Starter decks

AP starter flashcard decks

Core vocabulary for 19 AP courses we're still building out. Each set covers the terms that show up first. Open any course in the app to study them as flashcards and generate practice questions.

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AP Microeconomics
AP Comparative Government
AP Art History
AP Music Theory
AP Precalculus
AP Physics C: E&M
AP Spanish Language
AP Spanish Literature
AP French Language
AP German Language
AP Italian Language
AP Chinese Language
AP Japanese Language
AP Latin
AP Seminar
AP Research
AP 2-D Art & Design
AP 3-D Art & Design
AP Drawing

📈 AP Microeconomics

10 starter terms · Basic Economic Concepts

Scarcity: The fundamental economic problem: unlimited wants but limited resources, forcing choices and trade-offs
Opportunity Cost: The value of the next-best alternative given up when a choice is made
Law of Demand: As price rises, quantity demanded falls (inverse relationship), ceteris paribus
Law of Supply: As price rises, quantity supplied rises (direct relationship), ceteris paribus
Equilibrium Price: The price where quantity demanded equals quantity supplied — the market clears
Price Elasticity of Demand: Measures how responsive quantity demanded is to a price change: %ΔQd ÷ %ΔP
Consumer Surplus: Difference between what buyers are willing to pay and what they actually pay
Marginal Cost: The additional cost of producing one more unit of output
Perfect Competition: Market with many firms, identical products, no barriers to entry; firms are price takers
Monopoly: Single seller with high barriers to entry; sets price above marginal cost, creating deadweight loss

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🌐 AP Comparative Government

10 starter terms · Political Systems, Regimes, and Governments

Regime: The fundamental rules and norms of politics — how power is gained and exercised (democracy vs. authoritarianism)
Legitimacy: The right to rule as accepted by the governed; sources include tradition, charisma, and rational-legal authority
The Six Core Countries: UK, Russia, China, Mexico, Nigeria, and Iran — the comparison set for the entire course
Parliamentary System: Executive (PM) chosen from and accountable to the legislature — e.g., the United Kingdom
Unitary vs. Federal: Unitary: power concentrated in central government (UK, China, Iran). Federal: divided between levels (Russia, Mexico, Nigeria)
Authoritarian Regime: Power concentrated in a leader/small elite not constitutionally responsible to the public (China, Russia, Iran)
Civil Society: Organizations outside the state (unions, churches, NGOs) that can check government power
Rentier State: State deriving most revenue from resource exports rather than taxation — e.g., Iran and Nigeria with oil
Supreme Leader (Iran): Iran's highest authority: controls military, judiciary, and media; sits above the elected president
Politburo Standing Committee: China's top decision-making body — roughly seven members at the apex of the Communist Party

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🖼️ AP Art History

10 starter terms · Global Prehistory

Formal Analysis: Interpreting a work through line, color, composition, scale, and material rather than only subject matter
Contrapposto: Weight-shift stance in figures (one leg bearing weight) pioneered in Classical Greek sculpture
Parthenon: Athens, 447–432 BCE; Iktinos & Kallikrates. Doric temple to Athena embodying ideal proportion
Chiaroscuro: Dramatic modeling with light and dark — perfected by Caravaggio and Baroque painters
Linear Perspective: Renaissance system (Brunelleschi) creating depth with orthogonals converging to a vanishing point
Sistine Chapel Ceiling: Michelangelo, 1508–1512. Frescoes of Genesis scenes; High Renaissance mastery of the human form
Ukiyo-e: Japanese 'pictures of the floating world' woodblock prints — e.g., Hokusai's Great Wave (c. 1830)
Impressionism: 1870s French movement capturing fleeting light with visible brushwork — Monet, Renoir, Morisot
Cubism: Picasso & Braque fracturing form into geometric planes with multiple simultaneous viewpoints
Benin Bronzes: Brass plaques and heads from the Kingdom of Benin (Nigeria) honoring obas — royal power and ancestry

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🎼 AP Music Theory

10 starter terms · Music Fundamentals: Pitch and Rhythm

Major Scale Pattern: Whole–Whole–Half–Whole–Whole–Whole–Half; the basis of Western tonality
Interval: The distance between two pitches, named by number and quality (e.g., perfect fifth, minor third)
Triad: Three-note chord built in thirds: root, third, fifth. Qualities: major, minor, diminished, augmented
Circle of Fifths: Arrangement of keys by ascending fifths showing key-signature relationships (C→G→D adds sharps)
Roman Numeral Analysis: Labeling chords by scale degree: uppercase = major (I, IV, V), lowercase = minor (ii, vi)
Cadence Types: Authentic (V–I), plagal (IV–I), half (ends on V), deceptive (V–vi)
Voice Leading: Smooth connection of chords: avoid parallel fifths/octaves, resolve tendency tones (7̂→1̂, 4̂→3̂)
Non-Chord Tones: Notes outside the harmony: passing tone, neighbor tone, suspension, appoggiatura, anticipation
Secondary Dominant: A chord tonicizing another degree — V/V (five of five) resolves to V
Modes: Scales from rotating the major scale: Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, Locrian

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📉 AP Precalculus

10 starter terms · Polynomial and Rational Functions

Function: A relation assigning exactly one output to each input; passes the vertical line test
Average Rate of Change: Slope of the secant line: [f(b) − f(a)] ÷ (b − a) over interval [a, b]
Polynomial End Behavior: Determined by the leading term: even degree → ends match; odd degree → ends oppose
Exponential Function: f(x) = a·bˣ — constant PERCENT change per unit; b>1 growth, 0<b<1 decay
Logarithm: The inverse of exponentiation: log_b(x) = y means bʸ = x
Radian: Angle where arc length equals radius; 180° = π radians
Unit Circle Values: cos θ = x-coordinate, sin θ = y-coordinate of the point at angle θ on the circle of radius 1
Sinusoidal Function: f(x) = A·sin(B(x−C)) + D: amplitude A, period 2π/B, phase shift C, midline D
Inverse Function: Swaps inputs and outputs: f⁻¹(f(x)) = x; graph reflects across y = x
Polar Coordinates: Locating points by (r, θ) — distance from origin and angle from polar axis

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⚡ AP Physics C: E&M

10 starter terms · Electrostatics: Charge, Field, and Potential

Coulomb's Law: F = kq₁q₂/r² — electrostatic force between point charges, along the line joining them
Electric Field: Force per unit charge: E = F/q. Points away from positive charges, toward negative
Gauss's Law: Flux through a closed surface equals enclosed charge over ε₀: ∮E·dA = Q/ε₀
Electric Potential: Potential energy per unit charge: V = U/q; E = −dV/dx (field points downhill in potential)
Capacitance: C = Q/V. Parallel plate: C = ε₀A/d. Stores energy U = ½CV²
Ohm's Law & Resistivity: V = IR; resistance R = ρL/A depends on material and geometry
Kirchhoff's Rules: Junction: currents in = currents out (charge conservation). Loop: ΣΔV = 0 (energy conservation)
Magnetic Force: F = qv × B on charges, F = IL × B on wires — always perpendicular to velocity
Ampère's Law: ∮B·dl = μ₀I_enc — relates magnetic field circulation to enclosed current
Faraday's Law: EMF = −dΦ/dt: changing magnetic flux induces EMF; Lenz's law gives the minus sign

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🇪🇸 AP Spanish Language

10 starter terms · Las familias y las comunidades

Pretérito vs. Imperfecto: Pretérito: completed past actions (fui). Imperfecto: ongoing/habitual past (iba) — background & description
Subjuntivo: Mood for doubt, desire, emotion: 'Espero que vengas.' Triggered by WEIRDO: Wishes, Emotions, Impersonal, Recommendations, Doubt, Ojalá
Ser vs. Estar: Ser: identity, origin, time (DOCTOR). Estar: location, condition, progressive (PLACE)
Por vs. Para: Por: cause, duration, exchange ('por la mañana'). Para: purpose, destination, deadline ('para mañana')
Object Pronoun Order: Indirect before direct: 'Me lo dio.' Le/les → se before lo/la: 'Se lo dije'
Conditional + Si Clauses: 'Si tuviera dinero, viajaría' — imperfect subjunctive + conditional for hypotheticals
Presentational Writing: AP task: argumentative essay synthesizing three sources (article, chart, audio) in 40 minutes
Registro: Formal (usted) vs. informal (tú) address — match register to audience on every AP task
Comparación Cultural: Speaking task comparing a cultural feature of your community with one from a Spanish-speaking region
Conectores: Transition words that boost scores: sin embargo, por lo tanto, en cambio, a pesar de, no obstante

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📕 AP Spanish Literature

10 starter terms · La época medieval y el Siglo de Oro

Lazarillo de Tormes: Anonymous, 1554. First picaresque novel — a poor boy's satirical account serving corrupt masters
Don Quijote (fragmentos): Cervantes, 1605. Idealism vs. realism; metafiction; the birth of the modern novel
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: Mexican nun-poet ('Hombres necios') defending women's right to learn — colonial proto-feminism
Federico García Lorca: 'La casa de Bernarda Alba' — honor, repression, and tragedy in rural Spain; symbolism of white/black
Gabriel García Márquez: 'El ahogado más hermoso del mundo' — magical realism transforming a village through myth
Jorge Luis Borges: 'El Sur', 'Borges y yo' — labyrinths, doubles, and the blurred line between reality and fiction
Realismo Mágico: Fantastic events narrated as ordinary — a hallmark of the Latin American Boom
El Boom: 1960s–70s explosion of Latin American fiction: García Márquez, Cortázar, Fuentes, Vargas Llosa
Métrica: Verse analysis: syllable count, rima consonante/asonante, arte mayor/menor, the sonnet's 14 hendecasyllables
Tono y Voz Narrativa: Analyze who narrates (primera/tercera persona, omnisciente) and attitude — required in every essay

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🇫🇷 AP French Language

10 starter terms · La famille et la communauté

Passé Composé vs. Imparfait: Passé composé: completed events (j'ai mangé). Imparfait: habitual/background (je mangeais)
Le Subjonctif: After expressions of emotion, doubt, necessity: 'Il faut que tu fasses...' — irregular stems matter
Object Pronouns: Order before verb: me/te/nous/vous → le/la/les → lui/leur → y → en ('Je le lui donne')
Si Clauses: Si + présent → futur; Si + imparfait → conditionnel; Si + plus-que-parfait → conditionnel passé
Agreement (Accord): Past participle agrees with preceding direct object with avoir; with subject when using être
Le Conditionnel: Politeness and hypotheticals: 'Je voudrais', 'Il aimerait' — future stem + imparfait endings
Faire Causatif: 'Faire + infinitive' = to have something done: 'Je fais réparer ma voiture'
La Francophonie: The French-speaking world (Sénégal, Québec, Maroc, Haïti...) — cultural comparisons on the exam
Registres de Langue: Soutenu, courant, familier — match tu/vous and vocabulary to context on every task
Connecteurs Logiques: pourtant, néanmoins, ainsi, en revanche, par conséquent — essential for the synthesis essay

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🇩🇪 AP German Language

10 starter terms · Familie und Gemeinschaft

Four Cases: Nominativ (subject), Akkusativ (direct object), Dativ (indirect object), Genitiv (possession)
Word Order: V2 Rule: The conjugated verb is ALWAYS second in main clauses: 'Heute gehe ich ins Kino'
Subordinate Clauses: Conjunctions like weil, dass, obwohl kick the verb to the END: '...weil ich müde bin'
Two-Way Prepositions: in, an, auf, über, unter... + Akkusativ for motion (wohin?), Dativ for location (wo?)
Perfekt: Spoken past: haben/sein + past participle. Sein with motion/change: 'Ich bin gefahren'
Konjunktiv II: Hypotheticals and politeness: wäre, hätte, würde + infinitive — 'Ich würde gern kommen'
Adjective Endings: Depend on case, gender, and article type: 'der große Mann', 'ein großer Mann'
Modal Verbs: können, müssen, dürfen, sollen, wollen, mögen — conjugated verb + infinitive at clause end
Passiv: werden + past participle: 'Das Haus wird gebaut' (process) vs. sein-Passiv (state)
Relative Clauses: Relative pronoun matches gender/number of antecedent, case from its own clause: 'der Mann, den ich sah'

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🇮🇹 AP Italian Language

10 starter terms · Famiglia e comunità

Passato Prossimo vs. Imperfetto: Passato prossimo: completed events (ho mangiato). Imperfetto: description/habit (mangiavo)
Essere vs. Avere (ausiliari): Essere with motion/reflexives (sono andato — agrees!); avere with transitive verbs
Il Congiuntivo: After opinion, emotion, doubt: 'Penso che sia...' — presente, passato, imperfetto, trapassato
Pronomi Combinati: Indirect + direct merge: mi + lo → me lo; gli/le + lo → glielo ('Glielo do')
Il Condizionale: Politeness & hypotheticals: 'Vorrei un caffè'; conditional past for unrealized events
Periodo Ipotetico: Se + congiuntivo imperfetto → condizionale: 'Se avessi tempo, verrei'
Ci e Ne: Ci = there/about it ('Ci vado'); Ne = of it/them ('Ne ho due')
Imperativo: Commands: tu form drops -i for -are verbs (Parla!); negative tu = non + infinitive (Non parlare!)
Futuro Semplice: Also expresses probability: 'Saranno le otto' = It's probably eight o'clock
Concordanza: Adjectives agree in gender AND number: ragazza simpatica → ragazze simpatiche

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🇨🇳 AP Chinese Language

10 starter terms · Families and Communities in Chinese Culture

了 (le): Marks completed action (我吃了饭) or change of state (下雨了) — NOT simply past tense
把 (bǎ) Construction: Moves object before verb to emphasize result: 我把书放在桌子上 (I put the book on the table)
Measure Words (量词): Required between number and noun: 一本书, 三个人, 两张纸 — each noun class has its own
是…的 (shì...de): Emphasizes time/place/manner of a past event: 我是昨天来的 (It was yesterday that I came)
比 (bǐ) Comparisons: A 比 B + adjective: 他比我高 (He is taller than me); never add 很 before the adjective
Tone Pairs: Mandarin's four tones change meaning: mā 妈 (mother), má 麻 (hemp), mǎ 马 (horse), mà 骂 (scold)
结果补语 Result Complements: Verb + result: 看见 (see-perceive), 做完 (do-finish), 听懂 (listen-understand)
虽然…但是: 'Although... but' — Chinese uses BOTH halves: 虽然很贵，但是我要买
越来越: 'More and more': 天气越来越热 (The weather is getting hotter and hotter)
Cultural Presentation: AP task: 2-minute presentation on a Chinese cultural practice/product — festivals, tea, calligraphy

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🇯🇵 AP Japanese Language

10 starter terms · Families and Communities in Japanese Culture

Particles は vs. が: は marks topic (known info); が marks subject (new info/emphasis): 私は学生です vs. 誰が来た？
て-form: Connects verbs and makes requests: 食べて (eat and.../please eat); basis for ています, てください
ています: Ongoing action (食べています = is eating) or resulting state (結婚しています = is married)
Keigo (敬語): Honorific speech: sonkeigo (respect for others), kenjōgo (humility), teineigo (polite です/ます)
Verb Groups: Group 1 (う-verbs: 飲む), Group 2 (る-verbs: 食べる), Irregular (する, 来る) — conjugation depends on group
Plain vs. Polite Form: だ/dictionary form with friends; です・ます with strangers/superiors — register matters on the exam
たら Conditional: 'If/when': 雨が降ったら、行きません (If it rains, I won't go)
Kanji + Two Readings: Most kanji have on'yomi (Chinese-derived: 水 sui) and kun'yomi (native: 水 mizu)
あげる・くれる・もらう: Giving/receiving verbs encode direction and social relationship — a signature AP grammar point
Text Chat Task: AP task: respond to six text-chat prompts in 90 seconds each — typed in Japanese

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🏺 AP Latin

10 starter terms · Latin Grammar and Syntax Foundations

The Syllabus: Vergil's Aeneid (selections, Books 1–12) and Caesar's Dē Bellō Gallicō (Books 1, 4, 5, 6)
Ablative Absolute: Noun + participle in ablative, grammatically independent: 'urbe captā' = with the city captured
Indirect Statement: Accusative + infinitive after verbs of saying/thinking: 'Dīcit eum venīre' = He says that he is coming
Purpose Clause: ut/nē + subjunctive: 'Venit ut vidēret' = He came in order to see
Cum Clauses: cum + subjunctive: circumstantial (when), causal (since), concessive (although)
Dactylic Hexameter: Epic meter: six feet of dactyls (—◡◡) and spondees (——); scan Vergil aloud
Pietas: Aeneas's defining virtue: duty to gods, family, and fatherland — the moral engine of the Aeneid
Gerundive of Obligation: -ndus + sum: 'Carthāgō dēlenda est' = Carthage must be destroyed
Subjunctive Sequence: Primary tenses → present/perfect subjunctive; secondary → imperfect/pluperfect
Litotes & Chiasmus: Rhetorical figures to identify: understatement by negation; ABBA word order

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💬 AP Seminar

10 starter terms · The QUEST Framework and Inquiry

QUEST: The course framework: Question & Explore, Understand & Analyze, Evaluate multiple perspectives, Synthesize, Team/Transform/Transmit
Lens: A perspective for examining an issue: cultural, economic, environmental, ethical, political, scientific, artistic
Line of Reasoning: The logical sequence of claims and evidence that leads to a conclusion — graders trace it explicitly
Credibility (RAVEN): Evaluate sources by Reputation, Ability to see, Vested interest, Expertise, Neutrality
IMP (Individual Media Project)... IRR: Individual Research Report: 1,200-word analysis of your team's research question
IWA: Individual Written Argument: 2,000-word evidence-based argument from released stimulus materials
Claim Types: Fact (verifiable), value (judgment), policy (should) — arguments blend all three
Counterargument: Address opposing views fairly, then rebut with evidence — required for top rubric scores
Synthesis: Combining multiple sources/perspectives into an original argument, not summarizing them in sequence
Plagiarism Policy: Any uncited work scores zero on the entire performance task — cite everything, always

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🔬 AP Research

10 starter terms · Research Questions and Inquiry Design

The Academic Paper: 4,000–5,000 word original research paper — 75% of the AP score; presentation + defense is 25%
Gap in the Literature: Your study must address something existing scholarship hasn't answered — the justification for your work
Research Question: Focused, researchable, feasible in one year: narrow scope beats grand ambition
Literature Review: Synthesizes existing scholarship by THEME (not source-by-source summary) to reveal the gap
Methodology: Your systematic approach: qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods — must align with the question
IRB: Institutional Review Board approval required before any research involving human subjects
Validity vs. Reliability: Validity: measures what it claims. Reliability: produces consistent results on repetition
Sampling Methods: Random, stratified, convenience, snowball — each carries different bias risks you must acknowledge
Limitations: Explicitly stating what your study cannot claim — strengthens rather than weakens the paper
PREP: The defense: Present, Respond to questions, Engage the panel, Prove your process (3–4 oral defense questions)

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🎨 AP 2-D Art & Design

10 starter terms · Elements and Principles in 2-D Design

Portfolio Structure: Sustained Investigation (15 images + writing, 60%) and Selected Works (5 finished pieces, 40%) — no timed exam
Sustained Investigation: A year-long inquiry guided by your own question, showing practice, experimentation, and revision
Elements of Art: Line, shape, color, value, texture, space, form — the raw vocabulary of every composition
Principles of Design: Balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, unity, variety, proportion
Inquiry Question: Drives the portfolio: specific and visual ('How can distortion express anxiety?') beats vague themes
Documentation of Process: Sketches, failed attempts, and revisions ARE scoring evidence — photograph everything
Color Theory: Complementary contrast, analogous harmony, temperature, saturation — deliberate palettes score higher
Composition Strategies: Rule of thirds, leading lines, framing, figure-ground relationships, cropping for tension
Writing Component: 1,200 characters on your inquiry + 100 per image on materials, processes, and ideas
Artistic Integrity: Work from your own photos/observation; cited appropriation only — plagiarized imagery voids the portfolio

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🗿 AP 3-D Art & Design

10 starter terms · Form, Space, and 3-D Design Principles

Portfolio Structure: Sustained Investigation (15 images showing works in the round) + Selected Works (5 pieces, 2 views each)
Form vs. Shape: Shape is 2-D; form occupies real space with height, width, AND depth — the heart of 3-D design
Additive vs. Subtractive: Additive: building up (clay, welding, assemblage). Subtractive: carving away (wood, stone, foam)
Positive & Negative Space: The mass of the object AND the voids around/through it — Henry Moore made holes eloquent
Armature: Internal skeleton (wire, wood) supporting clay or plaster during construction
Scale & Proportion: Size relative to the human body changes meaning — Oldenburg's giant everyday objects
Texture & Surface: Actual (touchable) vs. implied; patina, glaze, and finish decisions are scoring evidence
Balance in 3-D: Physical AND visual: symmetrical, asymmetrical, cantilevered — gravity is part of the medium
Installation & Site: Work that responds to its space; document multiple angles and viewer relationship
Craftsmanship: Joints, seams, and finishing show intentionality — sloppy construction reads as unresolved ideas

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✏️ AP Drawing

10 starter terms · Mark-Making, Value, and Observation

Portfolio Structure: Same as other art portfolios: Sustained Investigation (15 images, 60%) + Selected Works (5, 40%)
Mark-Making: The signature of AP Drawing: hatching, cross-hatching, stippling, gesture, smudging — visible evidence of hand
Value Structure: Full range from darkest dark to lightest light; squint to check your value pattern reads
Gesture Drawing: Quick 30-second to 2-minute studies capturing motion and weight before detail
Sighting & Measuring: Using your pencil to compare proportions and angles from observation — draw what you SEE
Linear Perspective: 1-point, 2-point, 3-point systems for constructing believable space
Atmospheric Perspective: Distant objects: lighter value, less contrast, cooler color, softer edges
Foreshortening: Compressing forms that project toward the viewer — the hardest observational skill
Composition & Cropping: Where the figure meets the frame creates tension; avoid centering everything
Observational vs. Imaginative: Colleges want to see BOTH: rigorous observation and inventive personal imagery

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