though I have no first-hand experience of it.

 

You might also think about your child's strengths. What subjects is she more interested in and what subjects does she find easier? I would start off doing AP work in subjects she finds easier or subjects she is highly interested in.

 

One last thought -- taking AP's before sophomore year is highly unusual, and taking more than one or two sophomore year is quite unusual. Getting strong scores on AP exams taken freshman or sophomore year would make your child really stand out. BUT doing AP work does come with a cost -- stress and time. Be sure to count the costs as well as the advantages.

 

We didn't do any AP's freshman or sophomore year for my older two. Having walked the high school path with those two, I am encouraging my younger two to do one AP during their sophomore year in an area of strength -- ds1 will do computer programming and dd2 will do music theory. They will do the more standard AP courses during their junior and senior years at a rate of 2 -3per year.

[lwilliams1922]

If you go to www.collegeconfidential.com forums and click on the AP discussion, I believe there is a sticky with suggested study guides for the AP classes. I usually check my library for study guides to get an idea of what the class will entail. Though they may be a couple of years old, I'm able to check out several different guides. Also, I followed Gwen in VA's advice to sit down at B & N and let ds decide which guide he wanted.

 

HTH,

Lisa

 

 

thanks for the tip!

 

 

here is the info from the sticky:

Ryan's AP prep book master list

AP books to buy:

 

Comparative government: Ethel Woods study guide

 

U.S Gov – Princeton Review

 

Economics – Barrons and Princeton Review together

 

Environmental Science – smartypants guide to environmental science

 

Calculus – Arco

 

Literature – Barrons

 

Art History – The Annotated Mona Lisa

 

Biology – Cliffs

 

AP eng Lang – Cliffs and lots of essay practice

 

World History – Barrons and Petersons practice tests

 

European History – Modern European History

 

U.S History – Amsco

 

Human Geography – Barrons

 

Chemistry – Princeton Review

 

Psychology – Barrons

 

Physics – Barrons

 

Stat - Barrons

[lwilliams1922]

I started with that list of tests that I would like to look into. At this point I dont know if she will do any of them yet.

 

I'm really not sure about the Bio. DD loves reading and writing and standardized tests seem to be a strength for her.

 

Math and science are at the bottom of her list. I guess I'd like to look into at least one science if at all possible. If any one has any other suggestions for Science I'd love to hear.

 

I had not really thought about AP until i had a conversation with the PS guidance couselor the other day. He said she did very well on the PSAT and he would order any AP exam for us if we wanted, regardless of her age.

 

I don't think the PS was thrilled when I requested to have her take the PSAT and SAT but after talking to her and seeing her scores, they seem much more interested.

 

I don't want to stress DD. I'd like to see if there is a middle ground to give her the info but not get bogged down in busy work.

 

thanks for all the tips

it's a great help!

 

As you poke around, you will probably find out that some AP courses/tests are easier than others. AP Bio is supposedly about the toughtest one out there. APUSH is also supposed to be more difficult. I have heard that AP Psych is in the "easier" category, though I have no first-hand experience of it.

 

You might also think about your child's strengths. What subjects is she more interested in and what subjects does she find easier? I would start off doing AP work in subjects she finds easier or subjects she is highly interested in.

 

One last thought -- taking AP's before sophomore year is highly unusual, and taking more than one or two sophomore year is quite unusual. Getting strong scores on AP exams taken freshman or sophomore year would make your child really stand out. BUT doing AP work does come with a cost -- stress and time. Be sure to count the costs as well as the advantages.

 

We didn't do any AP's freshman or sophomore year for my older two. Having walked the high school path with those two, I am encouraging my younger two to do one AP during their sophomore year in an area of strength -- ds1 will do computer programming and dd2 will do music theory. They will do the more standard AP courses during their junior and senior years at a rate of 2 -3per year.

[Kareni]

Unless you have a very small library, you are almost certain to have a supply of AP test prep books there. Alternatively, you could visit a local bookstore with a good selection of test prep books. You may wish to browse through a few of the books on different subjects; almost invariably they will contain a sample test or two. I think that will give you a much better idea of the level of challenge inherent in tests at the AP level.

 

One test that I've heard might be among the easier is the Human Geography test. Here's a thread that discusses texts and one student's experiences: AP Human Geography Text?

 

Regards,

Kareni