Physics ⚛

Info: AP Physics 1 with Mr. Oelkers is often described as one of the hardest, if not the hardest, class that students take during high school. A lot of the difficulty of the class comes from the fact that although you do not need an extremely high level of math, physics is a whole new subject with new fundamentals for students to learn. Some take this class their Junior year, while others decide to take regular Physics their Junior year and take AP Physics their Senior year. Despite how difficult this class might be during the year, keep your head up because it will be very rewarding when you finish!

Summary:

• Chapters usually take 2.5 weeks and will have 2-3 homework assignments and at least 1 partner lab assignment. Most labs use a software on Mr. Oelkers' computers called Logger Pro that you will use all throughout the year.

• For each chapter, there is an 'optional' (but strongly recommended!!) binder that can be used to get an extra 5% or retake tests and is used as a reference on final exams

• At the end of each chapter, there is a quiz that is entirely short answer, free-response, and full problems, but you are required to use the Oelkers FPPM™ to show all your work on numerically solved problems.

• Every 2 chapters or so there is a test covering the previous chapters. Usually, test grades are higher than quiz grades, and good news: tests are all multiple choice!

• Sometimes between a test and the start of a new chapter, there are group projects that consist of engineering something (ranging from a rocket to a Rube Goldberg machine to a boat!) and writing a paper.

• Every Friday is a "Free-Response Friday," meaning that you will either get a new lab relating to the chapter or an AP Exam free-response section.

Tips:

• Always be curious! Of course, if you are taking an AP class, make sure you enjoy the material, but digging a little deeper into the origins and purposes of formulas will go a long way, and will especially help you later during quizzes and Free-Response Fridays.

• Be open to asking questions! Mr. Oelkers is extremely open to questions, whether they are from a misunderstanding of material or trying to go a little further. However, Mr. Oelkers will always be the first to tell you that if his explanation does not make sense, you should go online, ask your classmates, or other teachers or professors.

• Focus on the concepts, not the grade! This is one of the biggest challenges for everyone in this class. Chances are, if you take AP Physics, you want to get a high grade and will accept nothing else. But in this class, worrying about your grade will do nothing more than distract you from learning the material, which will only cause you to shed more tears and pull out more hair when you keep forgetting to multiply by that one term instead of adding it. 🥲