Pre-AP Chemistry

In Pre-AP Chemistry, students develop a deep conceptual understanding of matter and energy at the molecular level as they learn to explain their macroscopic observations using particulate-level reasoning. As students engage in grade-level content, they utilize scientific reasoning skills needed to analyze the natural world—and to succeed in future science and social science courses in high school and college.

The areas of focus are reasoning skills that provide vertical alignment within a discipline, giving students the opportunity to develop and strengthen these skills as they progress through subsequent Pre-AP courses and into advanced coursework.

• Emphasis on analytical reading and writing
• Strategic use of mathematics
• Attention to modeling

Pre-AP Chemistry has four main units. Review their key topics and the recommended length for each unit:

• Unit 1: Structure and Properties of Matter (~6 weeks)
• Unit 2: Chemical Bonding and Interactions (~8 weeks)
• Unit 3: Chemical Quantities (~6 weeks)
• Unit 4: Chemical Transformations (~8 weeks)

These big ideas are addressed across all units:

• Structure and Properties: All matter is composed of particles that are in constant motion and interact with one another. This movement and interaction is responsible for the observable properties of matter. Observed properties can be used to infer the number and types of particles in a sample of matter.
• Energy: Energy is transferred in all physical and chemical processes. During these processes, energy is either redistributed within the system or between systems.
• Transformations: At its heart, chemistry is about rearrangements of matter. These rearrangements, or transformations, involve the breaking and forming of intermolecular forces or chemical bonds. Macroscopic observations can be used to quantify and describe these rearrangements at the atomic scale.

Each unit contains:

• Model lessons: Student and teacher resources that demonstrate how to translate the course framework, shared principles, and areas of focus into daily instruction.
• In-lesson formative assessments: Short, open-ended problems that highlight the targeted content and skills for each lesson.
• 2 learning checkpoints: These multiple-choice and technology-enhanced questions are modeled closely after the types of questions students encounter on AP Exams and the SAT. Learning checkpoints require students to examine graphs, data, and short texts—often in authentic contexts—to respond to questions that measure students' understanding of the unit’s concepts and skills.
• 1 performance task: A sustained problem-solving task that asks students to synthesize the unit’s skills and concepts while answering questions about a novel context.

Before implementing a Pre-AP course, teachers need to complete Pre-AP Course Audit. This process is required to: 

• Grant teachers access to Pre-AP Classroom, including instructional materials, professional learning, and assessment tools 
• Authorize the school to use "Pre-AP" in its course names 
• Include the school in Pre-AP Course Ledger