Course Description
AP Physics 1 is equivalent to a first-semester introductory college course in algebra-based physics. Students should have completed a geometry course and be concurrently taking Algebra II or an equivalent course.
The course is structured around four “big ideas” of physics which encompass core scientific principles, theories, and processes of the discipline. The big ideas provide a focusing conceptual lens, with which we can understand the physical world around us. They help to connect and organize facts, skills and experiences into more than just a list of information to be memorized.
Four Big Ideas:
- Systems: a physical system is a portion of the physical universe chosen for analysis.
- Interactions: objects and system interactions can be described using concepts such as force and energy.
- Change: changes in the properties of a system can be used to predict future states of the system.
- Conservation: changes that occur because of interactions are constrained by conservation laws.