Calculus: Prep for the AP Class Reviews

Class Review After Taking Calc BC Exam

I definitely benefited from taking the prep course over the summer. I was already quite familiar with continuity and the derivative and integral formulas, so I didn't have to spend time in the first semester getting familiar with the new material. Sometimes during the year, I looked back at the lessons Mr. Alons gave, as they're very helpful and good for notes. I was confident while taking the exam and scored well.

Great prep course!

After finishing AP Calculus BC and the AP exam, I've come back to say that this course totally carried me through most of the first semester. Not having taken any other calculus course, I was worried at the beginning of the school year about how I'd manage the new material; but I felt comfortable and confident during the AP exam, and this course deserves a lot of credit for that!

AP Calc Prep Review

This class was a delight to take! The courseload is relatively light, being concise and to the point, while being enough for the student to properly grasp the material. Each lesson builds gradually towards the final conclusions in a very well-paced manner, which left me feeling well prepared to take my Calculus course in the fall. The teacher is very easily reachable and responded almost instantly to every single question and email I sent him, and always gave very clear answers - I never worried about sending any "stupid" questions because his responses were always polite and easy to understand. If, like me, you took some math other than Algebra II or Trigonometry (for example, AP Stats) the year before, and are worried about your ability to keep up in Calculus, I would absolutely recommend taking this course to brush up on some of your rusty concepts and be prepared for the future.

Calculus Prep class review

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

Mr. Alons's daily lessons are written out very well. They usually start with explaining the new concept, solving example problems, and then giving practice problems. They are really good at explaining new concepts and showing how they relate to Calculus, and at times real-life problems. The size of each lesson is not big, so if you continue doing one lesson per day during the course, it won't take up anywhere close to your whole day and you will be learning valuable material to boost you in Calculus.

Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

Yes. Now that I understand limits, derivatives, and integrals more, I know what to expect for next year. Mr. Alons also showed how you could use the Calculus tools to do very powerful and useful things.

Would you recommend this course to other students (if they are willing to work hard!)?

Yes, I would because I think this class is a great way to get ready for AP Calculus, as AP Calculus is an advanced subject in math, and being able to understand it well will be really helpful. I haven't started AP Calculus yet, but I feel like this course has taught me a lot and prepared me for AP Calculus.

APCP Class Review

For me, Calculus has been a subject that has had an immense impact on my own personal interest in mathematics and the STEM field as a whole. To be able to fully learn and appreciate it in a low-pressure yet thorough educational environment has been a great aid to my personal mathematical development and has helped me to see the broader picture of single-variable Calculus. At the same time, this course has also provided detailed analyses and proofs that not only help to explain and teach the material in a deep and profound manner, but also really helped in my own understanding of the concepts and inner workings of the Calculus. The lessons were both succinct and also very informative, and the lesson structure helped to encourage deeper self-study as well, while still being manageable during the summer break. Mr. Alons is both an excellent and inspirational instructor, and his lecture style and teaching abilities are engaging and very informative. If I ever had a question throughout the course, I knew that I could always reach out to him and get a prompt and clear answer, which also made learning the material a much smoother process overall. While mathematics is my favorite school subject, I feel that this class is taught and structured in a way that even students who may not like maths as much will still find interest and success in it, as even my interest in mathematics grew substantially throughout the course. 

Calculus: Prep for the AP Class Review

At the beginning of the course, I appreciated the algebra review but didn't quite feel that I was learning anything new. However, as we really began to delve into the calculus material, I found myself enjoying the class as it became more challenging. I think this is a great course for students who are preparing for or even struggling with calculus; the daily lessons were very clearly laid out, and I found it easy to follow and understand the flow of the course. The lessons also don't take up too much time, so I was able to attend other camps while doing a bit of calculus each day as well. Although I cannot tell yet whether it has prepared me for the AP Exam, I definitely feel less apprehensive for next year, and even a little excited for more calculus to come!