Yyyyaaaayyyy......it has finally come, the middle of the school year yet less than 4 months until the AP Exam in May (I know, it's coming up fast!). This is the big test of the semester, preparing you for the multiple choice section in May!!
Unless Mr. Johnston has changed the format of the Semester Exam since last year, we had a LONG multiple choice test filled out on scantrons. I can't quite remember if we did anything with terms (if some previous students remember, please comment below). Anyways, for the MC, our AP test last year was 80 questions in 60 minutes therefore Mr. J did a proportion of how many questions to give in 45 minutes, which was 60, This year though, your class's final exam is 55 questions in 55 minutes, which makes me unsure how many questions you'll be getting but it will probably be between 45 to 60.
Maybe it was just me, but studying for this exam was a pain in the butt. I wasn't the best at studying for the class and having this exam loom over me made it harder for me to concentrate and find a good studying tool. For many, what they used for studying for any chapter tests works for them for the semester yet others are not so fortunate and to make it harder, there is no review packet or material laid out for us on a nice little cookie tray. If you're struggling, try these tips:
~Terms come first above anything. If you are not grasping concepts in your brain long-termly and feel like Dory every time you attempt to remember something, terms are the way to go. Go to the AP Exam Review Page and scroll to the bottom, you will find some study guides (you will probably need the first three packets and need to add or remove some terms). Start with raw basics and fill in WHAT you know, highlight the ones you forgot. Go back to the ones you know in a different color and jot down if you know at least one reason WHY this is important, if not, circle that term. Now you have a guideline for what terms you need to look into. You can't go further into the content unless you know the basis.
~If you know the content of the terms but struggle on the MC because you feel you don't know details, I always felt that flashcards worked well for that matter. Now I'm not saying that you have to go buy any or attempt to read your notes to make them, but go to http://www.apstudent.com/ushistory/cards.php. It is sorted into different categories nicely for you. You know which chapters you struggled on and they break it down into pretty fair 50 flashcard groupings. Go through the list covering up the answers, ones you get wrong, write them in a notebook or on note cards to do the same process over again later. It's tedious but if you're looking for detail, this is one way to go.
~Sometimes, it's not so much your studying that lacks but it is your brains memory speed that gets you. You see a words like Alien and Sedition Acts, Lyman Beecher, or Worchester v. Georgia and you know them but you can't think of connections to other terms with them. This is where a good game of Word Vomit with your friends can come in handy. Make a list of terms, or take the one off of the Exam Review Page, and study with a group or by yourself. Pick a term and just have everyone input in on, first, what it is, next, why it's important, and last, what connects to it and how. It's a long list (about 100 terms by now) but in the long run, going through it will be a nice review and having help with others will not only be fun but it will help you make connects (oh! I remember, Dawes Severalty Act connects to the fact that since (usually bad) land was allotted individually to Indians, the good land could be used for more settlements and railroads which came to be the Pacific Railroad Act and the Homestead Acts, etc, etc.)
Comment below on anything you would add to the list and as always, Good Luck!!
Unless Mr. Johnston has changed the format of the Semester Exam since last year, we had a LONG multiple choice test filled out on scantrons. I can't quite remember if we did anything with terms (if some previous students remember, please comment below). Anyways, for the MC, our AP test last year was 80 questions in 60 minutes therefore Mr. J did a proportion of how many questions to give in 45 minutes, which was 60, This year though, your class's final exam is 55 questions in 55 minutes, which makes me unsure how many questions you'll be getting but it will probably be between 45 to 60.
Maybe it was just me, but studying for this exam was a pain in the butt. I wasn't the best at studying for the class and having this exam loom over me made it harder for me to concentrate and find a good studying tool. For many, what they used for studying for any chapter tests works for them for the semester yet others are not so fortunate and to make it harder, there is no review packet or material laid out for us on a nice little cookie tray. If you're struggling, try these tips:
~Terms come first above anything. If you are not grasping concepts in your brain long-termly and feel like Dory every time you attempt to remember something, terms are the way to go. Go to the AP Exam Review Page and scroll to the bottom, you will find some study guides (you will probably need the first three packets and need to add or remove some terms). Start with raw basics and fill in WHAT you know, highlight the ones you forgot. Go back to the ones you know in a different color and jot down if you know at least one reason WHY this is important, if not, circle that term. Now you have a guideline for what terms you need to look into. You can't go further into the content unless you know the basis.
~If you know the content of the terms but struggle on the MC because you feel you don't know details, I always felt that flashcards worked well for that matter. Now I'm not saying that you have to go buy any or attempt to read your notes to make them, but go to http://www.apstudent.com/ushistory/cards.php. It is sorted into different categories nicely for you. You know which chapters you struggled on and they break it down into pretty fair 50 flashcard groupings. Go through the list covering up the answers, ones you get wrong, write them in a notebook or on note cards to do the same process over again later. It's tedious but if you're looking for detail, this is one way to go.
~Sometimes, it's not so much your studying that lacks but it is your brains memory speed that gets you. You see a words like Alien and Sedition Acts, Lyman Beecher, or Worchester v. Georgia and you know them but you can't think of connections to other terms with them. This is where a good game of Word Vomit with your friends can come in handy. Make a list of terms, or take the one off of the Exam Review Page, and study with a group or by yourself. Pick a term and just have everyone input in on, first, what it is, next, why it's important, and last, what connects to it and how. It's a long list (about 100 terms by now) but in the long run, going through it will be a nice review and having help with others will not only be fun but it will help you make connects (oh! I remember, Dawes Severalty Act connects to the fact that since (usually bad) land was allotted individually to Indians, the good land could be used for more settlements and railroads which came to be the Pacific Railroad Act and the Homestead Acts, etc, etc.)
Comment below on anything you would add to the list and as always, Good Luck!!