Exam format reminder: 45 MCQs (60 min no-calc, 45 min with calc) plus 6 FRQs (30 min no-calc, 30 min with calc). Total exam: 3 hours 15 minutes. Section 1 is 50% of your score, Section 2 is 50%.
The 8-week schedule
| Week | Focus | What to actually do |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 Mar 9 | Unit 1: Limits & Continuity | Review limit laws, one-sided limits, continuity, IVT. Solve 20 released MCQs. One 45-minute conceptual session on why limits underpin everything that follows. |
| Week 2 Mar 16 | Units 2 & 3: Derivatives | Power, product, quotient, chain rules. Implicit differentiation. Inverse functions. 25 practice problems and 1 timed FRQ (calculator-allowed). |
| Week 3 Mar 23 | Unit 4: Contextual Applications | Related rates, motion, linear approximation, L'Hopital. 1 timed FRQ per session, minimum 2 for the week. This is a high-frequency FRQ topic. |
| Week 4 Mar 30 | Unit 5: Analytical Applications | Mean Value Theorem, first and second derivative tests, concavity, curve sketching, optimization. 2 timed FRQs. Concavity questions are commonly missed on MCQs. |
| Week 5 Apr 6 | Units 6 & 7: Integration & DiffEq | Antiderivatives, definite integrals, FTC, Riemann sums, u-substitution, separable differential equations, slope fields. Take Practice Exam 1 at end of week under real timing. |
| Week 6 Apr 13 | Unit 8: Applications of Integration | Area between curves, volumes of revolution (disks, washers, cross-sections), particle motion, average value. Redo every question you missed on Practice Exam 1. |
| Week 7 Apr 20 | Full-length practice + weak-area targeting | Take Practice Exam 2. Compare score to week 5. Every remaining session targets your weakest FRQ type. 3 FRQs per session. |
| Week 8 Apr 27 | Sharpen & rest | Short spaced review across all 8 units. 2 FRQs per day Mon-Thu. Fri-Sun: flashcards and formula sheet only. Sleep is now doing the studying. |
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Generate My Schedule FreeUnit weights on the AP Calc AB exam
The College Board publishes approximate weight ranges. Use these to allocate more review time to higher-weight units if you are short on time.
- Unit 1 (Limits & Continuity): 10-12%
- Unit 2 (Derivatives Concept & Rules): 10-12%
- Unit 3 (Composite, Implicit, Inverse Derivatives): 9-13%
- Unit 4 (Contextual Applications): 10-15%
- Unit 5 (Analytical Applications): 15-18%
- Unit 6 (Integration & Accumulation): 17-20%
- Unit 7 (Differential Equations): 6-12%
- Unit 8 (Applications of Integration): 10-15%
The 4-week compressed version
If you have four weeks or less until the exam, compress the plan like this. You will lose depth on the lowest-weighted units. That is a fair trade for guaranteed exposure to every unit before test day.
- Week 1: Units 1, 2, 3 (derivatives). Skim, do 15 MCQs per unit.
- Week 2: Units 4, 5. Two timed FRQs. Practice Exam 1.
- Week 3: Units 6, 7, 8 (integrals + apps). Practice Exam 2 at end of week.
- Week 4: Weak-area targeting Mon-Wed. Rest Thu-Sun.
What most AP Calc AB students get wrong
They spend too much time on Unit 5 (curve sketching) because it feels productive, and too little on Unit 4 (related rates) because it feels hard. Both weights say the opposite. Fix it in week 3.
They practice MCQs on a computer even though the exam is on paper. Print your practice sets. The tactile difference matters more than students expect.
They save all FRQ practice for the last two weeks. By then, they have forgotten the format and are learning it under time pressure. Start FRQs in week 3.