How to be successful inAP Human Geography
- Take notes in class.
+ We will have a number of meaningful discussions inclass over the content. You should betaking notes on these discussions and reviewing them at various pointsthroughout the unit.
- Go over your notes multiple times during a unit.
+ There is a basic psychological principle at play here(shameless plug for Ms. Batik’s AP Psychology course that you can take Junior/Senioryear) that we call the spacing effect. The more you go over something over the course of days and weeks, thebetter you will be at remembering it (instead of cramming in one sitting).
- Read the textbook.
+ Take notes over the chapters in the Rubensteintextbook. The tests and quizzes in thisclass will come from both the lectures and the textbook. If you were to simply rely on payingattention in class you would still be missing a lot of the content and aresetting yourself up to fail the class. There are chapter guides for each chapter that we will post on thewebsite. It is strongly encouraged thatyou do those guides as well as take any additional notes that you need to onthe chapter. If you need help on how totake notes, please schedule a tutorial with your teacher. AND GO TO THE RUBENSTEIN WEBSITE!!! http://wps.prenhall.com/esm_rubenstein_humangeo_8/
- Do the vocabulary lists.
+ Every assignment we give is designed to help make yousucceed as much as possible in this course. The list of terms for each chapter is meant to help you critically thinkabout the vocabulary and concepts by further challenging you to developexamples. Also, it will help you on yourquizzes (because you will be able to use the lists on the quizzes).
- Do all of the extra credit.
+ Our policy is that if you are doing everything thatyou possibly can in this class, we will do everything we possibly can to helpyou. It means a lot to us if you takeall of the extra credit opportunities that we offer (they will be differentdepending on the different units). Please make sure that you take all of theseopportunities to ensure your success in the class. The extra credit is not designed to be “busywork” but rather to actually help you to learn or review material.
- If all else fails… schedule a tutorial. We would love to help you!
+ This is good advice for any class. Taking the initiative to improve yourlearning is always a good thing. Sometimes it is a lot easier in a one-on-one setting to be able to askquestions and try out examples of your own. You may also find that others are struggling with similar issues asyourself and be able to get a study group out of it. It never hurts to try!
- If you have a question about an assignment, do not hesitate to ask!
+ It is our hope that you will develop many differenttypes of skills while you are in this class, including communication and lifeskills. Outside of class hours, studentsare strongly encouraged to stop by our classrooms or email the teacher directlyabout any questions regarding assignments.
