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INTRODUCTION
AP Calculus AB is designed to be the equivalent of a first semester college calculus course devoted to topics in differential and integral calculus. AP Calculus BC is designed to be the equivalent to both first and second semester college calculus courses.
AP Calculus AB and AP Calculus BC focus on students’ understanding of calculus concepts and provide experience with methods and applications. Through the use of big ideas of calculus (e.g., modeling change, approximation and limits, and analysis of functions), each course becomes a cohesive whole, rather than a collection of unrelated topics. Both courses require students to use definitions and theorems to build arguments and justify conclusions.
COURSE PATHWAY
You must have pass Pre-Calculus or AP Pre-Calculus to take AP Calculus AB. This class may contain Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors, meaning it can be quite diverse in terms of grade levels.
You must have pass AP Calculus AB in order to take AP Calculus BC. This class may contain Juniors and Seniors, meaning only upperclassman are able to take BC.
Both Calculus AB and BC are elective classes, meaning they are not required for graduation.
NOTE: As of the 2023-2024 school year, students CANNOT take both AP Calculus AB and BC within the same year. Both now function as separate A/B days classes.
COURSE BREAKDOWN
AP Calculus AB and BC Units.pdfAP Calculus AB focuses on three major topics:
Limits
Derivatives
Integrals
AP Calculus BC also focuses on the topics from AB, but also implements new topics such as:
Polar Equations
Parametric Equations
Series & Sequences
Click on the link to the left to get a look at the Unit Breakdown of the two courses.
When taking Calculus AB, each unit will contain BC exclusive material that will NOT be taught to students and will be skipped over.
When taking Calculus BC, students will revisit the same units from Calculus AB but will instead learn the BC exclusive material that they skipped over from the previous year.
In addition, Calculus BC comes with two additional units that Calculus AB does not have.
It is important to note that the Calculus BC exam still tests your knowledge on Calculus AB skills in addition to the new BC skills you learned.
EXAM OVERVIEW
SECTION I - MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS [50% OF EXAM]
There are 45 multiple-choice questions in the first section of the exam.
30 questions are calculator inactive, meaning you will not be allowed to use a calculator for the section. You will have 60 minutes to complete this section. This section will account for 33.3% of your exam.
15 questions are calculator active, meaning you will likely have to use a calculator help you solve the problem. You will have 45 minutes to complete this section. This section will account for 16.7% of your exam.
In total, you will have 1 hour and 45 minutes to complete the multiple-choice section.
SECTION II - FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS [50% OF EXAM]
In this section, you will be given 6 free-response questions or FRQs for short.
2 Questions will be calculator active and must be completed in 30 minutes. (Weighs 16.7% of Exam)
4 Questions will be calculator inactive and must be completed in 60 minutes. (Weights 33.3% of Exam)
You will have 90 minutes hour total to complete the FRQs.
SUMMER ASSIGNMENT
You can access the AP Calculus AB summer assignment below. Please note that this is a REQUIRED assignment and will be graded upon your return to school. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Julie Isaacson.
AP Calc AB Summer Assignment.pdfYou can access the AP Calculus BC summer assignment below. This is REQUIRED to complete and will be collected on the first week of school. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Julie Isaacson.
AP Calculus BC Summer Assignment.pdfREVIEW MATERIALS
Kranish AP Calculus has amazing resources for AP Calculus! Click through the various units and download the PDFs in order to gain access to guided notes and assignments!
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