#ap classes

[aodhnerd]

Did I lose power again? Yes

Am I speed running gov homework again? Also yes

[sweetchotimochi]

how to study for social studies subjects

I’d like to think that one of my strongest focuses is social studies. I love learning about history, economics, government, e.t.c. and I do well on tests! I thought that most people had it easy when it came to these subjects, but throughout working with peers and friends, I realized that wasn’t true, so here are some tips to get through those subjects: 

Memorizing will be your friend: This is one of my biggest tips that I still use for my social studies subjects. Memorize, memorize, memorize! Of course, you should first understand a concept or term before memorizing it, but it helps so much to know words. I use quizlet and knowt.io to help me memorize, but you can use a variety of ways to remember. This is especially helpful for tests, as you can help fill in the blank when reading through questions and other readings.

Trick your brain: One of the reasons I was so good at social studies subjects was because I was interested in politics and government. I’m really interested in the controversial aspect of politics, which helped me understand forms and branches of government, how the economy works, e.t.c. I’ve recently heard this tip on the internet, where people trick their brain into thinking that the subject they are learning is like lore for a tv show or novel, and it worked. Your brain will probably be more likely to learn if you make it enjoyable.

Use a variety of resources: A lot of social studies subjects will have more interesting and engaging resources to use, rather than like physics with a boring textbook and some reference videos. Topics like politics will have a wide variety of books, articles, news reports, movies, and even TV shows covering them. After understanding the concepts and things you may need to know, watching a political TV show can be a form of studying! You can learn to apply, discuss, and critique different forms and resources to apply to the thing you are studying. 

Find ways to connect to the modern world: Social studies subjects are one of the easiest to connect to the media and the news; you will often find articles and reporters speaking about the economy, what's going on in the supreme court, and who is voting or pushing for what agenda. If you ever need to find examples to help you learn and study, just watch the news! It’s a great resource, and can help you apply what you are learning to the real world. Oftentimes, test-makers will give a question set in a scenario, where a country is going into a recession and you may have to explain ways to solve or help it e.t.c. so the news is a great resource to see it real time.

[lunebits]

ap class tips

for those in ap classes who are struggling. also for those who aren't really. whatever.

just as an intro to my qualifications:

i go to a stem high school (will be graduating next sem!) where all the classes are already advanced as is (our ap classes are also taught differently!) i've taken a total of 10 ap classes during my time, and while that isn't as much as others, i'd say i have a pretty good spread of ap classes i took!

general ap class tips

remember that the ultimate goal for you taking this course is to take the exam and get a 4/5 (reach for that 5!). yes, the grade is important, but that score at the end after that exam might save anywhere from $600-$1200+ in college. so focus your energy on that exam once the exams are encroaching!

make friends in your ap classes. trauma bonding is real (/j) so making friends that will help you study or might save you when you accidentally forgot is key.

and while they all say "study a bit every night!" that's hard to do. the rule of thumb here for every class will be in the categorized sections, so don't worry (i gotchu!!)

ap math (calc ab/bc, stat, physics, chem, etc.)

i personally didn't take physics or chem bc i didn't want to, but i did take bc and got a 5 (yes, i'm so proud)!

rule of thumb for studying at home: do your homework everyday and actually take the time to understand what the hell you're doing. understand what the process is behind solving the problem. be able to pull out the variables. practice, practice, practice. also, this is one of those subjects where it's actually worth it to study it at home everyday.

ANOTHER RULE: practice tests. these math exams are about stamina and speed. if you can solve a problem, great! but now here comes 20 more screaming your name. but, if you can get the timing down before your exam, that's even better. so go waste your saturday afternoon at that mock exam if you need to. another saturday will come in time anyway. ask your teacher for mock exams. get that practice workbook. whatever it takes. get the timing in your hand.

just as a quote from my teacher, "life is about choices, and we are all busy people." don't waste your time doing something that'll waste your time. even if you can't remember it, that's okay. just keep moving and score more points somewhere else. and also, do the easy route. only memorize the easy route.

math is about patterns. patterns rule math. extract that pattern out of that problem, memorize it, and you'll be just fine.

FRQS WILL HURT YOUR BRAIN AND THAT'S OKAY! collegeboard has a very specific way it wants you to answer these questions. the best way to learn the format is to do so many frqs your hands hurt. because in any exam that involves math, you genuinely need to do better on the frqs. they'll land you more points. yes, the mcq might get you that 5, but the frqs become the basic 3 or 4 that you need. your teacher will hopefully teach you the format, but if they don't, the collegeboard ap website has all the past frqs they've ever made.

YOU WILL BE OKAY. I PROMISE. make sure that if you cry, you understand your disappointment then move on to a larger action plan.

ap histories/humanities (art history, u.s history, euro, world, etc.)

i've taken all the histories that my school offers (apush, euro, apwh, apah, etc.)

rule of thumb: don't study at home unless there's a test coming up or you're bad at putting stuff in order.

GET YOUR WRITING SKILLS DOWN PAT. this is the thing that'll get you the most points. that mcq section is a killer, but doing 3-6 (looking at you apah exam) right after might just kill you. so please, get your stamina up. just write. just keep writing.

timeline shit for history. because when it comes down to it, knowing the sequence of events and knowing the events themselves are more important than dates or whatever.

if you're worried about coherency in your writing, jot down a small pre-writing list.

memorize every single rubric. luckily, the dbq/leq rubric is the same across apush, apwh, and euro. you'll get away with just memorizing the two. the apah rubric is a little different, and the ap lit rubric is a little different. just memorize them as best you can.

when writing, cater to your reader. make things easy to spot and easy to grade. they'll give you a higher score if they can clearly see where things are.

just practice mcqs. all the stimulus will have something you can pull out of it (unless it's like apah where you're meant to memorize the works). but every question will have an answer that's in the passage. practice finding that answer. (this one is still really hard)

all these tests are tests of stamina. and sometimes, they're on the same goddamn day because collegeboard hates love us. just keep going. grab a snack. rest your eyes, go.

essays are the bane of everyone’s existence in ap courses because you’re on this strict rubric and have this mythical complexity/sophistication point that you need to give your hopes and dreams of achieving. BUT. but. you’ll be okay. especially for exams like the ap lit/apah exam, you get to come in knowing at least a bit of the exam (for ap lit, a good part of the frq weight. for apah, 90% of the test). TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT!! know a novel inside and out. know the works inside and out. you’ll be okay. stretch your hands, breathe, write.

ap sciences (bio, physics, chem, psych, econ)

i've personally taken bio and both econs, but these are all concept based, so the same general tips apply.

rule of thumb: if you don't understand it in class, you need to study it at home asap. seriously. because you sure as hell won’t be able to put it together during class the next day. whats good though is that there’s so many resources online (esp videos!!) for all the ap sciences that it’s actually crazy.

read your textbook. science is great with a textbook in your hand. you don't even need to read the whole thing. just skim through it to add information to your class notes. most times that works.

because the questions are concept based, the mcq/frqs are a little hard to get used to. SO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS: don’t ignore your responsibilities and learn what these questions look like.

flashcards. USE FLASHCARDS. so much of science is not only understanding concepts but applying them. to apply them, you need to know them by heart. and to know them by heart means flashcards to drill yourself.

and speaking of applying your knowledge, you need to take things slowly. approach questions with this framework: 1) read the problem + understand what concept it’s asking about. 2) pull out that information from your sexy brain. 3) solve the problem based on what you can remember. to truly understand, include a lot of examples in your notes. AND MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND WHY AND HOW THEY WORK. the why and the how are more important than the what.

misc tips 🌷

burnout is inevitable if you don’t manage your time correctly. there’s people online that can explain how to manage your energy more than me so please go watch them instead lmfao

try your best to stay on your schedule. the more you push your tasks to this arbitrary tomorrow, the more you absolutely won’t do them.

honey, you need to bring a snack and a water bottle to those exams, you get like a 10 minute break that isn’t enough for the mental taxation (without representation) that happens on those exams. they’re brutal.

the classes themselves are not as bad you think. i promise. most of the time, you’ll actually have fun. and it’s really cool to be learning at a college level. so keep at it! the moment you hate something, the moment you begin to stop trying as hard and your grades start slipping. keep finding the next thing to delude yourself into enjoying (/hj).

[defnotmadie]

me when the ap classes are actually ap-ing three days into school 😭

[gimmeonigiri]

12.20.23

it’s winter break but i’m doing calculus (literally what’s the point of finding relative extrema my head hurts so bad)

[statistical-distr-of-polls]

Any tips for studying for the AP test?

For AP stats specifically, no (I am in the same hell as you but I have to make up the exam </3), other than the generic 'do practice problems and review terms!' schtick. I will say though, remember the different inference procedures, how to do them on calculator, AND how to do them manually

ie. remember how to get test statistics by hand, as well as be able to derive inference formulas + confidence interval formulas regardless of if you have a calculator (my calculator, for example, does not have certain functions that would make my life easier, so I have to figure out alternates)

For AP exams in general: Watch videos for concepts you don't understand (PLEASE this saved me last year), get a review book if you can and work soooo many practice problems/frqs/practice tests.

Also please start studying like a month before because I guarantee you, there will a part of the course that you will basically have to reteach yourself.

Uhh if you're taking other APs alongside stats (ap bio or ap research particularly!) use them to supplement your studying. AP Bio is good for getting in a bunch of Chi Square GOF test practice lol

If anyone else has tips, feel free to add them on and I'll reblog!

[plantsandstudy-aaaaa]

Day 11/50

Things I accomplished

Studied calculus flashcards

Passed government test

Studied for floral certification exam

Finished floral design project

Worked out

Stuff for tommorrow

Work on calculus multiple choice review

Pass floral certification exam

Work through changes in solo

Other

I finally worked out today, I've been meaning to work on specific things like turn out and arms for a while now, and I would like to do it more often (maybe daily). I didn't pass the last calculus test, but hopefully, I will do well on the mock exam to balance out the grade. I also take my floral certificate exam tomorrow, I'm feeling pretty confident about it, but we'll see!

April 18, 2024

[dino-mp3]

blog intro :)

3-23-24

Hello I’m Dino! I wanted to make an introduction post for my tumblr since I decided I wanted to start posting to motivate myself and others! I thought it would be nice to list my personal goals, interests, etc. :)

also pls ignore any grammar issues I don’t feel like putting this through Grammarly :,)

Goals

Work towards a 4.5 gpa: I have currently maintained a 4.2 gpa for this school year I wish it was 4.5, but I have 2 b’s :( So I’m going to work towards a 4.5 for this last quarter and senior year!

Become a better speaker: My ultimate career is to be a lawyer! With that comes working to be a better speaker. I get quite nervous when it comes to taking to a large group of people and start to talk fast. On top of this at my mock trial meet I messed up my direct horribly because of how nervous I was to talk in front of the judge and jury :,)

Get best lawyer during Mock Trial Comp: I won best attorney this year, but I don’t think I deserved it…I want to be more confident in my win this time around!

4 or 5 on AP Exams: I want to get a 4 or 5 on both my AP Lang and APUSH Exams in May! I need to study and practice hard though, but I’m willing to put the hard work in ᕦ(ò_óˇ)ᕤ

Practice flute more often: I play the flute for my schools band and while I have only been playing for 7 months now I have to keep up with people who have been playing for 5+ years :,) With that I want to practice more to keep up and for my personal interest of just becoming more skilled with the flute!

Turing in homework on time: I have made a bad habit of turning my homework in late which is so bad oml I need to get out of it

Exercise: I want to start working out regularly to lose some weight :) While I’m at a healthy weight I just want to lose a few pounds for aesthetic purposes, but in a healthy manner!

Love myself more: I forget to remind myself that I have gotten so far and I have evolved over the years. I want to make sure that I know that I’m worthy of love even when I’m at my lowest.

Interests

Music: I’m a big fan of all genres (even some country songs too) but I’m a big listener of k-pop! But here is a list of my favorite groups + musicians: Red Velvet, Melanie Martinez, Laufey, Idelwork, Frank Sinatra, NMIXX, Ive, Megan Thee Stallion, Flo Milli, Poppy, Lesserafim, Aespa, Newjeans, Infinity Song, Kiss of Life, and many more!

Media: I’m not going to list every kind of media I’m into but here is a small taste! Big fan of ARGs, Indie Horror games (puppet combo specifically), Mascot Horror games (FNAF + Poppy Playtime), Anime (although I haven’t watched anything recently, but my fave is TBHK), K-dramas and Thai-dramas, YouTube video essays (TRO, iNabber, Primik, Stephanie Soo), Cartoons (Owl House, Gravity Falls, Amphibia, MLP, stuff like that), RPG + Dating Sim games (Shooter game HATER here), Sitcoms, Snoopy/Peanuts, Miraculous Ladybug (biggest MariChat lvr) Twisted Wonderland (Azul my love) and a BUNCH more things I’m into, but I’m not going to list them all like I said :,)

Hobbies: Doing my nails, playing my flute, writing fanfics (don’t judge I BEGGG), reading (pls recommend books for me to read, I love the classics too), deco (for my photo cards and notebooks lol), and makeup!

I think that should suffice for my introduction, though it looks a bit long…I’m a blabber could you tell?

Anyways thank you for sticking around for the end! If you want to see any updates on my goals or read my blabber about my interests don’t hesitate to follow me! (Also follow me on Ao3 @/dino_mp3 if you’re an Azul lvr bc all my fanfics are about him) This tumblr is more of a casual stop for me to be more myself and work towards a better me :) But thank you again and I hope you have a good day/night! Don’t forget to drink water :D

-Dino

[poisons-productivity-palace]

SCORES DID NOT DISAPPOINT 🎉🎊🥳🎁🎊🎈🥳🙌🍾🎁🎉🎁🎉🎈🎉🥳

[notpoet06]

Discrete Math Conversation

Teacher: how’s the problem set going over here?

Me: it’s going.

Friend 1: no, it’s not.

Friend 2: it’s not going at all, actually. Help

[aodhnerd]

Essays and tea are generally a good combo, and this instance is no different.

[miawashere]

i absolutely love my ap gov class!! this is way off topic compared to my other posts, but i really enjoy the class. i feel like i’ve been learning more about past laws and more legal terminology, and i’ll use my new knowledge to continue to try and educate others on this platform.

[reasonsforhope]

“The College Board has announced it will begin offering an Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies course at 60 high schools across the U.S. this fall.

The AP program, which traditionally gives high school students an opportunity to take college-level courses before graduation, currently covers 38 subjects, including  U.S. government and politics, biology, chemistry, English, European History and art history.The AP African American Studies course is the College Board’s first new offering since 2014, according to TIME, and the multi-disciplinary course will cover over 400 years of African American history, literature, civil rights, politics, the arts, culture and geography.

Though a pilot program currently, the aim is by the 2024-2025 school year for this AP offering to be the first course in African American studies for U.S. high school students that is considered rigorous enough to allow students to receive credit and advanced placement at colleges across the country.“ -via Good Black News, 9/10/22

[dachshund-games]

AP history classes are wack because you'll learn that Hitler sent Nazis to work with the KKK in the hopes to bring fascists to power in America and then you remember that one of the KKK's grand wizards went to high school in your city and then it's never touched again

[plantsandstudy-aaaaa]

Day 12/50

Things I accomplished

Worked on calculus multiple choice review

Passed the floral certification exam!!

Changed the ending of my solo

Stuff for tomorrow

Work on calculus multiple choice review

Finish computer science review

Start take home frq for government

Other

I am officially floral certified now, I'm not quite sure what all I can gain from it, but I'm excited regardless. I also finally changed the ending of my solo. That section had been bothering me for weeks, and I really like what it was changed to. I started reading the cruel prince, and so far, I'm enjoying it.

April 19, 2024

[toto-dreamer]

ap classes ranked by how badly they made me want to drop out

ap art history -- i was sobbing crying nightly trying to memorise 'tamati waka nene' to the tune of africa by shakira

ap us history -- it moved incredibly slowly at times and incredibly quickly over the interesting bits. tell me why we spent no time at the revolutionary war and spent three weeks talking about cold war economics

ap world history -- don't ask me about the ottomans if you want to see me happy and content

ap 2d art an design -- spent a month straight trying to scrape my portfolio together on college board. it kept deleting my progress. and each image took like 3 hours to format and load. so happy it was over. liked the drawing bit though

ap language -- very chill!! liked writing essays and reading the news. never got complexity but i resigned myself to it :(

ap European history -- honestly really fun. machiavelli is my bro. napoleon is my babygirl. leonardo da Vinci is gay