Morro Bay Students Study For AP Tests

By Alexandra Katsones 

AP exams are currently happening, and this can be a very stressful time for students, especially those who have multiple exams. Come take a look into other students' study habits, and possibly gain new ways to study before your AP exam. 

Junior Krishna Patel is currently enrolled in two AP classes, AP Literature & Composition and Environmental Science. “I watch Smedes from YouTube and I take and go over his review slides and take notes. I might watch the videos on AP classroom as well,” said Patel. When preparing for her AP Environmental Science exam resources like YouTube and AP Classroom provide various videos on recent or past lessons to help refresh students' knowledge. Many AP classes have various units and sections, and some are longer than others. Watching videos that overview topics you don’t particularly remember well can help refresh your memory and allow you to feel more confident in the material.

“For the AP Literature & Composition test I am reviewing all the books we have read in the past. We have a packet that we are working on in class, which has been very helpful going back and remembering what all the books were about and their characters and themes,” said junior Alana Shields.

Shields also highlights that taking practice multiple choice questions (MCQs) for literature is also very helpful. You can find practice MCQs and free response questions (FRQs) on your subject in your AP Classroom. Since AP Literature & Composition includes three timed essays back to back, it can be helpful to look back on past essays you have done and review those as well. Reviewing class work too can be very crucial for preparing yourself for your exam too.

“In AP Spanish we’ve been writing tons of argumentative essays and doing lots of speaking exercises. I think the best at-home studying tools are Quizlet and AP Classroom daily videos,” said junior Logan Kusko. 

Kusko emphasizes that due to the test being based on another language, there's a lot of preparation and studying that must be done. Quizlet flashcards seem to be commonly used among many AP students. Allowing the students to review vocabulary or terms as much as possible to fully memorize. Quizlet also offers certain games that incorporate the topic you're studying and provide a practice test as well. 

Even though AP testing may rack up some nerves and make you feel anxious, there are various studying techniques and tools to help you feel confident on your exam. Hoping for the best for all our AP students on each of their exams. Good luck Pirates!