1. Welcome to ADVANCED PLACEMENT CALCULUS

2. 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.

3. 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.

4. 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!

5. The people who have designed the AP Calculus class and tests have over- compensated 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.

6. 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.

7. 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.

8. 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.

9. A way to re-coup after a test (starting with Chapter 2) - 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.

10. 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 3 rd nine weeks (2 nd nine weeks for the BC students).

11. 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.

12. 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 – Normally - 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.

13. 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. The best way to contact me is by emailing me at svolpe@northallegheny.org

14. AP curriculum can be found online at http://www.apcentral.collegeboard.com/

15. Both tests use the following breakdown: 30 questions multiple choice without calculator 15 questions multiple choice with calculator 2 free response with calculator 4 free response without calculator The test is about 4 hours long

16. The AP exam date is posted in my classroom on the first day of school.

17. For the entire month before the AP exam, we do nothing but sample tests to get ready.

18. 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.

19. My daughter is in 6 th 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)

20. Thank you for trusting me with your child!!!