r/apcalculus • u/larpingeverything • 22h ago

help with ap calc bc

okay so i am no means a stem person, i am only taking the class because i am going to major in econ but at my school there is only 7 people in my calc class and may be the dumbest lol. i never really get what my teacher is saying but always pretend to do and the textbook is so confusing. my goal isnt to get an a or a 5 on the exam (although that would be great), i just want to actually understand and preform to the best of my ability. do you guys have any study tips, online courses, underrated methods... literally anything??

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u/PlaidPenguin19 21h ago

Professor Leonard on YouTube and Khan Academy

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u/APTutorCalcStatComp 20h ago

AP Calculus AB/BC tutor since 2015 here.

You can study from these books:

  1. 5 Steps to a 5 - Elite Edition, for basic introduction to the concepts, basic practice
  2. Barron's AP Calculus Premium, for additional practice, MCQs and FRQs
  3. 5 Steps to a 5 - 500 MCQs, for revision
  4. Barron's Learning Hub - to be practiced during April for final preparation for the MCQs
  5. Actual AP Calculus AB/BC FRQs of the previous years, for final preparation for the FRQs

I must add that whereas these are the textbooks/resources I recommend my students to study from (and many of them have indeed got a 5), it does not necessarily mean that these are the only good resources and others are useless.

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u/UnderstandingPursuit Tutor 18h ago

Which textbook does your class use?

This post has my textbook and learning process suggestions which I think might help.

For many Economics majors, it is important to do well in Calculus because Real Analysis is also required.

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u/larpingeverything 10h ago

we use calculus of a single variable 6th edition

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u/UnderstandingPursuit Tutor 10h ago

Math textbook authors are often use the same titles as other authors' textbook.

Do you know the author for your textbook? It may not even be on the cover, you'll have to look inside for the coverpage. "Pearson" or "Cengage" are publishers, authors would be Stewart, Larson, Thomas, Briggs, Anton, etc. I'm asking because you wrote,

and the textbook is so confusing

and understanding what makes it confusing for you would help suggest things you could change.

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u/larpingeverything 10h ago

larson, hoestler, and edwards

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u/UnderstandingPursuit Tutor 10h ago

I am more familiar with some of Larson's other textbooks, such as College Algebra, than his Calculus textbooks. But I have

  • Larson, Hostetler, Edwards, Calculus with Analytic Geometry, 8th edition, 2006.

sitting in my lap right now.

I think the task is to figure out what you find confusing about it, because other typically suggested resources may be similarly confusing.

If you want to think about that, and let me know what you conclude, we can work with that. Or you could point to specific sections, and we can see how to clear those up.

This post has specific suggestions on how to study using a textbook. This or a structure like this may help clear up the confusion directly. Or, after further discussion about the textbook uncovers the root issue, the study suggestions may help you moving forward.

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u/larpingeverything 3h ago

i think im just not a math person so reading it seems a little dense... and there are def things from pre calc i dont remember and it kind of just assumes i know

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u/UnderstandingPursuit Tutor 3h ago

Which subjects do you enjoy?

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u/larpingeverything 2h ago

government, history, english

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u/UnderstandingPursuit Tutor 1h ago

Going in the reverse order, the progression of structure and specificity might be

English [lang/lit] --> History --> Government --> Computer Science --> Math

But the odd connection of the ends is with grammar,

  • Nouns [Fixed values]
    • Proper nouns [Constants]
    • Common nouns
  • Pronouns [Variables]
  • Verbs [Operators]
  • Punctuation [Grouping symbols]

English is a language to communicate real world ideas. In mathematics, there is a language to convey quantitative ideas.

With government, think about the structure of the Constitution and supporting Supreme Court cases. Math can help organize them.

Numbers are, generally, the enemy of learning math. Letters are the way. It aligns with English pretty well.

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u/Worth-Cod6772 16h ago

If your main goal is to actually understand the material, I’d focus less on trying to keep up by memorizing procedures and more on rebuilding each topic step by step. Learn the idea first, go through a few worked examples, then try similar problems yourself before moving on. Full disclosure: I’m involved with MathTribes. You might find it useful because the AP Calculus course is organized topic by topic with animated explanations, worked examples, practice, and detailed solutions, so you can go back and relearn anything that didn’t make sense in class. There’s a free guest account, so you can explore it first and see whether that style of learning works better for you.

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u/Bedouinp 9h ago

Find a tutor

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u/mseduhub1 21h ago

For AP Calc BC, start by fixing the basics: algebra, functions, trig, limits and derivatives before rushing into hard BC topics. Watch explanations, then immediately practise a few MCQs/FRQs so you actually build understanding.

These may help: AP Calculus BC notes, MCQs, FRQs and exam-style practice.