#ggstudies

ap bio: a guide

hey everyone! i am back with another subject master post, this time on ap bio. i took ap biology because i loved the non-ap class and because i was excited about the subject, so here are some tips and tricks to survive

general class tips

TAKE LOTS OF NOTES: one of the best decisions i made was to take notes online then rewrite them in a little notebook before tests. it helped me review the content  while also compiling information before the ap test

PRACTICE THOSE FRQs: we had frqs on every test within the class and it helped a lot for the ap. my teacher also made us do an frq a week before the exam. overall: just practice them so you know how to apply theories and concepts to questions

KNOW GENERAL SCIENCE SKILLS: as boring as it seems, make sure you know the scientific method and how to graph. they are so important for the test and show up much more than you think.

USE OUTSIDE SOURCES: use khan academy, use bbc bitesize, use a princeton review book. they are all really great ways to quiz yourself before tests in class and also the ap. they also help re-outline concepts if you do not understand them. speaking of which…

resources i used

ap central

question bank (for igcse, but equally as helpful)

khan academy

bbc bitesize (for gcses, but also helpful)

practice questions

more practice questions before in-class tests

cram packet

lecture slides

masterpost with resources for specific topics by @study-well

exam day tips

i’ll probably post a whole separate thing closer to the exam next year (lol it is a bit early!) but here are just a few things to remember

BRING SNACKS AND A WATER BOTTLE! this test is 3+ hours. make sure you have eaten and slept before you go to the exam

ON THE MULTIPLE CHOICE: take your time (you have 90 minutes). if you get stuck on a problem, come back to it. remember, there are no questions that blatantly test your bio knowledge without context so use the clues around you when guessing

ONE THE FRQs: answer the questions in the order you want. i personally answered the two biggest ones first and skipped around on the back end. you also have a lot of time of the FRQs so use it to your advantage. also don’t be afraid to describe something if you don’t know the word for it. and don’t forget to label your graphs and stuff :)

7/6/18

these lists literally took me FOREVER! at first, i wrote all the avoir idioms and then saw on a different page (in my old french notebook) that there are some faire idioms so i start writings those, thinking there aren’t that many AND THEN I TURN THE PAGE to see a whole bunch more! aka i had to go on to the next page but i’m not complaining because they are all in one place!

apush: a guide

hey y’all! school is just around the corner and I have decided to post a couple of tips for some of the classes i have taken in the past. this first one is going to be about apush because i did a lot to study for it and i also loved the subject!

general class tips

TAKE NOTES! TAKE NOTES! TAKE NOTES! Whether it’s on lectures or textbook readings, be sure you have a good system of note taking that is organized. The easier your notes are to read, the easier it is to study the material you learned in september for the may exam

PRACTICE WRITING! my apush course was very writing heavy, and that really helped me on the exam. make sure you take advantage of improving your essay writing skills and take criticism and improve upon it

IT IS NOT ONLY ABOUT THE TERMS! the apush exam is very analysis based. so while it is nice to know a lot of terms to throw into your DBQs, SAQs, and LEQs, make sure you can analyze them. a great way to focus on the analysis is to read HISTORIOGRAPHIES. essentially, these are nice long essays that show different perspectives of history and are a great way to improve your analysis skills.

resources i used

ap central (lots of FRQ practice)

gilder lehrman (lots of historiographies and review sheets)

chapter outlines

cram packet (made by yours truly!!!)

khan academy

practice questions (lots of chapter quizzes linked here)

dbq guide

review packet

a sweet quizlet

review guides from tumblr

exam day tips

i’ll probably post a whole separate thing closer to the exam next year (lol it is a bit early!) but here are just a few things to remember

BRING SNACKS AND A WATER BOTTLE! this test is 3+ hours. make sure you have eaten and slept before you go to the exam

ON THE MULTIPLE CHOICE: remember it is mainly analysis based. don’t overthink anything and derive your information from what is given. again, it may help to study terms, but ultimately the analysis is what helps on this section

ON THE SHORT ANSWER: you do not have to fill up the entire page! make sure that you answer each part of the question (you can divide it out by A. B. and C.) and remember to analyze what is given. this is the section where the terms you study will play in, so make sure to toss the ones you know in

ON THE DBQ: this is the hardest section for everyone. answer the question before you read the documents and then figure out where they play a role in your arguments (at least that helped me). don’t forget to include POV, it can be as simple as saying “this person was conservative” or “he started this thing during this time”. you got this!

ON THE LEQ: phew! the final section. don’t give up! answer the question you can easily form an argument with. often times the essays on earlier time periods are less specific and easier to answer (my teacher told me this). this is another section where it is essential you have terms and analysis.