Basic Course Structure

Part of Every AP Psychology Chapter:

(Most) 1st Day of Each New Chapter – This 1st day of each chapter, one entire class will be provided to read chapter (HW: finish reading chapter). It will take longer than one class period to read it. It is very important that your read the chapter before you start going through and taking notes. If the class time is not being used for this purpose, you will lose this class period. Sometimes a video will be shown during part of the class period.

• RECOMMENDATION: Skim through the chapter before you begin reading. This will increase compehension and retention–and likely reading speed as well.
• TECHNOLOGY: On these reading days, you may bring headphones and a listening device; however, you must have a pre-made playlist. If you are “clicking around and looking for a song,” it will be considered technology misuse in class.

Notes in Spiral – Specific page numbers of notes will be assigned daily. – Open Notes Quizzes (We will roll dice roll to see if we’re taking it.) Additionally, you may be required to take notes from videos posted on the class Web site. Please add this content to the notes already taken in your Spiral. There is a good chance that you will already have all of the content in your notes. (These videos will primarily be the Crash Course videos posted on each of the unit pages.)

• RECOMMENDATION: In the textbook, I would make sure to pay attention to all the words in italics in addition to the bolded content.
• RECOMMENDATION: Pay attention to all the boxed text. This means pay attention to the “INTERSECTION” and “CRITICAL CONTROVERSY” sections, etc.

Worksheet Packets – At the beginning of the year, you will be given a copy of all the Worksheet Packets for the year. These are worksheets provided by the textbook company. They are usually due about a week after the start of a chapter, and the due dates will be posted on the Web site. These are your responsibility to complete. You are always welcome to work ahead if you want.

Tests – Tests will take 1.5 periods to complete. The first part is fill-in-the-blank vocabulary (no word bank) for all the chapter(s) vocabulary. The second part is multiple choice with a possible free response question.

• Quizlet – On Quizlet.com, there are 2 vocabulary list for every single chapter. One list says “Textbook Vocab ONLY“–and this is what you need to study for the first part of every test.  You could also just use the margins of the chapter. The other much larger list is what you need to study for the multiple choice questions. You NEED to be using this to Study.
• RECOMMENDATION: Go through the Quizlet.com for the multiple choice questions and write additional information into your Spiral. Your Spiral should be the perfect study guide for the AP Psychology exam.

Other Assignments:

Packets: Short packets for specific content will be provided in some units. They are typically due the following day in class. Fewer pages of notes are typically assigned on these days to provide you with time to complete the assignment.

SHORT Quizzes: SHORT Quizzes are quick questions from the class period that you will take on a half sheet of paper. Typically, you will not be required to get all of the questions correct in order to get a 100%. For example, if there are 5 questions, you may only be required to get 3 correct in order to get full credit. The number you have to get correct in order to receive full points will vary based on the number of questions and the difficulty of the questions. (If you had me for World Studies, these should sound familiar.)

TOPIC Quizzes: Periodically, quizzes over specific content in a chapter will be given. For example, there will be a quiz on neurotransmitters during Chapter 3. These are designed to help you break down the content, and to make it impossible for you to put off studying the night before the test (not that any high schooler would do that).