ShmoopTube

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Hi, I'm Dave Siminoff and I'm the founder of Shmoop.

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Shmoop means "Move Something Forward a Little Bit" and it's how my grandmother used to ask

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for her chocolates. If you're watching this video, you a teacher,

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an administrator, a homeschooling parent, or you're bored at work and this is the first

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thing you found on the Internet. Sorry. If you're in the education biz, chances are

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that you're watching this video because you've been charged with teaching advanced placement

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or AP class to an assembly of angelic student cherubs who hang on your every word.

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If your students haven't used Shmoop before they may be a little confused or disoriented

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at first. If you share their confusion, never fear!

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We've designed this video so you can at least sound like you know what you're talking about.

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Since you, your school, or your district got Shmooped, you should have received a set of

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log-in instructions that look like this. Follow them and you'll be golden.

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If you haven't received them yet, email us at support@shmoop.com.

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Next, make sure your Shmoop account has access to all the materials your school or district

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has licensed. If you don't have access or your account tells

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you to pay when you try to click on your AP exam, which looks like this, then check out

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our log-in video and you'll be Shmooping in no time.

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Now log into your account which is totally tricked out with premium access and click

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on ‘Passes’ in the dropdown menu near your username in the top right.

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This page will list all the content which you can access with your license.

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Click one of the links, preferably the AP that you actually teach and not AP Alchemy.

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This video will cover teaching AP Calculus as an example, but all the AP tests are laid

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out in the same way. And we do have everything: just check out this list.

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Anyway, the first screen you'll see is the test dashboard. This screen is your home base

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for all things exam-related. You’ll be able to access all your content

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reviews by clicking on the ‘Review Topics’ tab at the top.

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Looking to review eyeballing limits? Just click on the link. It's sort of like a chapter

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heading you might find in a book only more interactive, which means it will burn more

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calories. Here you'll find in-depth reviews of each

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topic with examples and content you can use in class.

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All the topics covered on the exam are here and clickable. That's clickable with a C,

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so please keep your tongue off the computer monitor.

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Not enough, you say? Never fear, our drills are here!

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In fact, each digital chapter has a set of drills.

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For example, click on Chapter Four: Integrals. Here you will find our six drills for that

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chapter. They're challenging and give your students

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constructive feedback like a good coach or boss.

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Each drill reviews the skills learned in a chapter.

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Want to see all your drills at once? Click the “Drills” tab at the top of your test

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prep. Yup, that’s a lot of drills. After you've drilled your class to your heart's

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content, check out the full-length practice exams, which will make the drills look like

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drill bits. That's it for basic navigation. As for strategy,

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your students should start with the overview. Knowing exactly how the test is structured

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is just as important as knowing what's on the test, and this section is where students

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will be able to see the test breakdown, strategy section, and list of topics.

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After reading the overview, our prep is totally flexible, which means you can use it however

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you would like. We've had teachers assign drills for homework,

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go over a topic in class with a projector, or do small group lessons.

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Shmoop is your oyster and there are plenty of pearls inside.

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Once your students have reviewed and drilled, they should be ready for and itching to take

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a practice exam. These are full-length exams and the real deal.

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How you want your students to take these exams is up to you.

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Some teachers devote class time to the practice exams while other assign them for homework.

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Rest assured, the exams are timed so that students will be able to get a feel for the

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actual test environment before they get into the real thing.

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Let's take a look at one section. Students will have their handy-dandy Shmoop

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widget following them along. In fact, it's a bit like a kindly, loving

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stalker. This widget keeps track of the time in minutes and measures questions.

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It's like iPhone's Siri without the condescending tone and superiority complex.

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When students have finished, they can save their work, see their results, and check the

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answer explanations for any question. There's also a projected score.

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No magic number here, but this is our best project of how a student's raw score would

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convert into a final AP score from 1 to 5. Students will be able to email their scores

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to you. If a student did not deliver a gold-medal-winning

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performance, there's no need to worry. There are multiple full-length exams, a ton

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of drills, and plenty more review to be done. Of course, the dashboard is accessible at

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anytime, just like Taco Bell. Remember, you are free to get creative with

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these tools, so use them how you please. Assign drills, give extra credit for high

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Shmoints earners, or do a live practice exam in class.

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Remember: we're your oyster and we're here to help. If you ever have any questions or

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comments, email us at support@shmoop.com. Catch you on the Shmoop side.

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