Welcome to
ADVANCED PLACEMENT
CALCULUS
Things that I say to parents that make
them nervous.
Calculus is the first real math class. All
of the other classes were just getting
your child ready for this one. Calculus
is considered the bottom of the food
chain for most mathematicians.
This class is hard and I try to challenge
the smartest students in the room.
Your kid has a teacher who is teaching to
a test.
The national average on the AP test is a
3.0 which is about a 40% on the test.
Things that I say that make parents
feel a little bit better.
Even though this class is hard, and I shoot
for the top of the class, and I expect others
to rise to meet my standards... Kids almost
always do rise to this higher level.
If a student does not do well on a test, I give
other opportunities for students to learn the
material. My philosophy is that sometimes
kids just don’t get it the first time around and
I just want them to learn the material –
THAT IS MY PRIMARY OBJECTIVE.
- But I also need them to work with me
and not against me!
The people who have designed the AP
Calculus class and tests have overcompensated as a reaction to criticism from
colleges that the high school experience for
math cannot compare to the college
experience. Almost every student who has
taken AP Calc and a college calc class will
agree that the AP high school course is
more difficult than the college calc course.
Possible scores on the AP test are 1, 2, 3,
4, or 5
While the national average score each
year is around 3.0, my average is well
above this. My average is hovering
around a 4.5. BC is a little more than 4.8.
I am one of the graders for the AP Free
Response section. I know what the
graders are looking to read. I will give
your child every opportunity to be ready
for this test.
I do not go over homework in class, but the
students have numerous opportunities to
ask me questions.
On Math XL – they get immediate results
and can immediately see how to do a
problem.
They must earn a minimum of 90% on each
section of the homework for it to count for
credit. Students can do problems 3 or 4
times (as needed) to get it correct.
Recommended calculator – TI 89
Note – I teach to the TI84 and the 89. The
people who make the AP test recognize
that those students with the 89 have an
advantage on the test.
The latest version of the 89 is the Titanium.
A way to re-coup after a test - If a
student has done all of the homework
to get ready for a test – but does not
do well on the test, there is an
opportunity for him / her to do a
packet of test-like questions for more
points. I give two weeks for these
packets to be completed.
The complete list of my homework – for the
year - is on Math XL.
It may seem like a lot of work if a student is
doing an extra credit assignment at the
same time s/he is doing the regular work…
and students often wait till the last minute to
do the curve packets…
There is a 1.5 – 2 week assignment in the
3rd nine weeks (2nd nine weeks for the BC
students).
In the beginning of the year in both AB and
BC, we always do an SAT review, then we
have a pre-calc review.
In AB, we will finish a semester and a half
of college calculus work. In BC, we will
finish 2 semesters.
Before the Thanksgiving break, we see a
movie meant to motivate them and allow
them to breathe. Before the winter break, if
time allows, we play a calculus game – and
there are many calculus problems, so I
don’t even try to convince them that it is a
100%-fun-game.
The difference between AB & BC BC covers 2 ½ chapters more than what
the AB class does.
BC receives 2 scores on their AP tests – a
score for both the AB and BC sections.
---------------------Post AP test – The AB students work on
Chapter 9 (sequences and series). The BC
students do some calculus material that
isn’t covered in the book, and we do a small
chapter of Linear Algebra.
Please keep an eye on your child’s grades/
Please make it your child’s responsibility to talk
to me about any grade issues first, and then we
should move into meetings that include the
student, a parent, an administrator and me.
The best way to contact me is by emailing me at
svolpe@northallegheny.org
AP curriculum can be found online at
http://www.apcentral.collegeboard.com/
Both tests use the following breakdown:
28 questions multiple choice without
calculator
17 questions multiple choice with
calculator
2 free response with calculator
4 free response without calculator
The test is about 4 hours long
The AP exam date is posted in
my classroom on the first day of
school.
For the entire month before the AP
exam, we do nothing but sample
tests to get ready.
What comes next?
My son is off to college next year?
Shouldn’t he take Calc 1 and get the
easy A to boost his GPA?
No – If he had AB, he will have
already finished most of Calc 2. I
recommend that he start in Calc 2.
If he had BC, he can safely start
Calc 3 which is reputed to be easier than
Calc 2.
My daughter is in 6th grade! What will
she take for the next 6 years??!!??
[insert laugh even though I am only half-joking]
There are 3 other appropriate classes
to follow BC – AP Stats, AP Comp Sci,
and AP Physics C.
After AB, students who plan to major
in a mathematical / engineering field
are welcome to take BC. (By welcome
– I mean that it would be a great idea
to do this)
Thank you for trusting me with your child!!!