College Board-Aligned
AP Computer Science Principles
This page follows the current official College Board course outline. Each unit/topic links to original local notes built for studying, practice, and review.
Course Snapshot
5
official big ideas
12
linked topics/skills
Alignment Sources
Units & Topics
Big Idea 1: Creative Development
On the AP exam: 10%-13% of exam score.
- Big Idea 1 Topic 1: Collaboration Original Notes
- Big Idea 1 Topic 2: Program design and development Original Notes
Big Idea 2: Data
On the AP exam: 17%−22% of exam score.
- Big Idea 2 Topic 1: Data compression Original Notes
- Big Idea 2 Topic 2: Extracting information from data Original Notes
Big Idea 3: Algorithms and Programming
On the AP exam: 30%−35% of exam score.
- Big Idea 3 Topic 1: Developing algorithms Original Notes
- Big Idea 3 Topic 2: Simulations Original Notes
- Big Idea 3 Topic 3: Algorithmic efficiency Original Notes
Big Idea 4: Computer Systems and Networks
On the AP exam: 11%−15% of exam score.
- Big Idea 4 Topic 1: The Internet Original Notes
- Big Idea 4 Topic 2: Parallel and distributed computing Original Notes
Big Idea 5: Impact of Computing
On the AP exam: 21%−26% of exam score.
- Big Idea 5 Topic 1: The digital divide Original Notes
- Big Idea 5 Topic 2: Computing bias Original Notes
- Big Idea 5 Topic 3: Safe computing Original Notes
Notes
Original EduCompanion Notes
These local notes follow the current College Board AP Computer Science Principles unit/topic list.
Big Idea 1: Creative Development
Big Idea 2: Data
Big Idea 3: Algorithms and Programming
Big Idea 4: Computer Systems and Networks
Shared Google Drive Notes
No shared Google Drive notes are currently mapped for this course. Local original notes are still available above.
Practice Questions
Each note page includes a quick practice prompt. Use these unit practice cards to review the same way AP questions ask you to apply ideas, evidence, and reasoning.
Big Idea 1 Practice
Use the linked notes for Creative Development to answer AP-style prompts, then check your explanation against the official topic list.
- Define the most important concept from this unit.
- Apply it to a scenario, graph, source, passage, or data table.
- Explain the reasoning that connects evidence to the answer.
Big Idea 2 Practice
Use the linked notes for Data to answer AP-style prompts, then check your explanation against the official topic list.
- Define the most important concept from this unit.
- Apply it to a scenario, graph, source, passage, or data table.
- Explain the reasoning that connects evidence to the answer.
Big Idea 3 Practice
Use the linked notes for Algorithms and Programming to answer AP-style prompts, then check your explanation against the official topic list.
- Define the most important concept from this unit.
- Apply it to a scenario, graph, source, passage, or data table.
- Explain the reasoning that connects evidence to the answer.
Big Idea 4 Practice
Use the linked notes for Computer Systems and Networks to answer AP-style prompts, then check your explanation against the official topic list.
- Define the most important concept from this unit.
- Apply it to a scenario, graph, source, passage, or data table.
- Explain the reasoning that connects evidence to the answer.
Study Guides
Use this as a unit review index. Open each unit, work through the topic notes, then return here to move to the next unit.
Big Idea 1: Creative Development
2 topics to review, 10%-13% of exam score
Big Idea 2: Data
2 topics to review, 17%−22% of exam score
Big Idea 3: Algorithms and Programming
3 topics to review, 30%−35% of exam score
Big Idea 4: Computer Systems and Networks
2 topics to review, 11%−15% of exam score
Big Idea 5: Impact of Computing
3 topics to review, 21%−26% of exam score