CliffsAP Biology (CliffsNotes AP)
by Phillip E. Pack Ph.D.
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Book Reviews of CliffsAP Biology (CliffsNotes AP)
Book Review: Excellent tool if you want to ace the exam
Summary: 5 Stars
Yes I mean it, it really is as great as people are saying. I have always been weak at biology, and I was very nervous about taking it at the AP level especially since its so difficult, but I endured it. I got mostly Bs in that class, I got very lazy with senioritis even to the point that I skipped some chapters in the text and didnt even bother to pay attention in class or read summaries.
So although I was getting into lousy habits typical of high school seniors, I was still determined to get a good AP score. So, this book came in handy. I read the book starting in the beginning of May, and read through it by the eve of the exam. I was stressfully cramming the weekend before the test, reading through the densely packed information (very concise too), and I even skipped some parts (esp. animal phyla and plants). Its a great review, and I even learned some stuff that I was too lazy to read earlier that year. On Sunday night before the test, I still didnt know enough, and I felt screwed. But I knew I had to let go. As they say, if you've spent your time studying, you will be prepared.
I notice many people saying "this isnt a substitute for a textbook!" etc, and they are right. This alone will not get you an A in the class. It will not effectively teach you everything about bio. But it will definitely prepare you for a 5 on the AP exam, and its all I used to study for the exam. Most of my classmates used Barron's (good, but way too much info), but I knew this was better. So I called for my scores, and you guessed, I got a 5!!
If you're gonna use this, I highly recommend you start studying during spring break, or in mid April at the latest. That way, you can work your way through the book without stressing and cramming like I did, and maybe do better on any practice tests that count as grades. If this is all you're using for AP studying, make sure you READ (not skim) and understand everything (or almost everything) that this book tells you (look in your textbook if something isnt clear).
Peace out, and I hope this helps
Book Review: Perfect for cramming!
Summary: 4 Stars
I took the AP test last year and I recieved a 5
Honestly, I am the worse biology student out there.. I tried to learn the material but I am just not "biology-oriented" I can't do it.. I can learn math, chemitry just fine..just not biology...
So... I totally failed the class... I can't remember jack.. and I couldn't learn jack...
I borrowed this book from my friend and i spent about... 40 hours on it
I can't give a time in days.. because i might have spent random 10 min or 2 in random place...
actually I don't think I even spent 40 hours... maybe even less..
I just know I stayed up all night the night before the test studying and.. just cramming.. because that was all I could have done.. I really didn't know biology... and I am not exagerating at all...
So the next day when I took the test it was a breeze.... I was soooo surprised the topics in the book are EXACTLY the same topics tested.. it was unbelivable...
on the tests I took in the AP Biology class (regular one in school)... I usually get around 10-20 percent on the tests...
I was completely unbelievable.. during the actual ap test... I flew throught it... I only skipped about 5 questions.. and those of which I had sufficient time to go back and fill in... on the written portion.. I knew the answers to every single one...
I know.. this sounds like I'm making everything up.. but I'm not...
I honestly failed every single biology test I took, except 2... and I took about 50 all together
During the school year I had pretty much given up....
Then.. who would've known.. I crammed all the information from the book (according to the test break down in the book) in two days.. and I ended up with a 5
It's not just me who can't believe this... neither could my teacher.... yeah..lol....
Some of my friends who maintained a 80-90 percent test avergae in the class had a 4 on the test... I'm not sure what book they used to prep.. but.. heh.. wow.....
Book Review: This book is the reason I got a five.
Summary: 5 Stars
I didn't learn a lot in my AP Biology class; we rarely took our lessons seriously and our teacher gave us very few assignments. We learned material slowly--by the time May came around, we still had nine chapters left (out of 56) to read in the textbook!
Everyone in our class was pretty much flipping out over the AP test and how soon we had to take it. Nobody felt prepared. My friend actually reread the entire textbook in the week we had to review before the test. I procrastinated, and didn't want to go through that (our textbook was MASSIVE) so I read this cover-to-cover twice the weekend before the exam. Didn't need to take notes, just highlighted bits of information in spots where there were some excessively detailed descriptions.
This book has excellent diagrams, and except for occasional typos here and there, it wasn't at all difficult to read. I'd suggest it for anyone with a mediocre teacher, or people who know they're going to slack off until a week before the exam :) Reading the book once, slowly and thoroughly, and then rereading it again quickly (skimming through areas that I already knew pretty well) was the strategy that earned me a five on the exam this year! I love this book.
Several students in my class used the Princeton review book, which does spend more time explaining how the AP test works than this does, but in every other respect CliffsAP is far better than the other review book options.
It helped on class tests as well, because it explored concepts in a much clearer, easily understood way than the textbook did.
Absolutely would recommend anyone to buy it.
Book Review: Wonderful supplement or stand-alone review - Got a 4 and sick on same day
Summary: 5 Stars
Both me and my brother got a copy to share between us, and it was absolutely wonderful. I found it very easy to use, especially considering the amount of information required to know for the AP exam. All I learned in class and then some was condensed coherently in this book. Clear and meaningful diagrams, and straight to the point no frills. Right now I'm in senior year and taking IB Biology III which is equivalent to probably an introductory anatomy and physiology class in college (i'm guessing) and I'm wishing that I can find the book since we lost it moving into a new house.
The great thing about this book is that I was able to kind of relearn what I had taken earlier in the year and use notes from my teacher to review. I did this for maybe 10 hours the day before the exam (and not to be bias I did pay attention and do well throughout the year, so the concepts im reviewing i already knew, don't expect to do well be cramming the day before,that only works if you have little information with little thinking behind it). The day of the exam I had a horrible stomach virus and I was throwing up and fatigued during the test. I was surprised to find that not only did I pass but I got a 4 on the exam. I'm not going to equate the book to my success, but it certainly helped. Even though I lost the book I plan to buy another one just to review for teh IB exam this year and keep to review in college since I plan to take pre-med. Definitely recommend, but also there is nothing like learning in class, so do well in school and use this book as a supplement. And don't eat potato salad before the test for that matter!! I learned the hard way!
Book Review: One of the Two Best AP Biology Books
Summary: 5 Stars
I used this book and Dr. Sanghera's AP Biology Flashcard Quicklet to prepare for the AP Biology exam. I love both of these books and here are my reviews:
This book is cool. It's to the point and covers all the topics very concisely. So, that saves you lot of time that you can use elsewhere. However, it gives you all the info that you need to pass the AP Biology exam. It's short and sweet: material is covered in a reader-friendly way; easy to follow, understand, and retain. I used this book in combination with the following book: the Flashcard Quicklet.
AP Biology Flashcard Quicklet: Flashcards in a Book for Biology StudentsFlash cards are cool tools to review your preparation for the exam. I like this style of flash cards though: flash cards in a book. Loose flash cards could be annoying; they are hard to keep together...flash cards in a book are cool..no lost cards...easy to keep them together..Besides, in this book, the flash cards are very much self contained; good and easy to follow answers and explanations....You can use this flash card book with any AP Biology book or without any book...it's not tied to a specific book...The coverage of topics is quite comprehensive and there is lots of space to make your own notes...I love it...
I would say these are the only two books you need to pass the exam.