Looking for books for AP Physics B

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around recommendations for supplementary books to aid in studying for the AP Physics B exam. Participants share their experiences with various resources and express their struggles with the official textbook.

Discussion Character

  • Homework-related
  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • One participant finds the school-issued textbook, "College Physics" by Serway and Faughn, difficult to comprehend and seeks easier alternatives.
  • Another participant recommends "The Princeton Review" as a good resource.
  • A suggestion is made to visit the College Board's website for a list of recommended books for the AP Physics B test.
  • "Cracking the AP Physics B Exam" by Princeton Review is mentioned as a potential resource.
  • A participant shares a negative experience with Princeton Review, noting that the practice questions were not aligned with the current AP Physics B test content, particularly criticizing the inclusion of angular momentum questions.
  • Another participant found "5 Steps to a 5 AP Physics" and "Fundamentals of Physics" by Halliday/Resnick/Walker helpful, despite not attempting many practice problems, and achieved a top score on the exam.
  • One participant mentions having the Barrons book and finds it to be good so far.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of opinions on the effectiveness of different study resources, with some recommending specific books while others share negative experiences with certain materials. There is no consensus on which resource is definitively the best.

Contextual Notes

Participants' recommendations are based on personal experiences, which may vary in effectiveness depending on individual learning styles and the specific content of the AP Physics B exam.

Who May Find This Useful

Students preparing for the AP Physics B exam, educators seeking supplementary materials, and individuals interested in physics study resources.

Malicious
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I am currently struggling in AP Physics B at school and find the textbook issued to me by the school (College Physics by Serway and Faughn Fifth Edition) a bit difficult to comprehend. I do not want to fail the class or the AP test and was wondering if there were any good, easy to understand AP Physics help/practice books available that you guys would recommend.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
the princeton review is usually good.
 
One suggestion would be to go to the AP section of College boards website for teachers, and find the suggested books for the AP physics B test to study from. Thats what I had to do when I did an independent study for AP physics C.
 
Cracking the AP Physics B Exam by Princeton Review.
 
Malicious said:
I am currently struggling in AP Physics B at school and find the textbook issued to me by the school (College Physics by Serway and Faughn Fifth Edition) a bit difficult to comprehend.
Word, G.
Princeton Review totally sucked for me; I found the multiple choice practice questions were more related to you approximating square roots and such without a calculator. Also, questions on angular momentum were included.. (something not on the *current* AP Physics B test)
Anyway, I found 5 Steps to a 5 AP Physics + Fundamentals of Physics by Halliday/Resnick/Walker (Extended 7th edition) helpful.. (I just read through the chapters and practice problems, never really attempting the problems 'cause I was too lazy)
Ended up with a 5 so something must've worked.
However, I used Fundamentals for both B and C, so 5 Steps to a 5 would probably be the only thing that'll benefit you.
Get that and all of the past papers and you'll be good to go.
If you can wait a month, I can probably hook you up with the past papers. ;)
 
I have the Barrons book... so far it seems really good...
 

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