Advanced Placement (AP) Courses provide the following benefits to students who enroll in the courses:

  • Earn College Credit and Placement – Your AP score could earn you college credits before you even set foot on campus. In fact, most AP students who enroll in four-year colleges start school with some credit.
  • Save Money and Time – Earning credit or placement can open up time on your schedule or even let you graduate early.
  • Stand Out to Colleges – “AP” on your high school transcript shows colleges you’re motivated to succeed, and taking the exam demonstrates your commitment to tackle and complete college-level work.
  • Keep Your Options Open – Earning college credit with AP can give you the flexibility to change majors, pursue a second degree, study abroad, or seek internships.
  • Boost Your GPA – Taking an AP course and exam can boost your GPA. Check with your school for more information.
  • Get a Taste of College – Get familiar with college-level work—and boost your confidence by tackling it.
  • Develop College Skills – Time management, critical thinking, scholarly writing—AP courses and exams help you hone the skills you’ll need in college and career.
  • Discover Your Passion – Studying a subject in depth could give you new insights and even put you on the path to a career.

Access to AP Courses utilizes student College Board Logins

Log in or create your account here: AP Students

Have questions about AP Courses and Exams?

Contact Amanda Shaffer, AP Coordinator at amanda.shaffer@stlucieschools.org or 772-337-6722

AP Courses currently offered at Port St. Lucie High School and course information with links:

→AP Biology – Study the core scientific principles, theories, and processes that govern living organisms and biological systems. You’ll do hands-on laboratory work to investigate natural phenomena.

  • Skills You’ll Learn:

    • Designing experiments and procedures to test a prediction or theory

    • Collecting and analyzing data

    • Interpreting data to draw conclusions

    • Developing and supporting a scientific claim with evidence

For information regarding this AP Course – click here: AP Biology Course Information

For course practice from Khan Academy – click here: Khan Academy – AP Biology Practice

2022-2023 Exam Date: May 10, 2023 @ 12pm.  The exam covers the following:

  • Section I: Multiple Choice – 60 Questions | 1 hour 30 Minutes | 50% of Exam Score
    • Individual questions
    • Sets of questions with 4–5 questions per set
  • Section II: Free Response – 6 Questions | 1 hour 30 Minutes | 50% of Exam Score
    • There are 2 long questions and 4 short questions. Long questions are worth 8–10 points each; short questions are worth 4 points each.
    • The long questions ask students to:
      • Interpret and evaluate experimental results
      • Interpret and evaluate experimental results with graphing
    • The short-answer questions assess students’ understanding of the following:
      • Scientific investigation
      • Conceptual analysis
      • Analysis of a model or visual representation
      • Data analysis

This course is taught by : Amy Crossland – amy.crossland@stlucieschools.org

→AP English Language and Composition – Learn about the elements of argument and composition as you develop your critical-reading and writing skills. You’ll read and analyze nonfiction works from various periods and write essays with different aims: for example, to explain an idea, argue a point, or persuade your reader of something.

  • Skills You’ll Learn:
    • Reading closely, analyzing, and interpreting a piece of writing

    • Gathering and consolidating information from different sources

    • Drafting and revising a piece of writing

    • Evaluating a source of information

    • Writing an evidence-based argument

For information regarding this AP Course – click here: AP English Language and Composition Course Information

2022-2023 Exam Date: May 9, 2023 @ 8am.  The exam covers the following:

  • Section I: Multiple Choice – 45 Questions | 1 hour | 45% of Exam Score
    • 23–25 Reading questions that ask students to read and analyze nonfiction texts.
    • 20–22 Writing questions that ask students to “read like a writer” and consider revisions to stimulus texts.
  • Section II: Free Response – 3 Questions | 2 hours 15 minutes (includes a 15-minute reading period | 55% of Exam Score
    • Students write essays that respond to 3 free-response prompts from the following categories:
      • Synthesis Question: After reading 6–7 texts about a topic (including visual and quantitative sources), students will compose an argument that combines and cites at least 3 of the sources to support their thesis.
      • Rhetorical Analysis: Students will read a nonfiction text and analyze how the writer’s language choices contribute to the intended meaning and purpose of the text.
      • Argument: Students will create an evidence-based argument that responds to a given topic.

This course is taught by : Karen Hamilton – karen.hamilton@stlucieschools.org

→AP English Literature and Composition – Learn how to understand and evaluate works of fiction, poetry, and drama from various periods and cultures. You’ll read literary works and write essays to explain and support your analysis of them.

  • Skills You’ll Learn:

    • Read a text closely and draw conclusions from details

    • Develop an interpretation of a text

    • Identify the techniques used by an author and their effects

    • Present your interpretation and make an argument for it in writing

For information regarding this AP Course – click here: AP English Literature and Composition Course Information

2022-2023 Exam Date: May 3, 2023 @ 8am.  The exam covers the following:

  • Section I: Multiple Choice – 55 Questions | 1 Hour | 45% of Exam Score
    • Includes 5 sets of questions with 8–13 questions per set.
    • Each set is preceded by a passage of prose fiction, drama, or poetry of varying difficulty.
    • The multiple-choice section will always include at least 2 prose fiction passages (this may include drama) and at least 2 poetry passages.
  • Section II: Free Response – 3 Questions | 2 Hours | 55% of Exam Score
    • Students write essays that respond to 3 free-response prompts from the following categories:
      • A literary analysis of a given poem
      • A literary analysis of a given passage of prose fiction (this may include drama)
      • An analysis that examines a specific concept, issue, or element in a work selected by the student. In responding to Question 3, students should select a work of fiction that will be appropriate to the question. A general rule is to use a work that is similar in quality to those they have read in their AP class(es).

This course is taught by : Annette Burke – annette.burke@stlucieschools.org

→AP Environmental Science – Explore and investigate the interrelationships of the natural world and analyze environmental problems, both natural and human-made. You’ll take part in laboratory investigations and field work. Note: Save your lab notebooks and reports; colleges may ask to see them before granting you credit.

  • Skills You’ll Learn:

    • Explaining environmental concepts and processes

    • Applying quantitative methods in solving problems

    • Analyzing a research study to identify a hypothesis

    • Analyzing data, visual representations, and writings

    • Proposing a solution for an environmental problem and supporting your idea with evidence

For information regarding this AP Course – click here: AP Environmental Science Course Information

2022-2023 Exam Date: May 2, 2023 @ 8am.  The exam covers the following:

  • Section I: Multiple Choice – 80 Questions | 1 Hour 30 Minutes | 60% of Exam Score
    • Individual questions
    • Set-based questions
      • 3–4 sets include quantitative data, such as data tables, charts, or graphs. These questions primarily assess Practice 5, but can also assess Practices 1, 4, 6, or 7.
      • 3–4 sets include qualitative data or information, such as models, representations, or maps. These questions primarily assess Practice 2, but can also assess Practices 1, 4, or 7.
      • 2 sets include text-based sources. These questions primarily assess Practice 3, but can also assess Practices 1, 6, or 7.
  • Section II: Free Response – 3 Questions | 1 Hour 10 Minutes | 40% of Exam Score
    • There are 3 free-response questions.:
      • Question 1: Design an investigation presents students with an authentic environmental scenario accompanied by either a model/visual representation or quantitative data.
      • Question 2: Analyze an environmental problem and propose a solution presents students with an authentic environmental scenario accompanied by either a model/visual representation or quantitative data.
      • Question 3: Analyze an environmental problem and propose a solution doing calculations presents students with an authentic environmental scenario.

This course is taught by : Michael Mimnaugh – michael.mimnaugh@stlucieschools.org

→AP United States History – Study the cultural, economic, political, and social developments that have shaped the United States from c. 1491 to the present. You’ll analyze texts, visual sources, and other historical evidence and write essays expressing historical arguments.

  • Skills You’ll Learn:

    • Evaluating primary and secondary sources

    • Putting historical developments in context and making connections between them

    • Analyzing the claims, evidence, and reasoning you find in sources

    • Coming up with a claim or thesis and explaining and supporting it in writing

For information regarding this AP Course – click here: AP United States History Course Information

For course practice from Khan Academy – click here: Khan Academy – AP US History Practice

For access to the AP US History Study Guide – click here: APUSH Study Guide

2022-2023 Exam Date: May 5, 2023 @ 8am.  The exam covers the following:

  • Section I, Part A: Multiple Choice – 55 Questions | 55 Minutes | 40% of Exam Score
    • Questions usually appear in sets of 3–4 questions.
    • Students analyze historical texts, interpretations, and evidence.
    • Primary and secondary sources, images, graphs, and maps are included.
  • Section I, Part A: Multiple Choice – 55 Questions | 55 Minutes | 40% of Exam Score
    • Students analyze historians’ interpretations, historical sources, and propositions about history.
    • Questions provide opportunities for students to demonstrate what they know best.
    • Some questions include texts, images, graphs, or maps.
    • Students choose between 2 options for the final required short-answer question, each one focusing on a different time period:
      • Question 1 is required, includes 1–2 secondary sources, and focuses on historical developments or processes between the years 1754 and 1980.
      • Question 2 is required, includes 1 primary source, and focuses on historical developments or processes between the years 1754 and 1980.
      • Students choose between Question 3 (which focuses on historical developments or processes between the years 1491 and 1877) and Question 4 (which focuses on historical developments or processes between the years 1865 and 2001) for the last question. No sources are included for either Question 3 or Question 4.
  • Section II: Document-Based Question and Long Essay – 2 questions | 1 Hour, 40 minutes | 40% of Exam Score
    • Document-Based Question (DBQ) – Recommended Time: 1 Hour (includes 15-minute reading period) | 25% of Exam Score
      • Students are presented with 7 documents offering various perspectives on a historical development or process.
      • Students assess these written, quantitative, or visual materials as historical evidence.
      • Students develop an argument supported by an analysis of historical evidence.
      • The document-based question focuses on topics from 1754 to 1980.
    • Long Essay – Recommended time: 40 Minutes | 15% of Exam Score
      • Students explain and analyze significant issues in U.S. history.
      • Students develop an argument supported by an analysis of historical evidence.
      • The question choices focus on the same skills and the same reasoning process (e.g., comparison, causation, or continuity and change), but students choose from 3 options, each focusing on historical developments and processes from a different range of time periods—either 1491–1800 (option 1), 1800–1898 (option 2), or 1890–2001 (option 3).

This course is taught by : Christine Bowen – christine.bowen@stlucieschools.org