AP CHEMISTRY
SUMMER ASSIGNMENT
2013 - 2014
AP Chemistry is a college level science class that covers a great deal of material and requires up
to 16 different labs. This means that you will be responsible for reading each chapter so that class
time can be used for the clarification of points rather than the detailed teaching of each point.
Information contained in the reading is subject to testing on the 6-in-9 drills and unit tests.
Expect to have an hour of homework per class meeting and a half-hour of homework before a lab
and one hour afterwards. Study groups are strongly encouraged.
Text: Chemistry, 5th Edition by Zumdahl and Zumdahl
Study Guide: Samples are available in room 602 for you to look through. This will enable you
to pick the one best suited for your learning style before making a purchase.
Course Expectations & Grading Policies:
AP Chemistry requires the ability to do mental math [NO calculator]. There will be a no
calculator portion to each unit test throughout the year. Learn, practice, and strengthen your
ability to do mental math by estimating the answer to any problem involving calculations on this
summer assignment. You, of course, may use scratch paper and pencil. Then use your calculator
to determine the exact answer to the problem. Compare it to your estimate to learn where your
weaknesses are so that you can improve those specific mental math skills.
6-in-9 drills
All 6-in-9 drills are quizzes. Each will contain 6 multiple choice questions: five from the current
unit and one from a past unit.
On Fridays the quiz will also include a reaction problem that requires you to write and balance a
reaction and answer a question regarding that reaction.
.
Free Response Questions (FRQs)
FRQs will be occasionally substituted for 6-in-9 quizzes. These will be announced in advance,
graded, and may be taken from the practice problems.
Reactions of the Week (ROWs)
Every Monday and Tuesday a set of reactions will be distributed for you to do as practice. The
solutions to the ROWs will be posted on the white board just outside room 602 (above Harry
Potter). Once the ROWs have been assigned and posted, any of the reactions may be used on
subsequent Friday quizzes or on chapter tests.
Homework
Practice problems will be distributed at the beginning of each chapter so you can work on them as
material is covered in class. The answers will be posted on Mr. Chuba’s school web site and
placed in a solution binder in Room 602. Homework problems will not be reviewed in class. If
you need help, then you must seek it outside of class time.
OVER
Chapter Reviews
Chapter reviews will consist of rigorous problems that will be graded for accuracy. You should
use the completed practice problems to guide you in solving the problems on the review. Class
time will not be used to review these assignments. Extra help should be sought either before or
after school.
Tests
Tests will be administered at the end of a unit. The test may include only one chapter or a series
of chapters that fit together topically. Each test will include a multiple choice section, a reaction
prediction equation, and a free response section in which all work must be clearly shown.
Calculators may not be used during the multiple choice section.
Lab:
You need to purchase two lined composition books. These must be permanently bound, not
spiral bound.
Labs will be distributed in advance so you have time to prepare your lab notebook before starting
the lab. Lab notebooks will be checked before you are permitted to begin the lab.
Your grade will be determined by quiz scores, labs, graded reviews, and tests.
Summer Assignment:
The first four chapters of the book cover topics learned in your first year of chemistry. Therefore,
they will serve as your review. These assignments will be neither graded nor collected; they are
provided for your practice. Solutions will be posted on Mr. Chuba’s school web site so you can
check your work.
On the second day of class expect the 6–in-9 drill quizzes to begin. These quizzes will lead up to
a full exam on the summer assignment.
Please feel free to contact us at:
tchuba@cox.net
tom.chuba@lcps.org
703-648-2579
janice.runge@lcps.org
ileana.padgiotis@lcps.org