AP Calculus AB

Syllabus
Drew University
Madison, NJ

Christinia M. Frazier- Instructor

College Board AP Calculus and Pre-AP Mathematics Consultant
ghsfraz@yahoo.com – email

Course Description
This course will provide a complete overview of the AP Calculus course and is
appropriate for teachers who are both new to the course or have limited teaching
experience seeking new strategies and methods to improve their calculus programs.
The course will focus on instructional strategies for helping students learn calculus
concepts and techniques. Participants will get a deeper understanding of the
concepts and techniques of calculus. We will focus on the College Board outline
for Calculus, with special emphasis on those topics that have changed most
recently due to calculus reform and the introduction of technology. You should
definitely download the Course Description effective Fall 2012.

We will emphasize a multi-representational approach to the concepts in the

topical outline including concepts of the derivative, linear approximations, related
rates, optimization, techniques and concepts of the integral, the Fundamental
Theorem of Calculus, areas, volumes, accumulating rates of change,
approximation techniques for the definite integral, working with functions
defined as integrals, slope fields, differential equations, and series
approximations of functions where possible.

There will be time built into the week for the group to share, discuss and explore
problems together. Participants will examine the reading and scoring process
including scoring sample exams. Participants should bring the calculator they will
be using in their classes. The TI- 83/84 & 89 will be used for demonstration
purposes as well as additional online websites. Participants should also be able to
indicate the textbook they either use or plan to use for their AP Calculus course.

It is requested that participants bring with them a copy of a Pre-Calculus or

Calculus lesson that they have already done with students, to share with
participants. These lessons and strategies will become good resources for each
participant.

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Course Objectives
 Participants will be able to work with functions represented in a variety of
ways, graphically, numerically, analytically and verbally
 Participants learn the meaning of the derivative in terms of a rate of
change and local linear approximations and will be able to use the
derivative to solve a variety of problems
 Participants will gain increased understanding of the meaning of the
definite integral both as a limit of Riemann Sums and as the net
accumulation of a rate of change. They will be able to use integrals as
expressed in both parts of the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus.
 Participants will be able to use technology to help solve problems,
experiment, interpret results and verify conclusions
 Participants will learn how the AP exam in calculus is graded and will use
this information to prepare assessments for their own students that are
holistic and rubric-based.

Instructional Methods
 Lectures
 Group discussions
 Cooperative learning projects

Assessments
 Daily homework problems- from selected texts where available
 Participation and completion of in-class activities and group work
 Attend EACH session of the institute

Possible Text/ Readings:

Calculus for AP*(Second Edition) Jon Rogawski, Ray Cannon
Calculus (3rd edition) AP* Edition- Finney, Demana, Waits, Kennedy
MAA Notes. Resources for Calculus Collection. Washington D.C.: MAA, 1993

Other Resources Available – Check Online or with Publisher

Be Prepared for the AP Calculus Exam, Mark Howell and Martha Montgomery, 2006-
Present, Skylight Publishing

Additional resources may be available

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Agenda Outline: AP Calculus Summer Institute

Drew University, APSI: July 21, 2014 through July 25, 2014

I Content for AP Calculus AB

A. Functions, Graphs and Limits
 All About SLOPE
 Graph analysis
 Limits of functions- L’Hopital’s Rule
 Asymptotic behavior
 Continuity
B. Derivatives
 Concepts and Definition
 Derivative at a point
 Derivative as a function
 Higher order derivatives
 Applications of the derivative
 Computation of the derivative – especially the Chain Rule
 Particle Motion Problems
 Geometric interpretation of differential equations using slope fields
C. Integrals
 Riemann Sums
 Interpretations of the Definite Integral
 Applications of Integration
 Fundamental Theorems of Calculus
 Numerical approximations to the integral
 Improper Integrals- uses LIMITS- an after the test topic of interest

II Grading of Free Response Questions

A. Look at the most recent released exam( 2008)- news about future
releases
B. Look at the 2014 Exam with student samples
C. Write your own questions on selected topics- Discuss special Activities

III Technology in the AP Calculus Curriculum

A. Know your calculator and when to use it
B. Sharing information, programs, hand-outs that work for you!!