The central question addressed in AP Psychology is: “how do psychologists think?” Therefore the AP Psychology course is designed to introduce students to the systematic and scientific study of the behavior and mental processes of human beings. Further, students will learn about some of the explorations and discoveries made by psychologists over the past century. They will assess some of the differing approaches adopted by psychologists, including the biological, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, psychodynamic, and sociocultural perspectives; and most important, students come to an appreciation of how psychologists think (or at least an appreciation of the kind of critical analysis that psychologists espouse and hope to model in their words and actions). AP Psychology is a year-long course. An emphasis will be placed on the application of critical thinking skills, independent reading, individual and group projects, free-response writing, research skills, and objective tests and quizzes. Further, students who earn an AP Exam score of 3 or higher can receive credit, advanced placement, or both from nearly all perspective colleges in the United States and internationally.
Be sure to pick up a 3-ring binder for use throughout the year in AP Psych. You’ll need this to keep your notes and handouts organized by topic area. Look for one 1.5 to 2.5 inches in width (3 in is usually too unwieldy to carry in a backpack daily). By spring, when you’re reviewing for the AP Psych exam, you’ll be SO GLAD you kept all of your notes/handouts organized this way!
You’ll also want paper for note-taking (loose-leaf or notebook, your choice). Student preference is the key here: some folks like to use loose-leaf paper so they can insert notes into the binder by topic area, others like keeping their notes all in one notebook (post-it tabs to mark chapters/units can be helpful if going that route). If you like notebooks, be aware that many students fill up their notebooks by spring in AP Psych, so having more than one on hand will help. Also, some students prefer to keep their book notes and class notes separate (not a bad idea), so you’ll want to think about your “system” when shopping.
Pens and pencils are going to be necessary. Perhaps this is obvious, but I thought I’d be thorough.
Optional:
Strive for a 5 Study Guide (approximate cost $30; accompanies the textbook). This workbook helps students process what they read in the text and practice skills in preparation for unit tests and the AP Psych Exam. The district provides each student with a copy; HOWEVER, because the district’s copies will be reused from year-to-year, students cannot write in them. That is a bummer, because they are set up like workbooks and would be much easier to use if students could write in them.
If you would like to purchase your own, the easiest way to do so is to order via an online seller like Amazon or Ebay. (This is also likely to be cost effective, since our textbook is no longer the newest edition of this book, so people will sell the older copies for cheaper.) Product details are below:
Title: Strive for a 5: Preparing for the AP Psychology Examination, 2nd Edition Authors: Alison Herzig, Laura Brandt, and Nathaniel Naughton ISBN-13: 978-1464156052 ISBN-10: 1464156050