Your AP Survival Guide

May 5, 2010  
Filed under Feature

Excepting you the lucky few who finished their tests on day one, AP fever is ravaging the upperclassmen of GFH. So here is your very own personal get-ready-quick guide (minus-the studying, of course). According to the McGraw Hill guides, that should have started in, oh, say, October.

The most obviously important information first: What do you need to bring?

• Several sharpened No. 2 pencils (with erasers) for all multiple-choice answer sheets.
• Black or dark-blue ballpoint pens for free-response questions in most exams.
• Your school code. (If you are a homeschooled student, you will be given a code at the time of the exam.)
• A watch (in case your exam room does not have a clock that you can see easily).
• Your social security number for identification purposes. (If you provide it, the number will appear on your AP Grade Reports.)
• An AP authorized calculator if you’re taking an AP Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Chemistry, Physics, or Statistics Exam.
• A ruler or straightedge if you’re taking an AP Physics Exam.
• A photo I.D. if you do not attend the school where you are taking the exam.

Now that you’ve finished  packing your bags and feel ready and motivated to head out the door, stop for a moment, put your backpack down and remove:

• Books, compasses, correction fluid, dictionaries, highlighters, or notes.
• Rulers and straightedges (except as noted above).
• Scratch paper (notes can be made on portions of the exam booklets).
• Typewriting equipment, computers (except as noted for students with disabilities), or calculators (except as noted above).
• Watches that beep or have an alarm.
• Portable listening or recording devices — even with headphones — or photographic equipment.
• Beepers, cellular phones, MP3 players, or personal digital assistants (PDAs).
• Clothing (t-shirts, for example) with subject-related information.

Clean of all contraband materials? Good.

Now, did you eat breakfast? No? Back to the table for you.

The AP step-but-step survival guide:

1.)    Go to bed early. Get 8-9 hours of sleep.

2.)    Eat a good breakfast. Protein, nuts and blueberries are brain food.

3.)    Show up early. Be ready to go and don’t let anything surprise you.

4.)    Trust yourself. Eight months of school prove that you know your stuff. Just sit back and let your brain do its work.

5.)    On break, get up and walk around. Eat something, have something to drink and go to the bathroom. Walk back into that room ready.

6.)    Watch the clock during your essays.

7.)    Congratulate yourself. You survived your AP tests!

Good luck, test takers. Knock em’ dead.

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