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AP Calculus
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Description
This is a college level course in Calculus. This course will cover the topics specified by the College Board for the AP Calculus AB exam. This course is normally taken by students in grade twelve. Students should have completed Precalculus before enrolling in Calculus.
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Fees
The cost of the course is $78 per month for nine months for students attending a live class on site, $58 per month for distance learners. Registration fees for homeschool classes at various locations (LAC, LEAD, Dunwoody, etc) will also apply. Students will need to purchase a copy of the "Student Workbook", which should be around $20 each semester. Videos of the class lectures will be provided online at no additional cost.
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Lectures and Class Time
Class time will primarily be spent on instruction. Students should bring their Student Workbook to each class, or a printout of the pages for that week. The pages of the workbook are identical to the instructor's lecture notes, except the student version has the solutions and answers deleted. During the lecture the students take notes and solve the example problems in the workbook.
Videos of the lectures are also available online, and these videos go through the same lecture notes, point by point. Students use the videos to cover any material that time constraints did not permit us to cover in our weekly class. Or, if a student misses a class or needs to review the material, all of the course content is available online. It is possible to take the entire course online via distance learning, and many students have done so.
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Textbook
Calculus by Paul Foerster, 2ndt edition, published by Key Curriculum Press, 2005. This is an excellent text and is on the College Board’s list of approved texts for this AP Calculus. In addition to the lectures and the homework assignments, students may be assigned reading and practice problems from the textbook.
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Homework, Tests and Grades
Students will be given specific assignments to complete each week. Assignments will consist of Practice Problems from the workbook, instructional videos online, and written assignments.
In this class there is a distinction between Practice Problems and Homework Problems. Practice Problems are found in the workbook and in the textbook, and students check their answers with the solutions provided. Homework assignments and tests are printed from the website, completed, and turned in for a grade.
To maximize instructional time in class, tests will be given at home. Students will take a cumulative exam at the end of the first semester and may choose to take the Advanced Placement exam at a location of their choosing. Students will receive a numerical grade for each semester and for the year. The grade is calculated based on tests, graded homework and the final exam.
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Difficulty Level
AP Calculus is a college level class, as indicated by the “Advanced Placement” designation. The material is conceptually challenging. Homework assignments and tests will reflect the difficulty of the material, and will be comparable to the difficulty level of problems that students will encounter on the AP Exam.
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Internet Access
Access to a computer with a high speed internet connection is strongly recommended. Instructional materials such as lecture videos, lecture notes, homework assignments and tests will available over the internet. Graded assignments and tests may also be returned via email in order to provide more timely feedback. Progress reports will be put on the website and updated regularly.
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The Instructor
Derek Owens taught physics, honors physics, AP Physics, and AP computer science at The Westminster Schools in Atlanta, GA from 1988-2000. He currently teaches Physics in the summer school program at Westminster as well as AP Calculus at Providence Christian Academy. He graduated from Duke University in 1988 with a degree in mechanical engineering and physics, and worked at the TIP program at Duke for two years, teaching physics and heading the Satellite Science Program. He received a National Science Foundation scholarship and studied history and philosophy of science at L’Abri Fellowship in England. He worked as a software developer for five years before returning to teaching. This will be his eighth school year teaching homeschoolers in the Atlanta area. He and his wife Amor and their two children Claire and David attend Twelve Stone Church, a non-denominational church near their home in Lawrenceville.
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