A beginner’s guide to AP preparation
By Addison Welborn
Picture of poster in Asia McCammon’s classroom taken by Addison Welborn
In a TED Talk on YouTube called “Inside the Mind of a Master Procrastinator,” speaker Tim Urban describes his view on the difference between the mind of a “master procrastinator” and someone who doesn’t struggle. Both minds have a “Rational Decision-Maker,” but the procrastinator has an “Instant Gratification Monkey” as well, and that monkey is what drives him and many others to procrastination. While the idea is humorous, the Instant Gratification Monkey is a problem for people of all ages, including high school students. This really becomes an issue when it is time to start studying for AP tests.
Screenshot taken from “Inside the Mind of a Master Procrastinator | Tim Urban | TED” from the TED channel on YouTube
“You can’t procrastinate,” said AP European History teacher Asia McCammon. Since her AP class consists of a majority of sophomores, these students typically don’t have the level of maturity when it comes to discipline in studying. “I have to basically start them from scratch,” she stated.
Senior Sophia Sim has seen her study strategy develop over the course of ten AP classes and tests.
“I typically like to start [studying] from day one since that’s when the content starts,” Sim explained. “Things will start to ramp up as the AP tests come closer.”
AP Chemistry teacher Daniel Fisher had the same sentiment.
“Since the AP test is so comprehensive … there’s no possible way that you can just wait until before the exam and hope you can do well,” he said bluntly. Not only is procrastinating studying unhelpful, so is procrastinating classwork. “If you stay on top of your assignments throughout the year, you’re really doing yourself a favor,” he explained.
McCammon feels the same way. Her class has a lot of note-taking and she encourages her students to do their notes on time in order to stay on track with the class.
“I really do think [note-taking] lays the foundation, for sure, as far as how to take this vast amount of knowledge and to shrink it down into what is essential,” she explained. “You can say this for all AP teachers: we don’t just give busywork—every single thing we give is essential to what it is you’re going to learn and whatever it is that’s on your test.”
Additionally, both McCammon and Fisher teach test-taking strategies in their classes, a helpful tool for students when studying.
“We practice writing free-response questions and we practice the types of multiple choice questions that they might see on the AP exam,” said Fisher. When it comes to multiple choice, “there’s kind of an art to understanding how to read the question, how to answer the question [and] how to eliminate choices,” Fisher explained.
Additionally, “With the free-response questions, there’s [a] certain language that AP readers are looking for; you have to include those certain vocab [words] or those certain terms, otherwise you won’t get full credit.”
McCammon also takes class time to teach how to write AP-specific material. Junior Brian Jones took AP European history with Mrs. McCammon last year, and he is now in both AP U.S. History and AP Language and Composition. He found those writing lessons very helpful for all his AP classes.
“Learning how to write those essays was fundamental. Now, because of this class and her teaching me how to write DBQs and LEQs and other AP literature like that, I am able to pass my tests.”
Sim also takes advantage of her classwork in order to study for her AP tests.
“Each AP subject and test have units that they’re divided into, and so I take advantage of my classes in order to actually study for them … I would say the rough format of [my study strategy] is to go through the things we learn in class and then, during unit tests, I will review the entire unit to make sure I understand.”
When it comes to studying, both McCammon and Fisher emphasized the importance of using all of your resources. Possible resources they mentioned were textbooks, class assignments, vocabulary and notes. One of Fisher’s favorite resources is AP Classroom.
“I encourage the students highly to watch the AP daily videos on AP Classroom,” Fisher said. “The instructors there go over their answers to their practice problems from the AP test perspective, so it helps kiddos understand how to fully answer and get as many points as they can.” He also added, “Do as many practice tests as you can.”
McCammon strongly encourages her students to take advantage of her as a resource. As she put it: “Use me; that’s what I’m here for. … They do work on their own, but I’m also here for help.”
McCammon does her best to give her students time to ask her questions. She offers work days as often as she can and does review sessions for her students outside of class time.
“I try to do, you know, one [review session a] day [for] a week leading up; the closer it gets [to the AP test] I start to do two days,” she said. “It’s really just like, ‘Hey, here are the categories, what do you guys not feel comfortable with?’”
Sim knows the value of these out-of-class sessions with her teachers.
“For my first AP, I did one-on-one sessions with Mrs. McBride.” Sim described her sophomore self as “stressed” by the impending AP test, but these sessions were able to not only help her with her studying but also ease her fears.
McCammon knows that there is a lot of anxiety when it comes to AP classes, especially for sophomores just starting out. One of the most important points she stresses at the beginning of every year is, “if you don’t get this at first, it’s okay.” She wants them to know that “this is gonna be difficult, but it’s doable.”
These words helped Jones even beyond his first AP. “She made me confident enough [to pass my tests],” he said.
AP tests can be daunting for many reasons. Perhaps you struggle to combat your personal “Instant Gratification Monkey,” or you don’t know where to start when studying. If you find yourself fearing AP classes or tests, these wise words from Sim can be helpful: “Make sure you persevere; AP is a year long course. … Even if you fail a couple quizzes or tests, eventually you’ll get the hang of it. That’s what learning’s all about—you fail as you go, and if you don’t fail, then you’re not learning.”
Extra Study Tips
“You get out of this class what you put into it.”-McCammon
Start studying the day that a study guide is given, break it into parts and memorize it (McCammon). Your teachers are going to do their best to give you everything you’ll need for the AP test in the study guide, so use it!
Be “systematic” in your studying. (Fisher) Coming up with a set time to study will help with procrastination, and a specific strategy or routine will make the process of studying much easier!
“Start now” (McCammon). Research study strategies for your specific class to see what has helped other people, look at past units on AP Classroom, and keep up with your assignments! If there is a concept you don’t understand, ask your teacher or classmates questions for help. If that doesn’t work, use the Internet! Since AP is a national program, there are many channels on YouTube dedicated to specific AP courses. Having someone explain a difficult concept to you in a new way can help you understand!
Find out what works for you. Sim uses a study strategy called active recall to “fill in the gaps” of her knowledge. There are many study strategies available online, and try them out until you figure out what is best for you!
“Make sure you keep yourself accountable” (Sim). One thing that has helped her is connecting with other students in her AP classes. Form study groups, share your notes, collaborate on assignments, and remind each other of deadlines. Don’t be afraid to ask your fellow students for help, once you have a group established you can all help each other out!