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AP Calculus AB and BC Book for Elite Students

Cover AP Calculus AB and BC from limits and the chain rule to slope fields, polar area and Taylor series, with 86 questions and calculator revision.

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  • AP
  • AP Calculus BC
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About this book

This course book is designed for strong students preparing for AP Calculus AB and BC. It opens with a fundamentals chapter on special functions, transformations, inverse trigonometric, exponential and logarithmic functions, and BC topics such as parametric and polar functions.

The main chapters follow the AP Calculus course: limits and continuity including the squeeze theorem and the intermediate value theorem; differentiation from the definition through the product, quotient and chain rules, implicit differentiation and inverse functions; contextual applications such as related rates, linearisation and L'Hospital's rule; and analytical applications including the mean value theorem, extrema, concavity and optimisation.

Integration chapters cover Riemann sums, the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, substitution, integration by parts, partial fractions and improper integrals, followed by differential equations with slope fields, Euler's method and logistic models, then area and volume applications. The BC chapters address parametric equations, vectors and polar functions, and infinite series up to Taylor and Maclaurin series. Most chapters end with calculator-allowed and no-calculator revision, and the book contains 86 questions.

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Browse the full contents and read the opening topic.

Sample · 00-Fundamentals + Special Functions · AB + BC

Chapter 0 Overview

AP Calculus Book · Chapter 0: Fundamentals + Special Functions · AB + BC

This expanded Chapter 0 now incorporates the uploaded Fundamentals Special Functions material: zeros, absolute value, greatest-integer functions, transformations such as \(|f(x)|\) and \(f(|x|)\), polynomial and rational functions, trigonometric periodicity and amplitude, inverse trigonometric functions, exponential/logarithmic functions, parametrically defined functions, and polar functions.

How this revision uses the uploaded document

The added material follows the document’s visual flow: inverse graphs as reflections, zeros of polynomial functions, absolute value and greatest-integer graphs, graph transformations, polynomial/rational definitions, trig period/amplitude examples, inverse trig restricted domains and ranges, exponential/logarithmic inverse relationship, BC parametric curves, and BC polar curves.

0.1 Function Representations and Function Tests

0.1 Function Representations and Function Tests

formulatablegraphwordsA function gives one output for every allowed input.

Deep textbook explanation

Functions can appear as formulas, tables, graphs, and verbal descriptions. A graph represents a function of \(x\) only if it passes the vertical line test. In AP Calculus, students must translate between representations and interpret units, domains, and outputs.

Worked example

Worked example. If \(f(3)=8\), then \((3,8)\) is on the graph of \(y=f(x)\), a table would pair input \(3\) with output \(8\), and in words the output is \(8\) when the input is \(3\).

Q01 · 0.1 Function Representations and Function Tests
Which statement is equivalent to \(f(6)=2\)?
  • A\((2,6)\) lies on \(y=f(x)\)
  • B\((6,2)\) lies on \(y=f(x)\)
  • C\(f'(6)=2\)
  • D\(f(x)=6x+2\)
  • E\(f(2)=6\)
Q02 · 0.1 Function Representations and Function Tests
A graph fails the vertical line test. What does that mean?
  • AIt has no x-intercepts
  • BIt has no y-intercept
  • CSome input has more than one output
  • DIt is always discontinuous
  • EIt is a polynomial

FRQ Readiness Task

A verbal model says the cost is \(50\) dollars plus \(12\) dollars per hour. Write a function \(C(h)\).


0.2 Zeros, Intercepts, and Factor Reasoning

0.2 Zeros, Intercepts, and Factor Reasoning

x y zero zero Zeros are x-values where \(f(x)=0\); therefore the red points must lie on the x-axis.

Zero graph check

A zero is not just a point near the curve. A zero must satisfy \(f(x)=0\), so its point on the graph is \((x,0)\). Therefore every zero marker must lie exactly on the x-axis, and the curve must cross or touch the x-axis at that marker.

Deep textbook explanation

Zeros of a function are the \(x\)-values for which \(f(x)=0\). On a graph, they are x-intercepts. Algebraically, factoring is usually the fastest way to find zeros of polynomial functions. Multiplicity matters: an odd-multiplicity zero crosses the x-axis, while an even-multiplicity zero usually touches and turns.

Worked example

Worked example. For \(f(x)=x^4-2x^2\), factor \(x^2(x^2-2)\). The zeros are \(x=0,\sqrt2,-\sqrt2\). The zero \(x=0\) has multiplicity 2.

Q03 · 0.2 Zeros, Intercepts, and Factor Reasoning
Find all zeros of \(f(x)=x^4-2x^2\).
  • A\(0,2,-2\)
  • B\(0,\sqrt2,-\sqrt2\)
  • C\(\sqrt2\) only
  • D\(0\) only
  • E\(2,-2\)
Q04 · 0.2 Zeros, Intercepts, and Factor Reasoning
If \(f(x)=(x-3)^2(x+1)\), which zero has even multiplicity?
  • A\(-1\)
  • B\(0\)
  • C\(1\)
  • D\(3\)
  • E\(-3\)

FRQ Readiness Task

Explain graphically how a zero of even multiplicity differs from a zero of odd multiplicity.


Continue reading — 11 chapters, worked examples and practice.

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