High School / AP

AP Computer Science A

A program that teaches object-oriented programming (OOP), data structures, and algorithmic logic through the Java programming language.

Curriculum / Syllabus

  1. Primitive Types and Using Objects
  2. Boolean Expressions and if Statements
  3. Iteration (Loops)
  4. Writing Classes
  5. Array and ArrayList
  6. 2D Arrays
  7. Inheritance and Recursion

Exam & Course Strategy

The exam tests pen-and-paper coding, code reading, and tracing skills. It heavily emphasizes array/ArrayList loops and Class structures.

Study Materials

Interactive Tools

Official Sources

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Lesson-by-Lesson Curriculum Plan

AP Computer Science A: 25-Lesson Intensive Curriculum Plan (Fall 2025 Updated)

This program is based on the updated 4-unit AP CSA curriculum effective as of Fall 2025. Inheritance and interfaces are excluded, in line with the updated AP standards, and newly introduced topics such as text file reading (Topic 4.6) are included.

The first 5 lessons establish strong Java fundamentals using W3Schools tutorials. The remaining 20 lessons blend the core AP curriculum, algorithm patterns, and FRQ (free-response question) practice.

  • Total lessons: 25
  • Lesson duration: 90 minutes

Flow of a standard 90-minute lesson

  • 0–10 minutes Warm-up, quick review of the previous lesson, or a mini-quiz.
  • 10–55 minutes Lecture, analysis, and theoretical review of the new topic.
  • 55–85 minutes Guided coding (hands-on practice): the student writes code under my direct supervision, receives instant feedback, and debugs errors.
  • 85–90 minutes Optimization, summary, and wrap-up.
Part 1: W3Schools Java Boot Camp Lessons 1 - 5

The preparation phase where the student gets accustomed to Java syntax and writes code in a low-risk environment.

  1. Lesson 1
    W3Schools 1 - Fundamentals Get Started, Syntax, Output, Comments, Variables, Data Types, Type Casting, Operators, Strings, Math.
  2. Lesson 2
    W3Schools 2 - Control Structures Booleans, If...Else, Switch, While Loop, For Loop, Break/Continue, Arrays (introduction to arrays).
  3. Lesson 3
    W3Schools 3 - Methods Methods, Method Challenge, Method Parameters, Method Overloading, Scope, Recursion (introduction to recursion).
  4. Lesson 4
    W3Schools 4 - Classes OOP, Classes/Objects, Class Attributes, Class Methods, Class Challenge, Constructors, this Keyword, Modifiers, Encapsulation, Packages/API. (Strictly excluding inheritance, polymorphism, and the super keyword.)
  5. Lesson 5
    W3Schools 5 - File Handling and Errors Errors, Debugging, Exceptions, Multiple Exceptions, try-with-resources. Java Files (Create, Read, Write, Delete), I/O Streams. (This establishes the programming foundation required for the 2025 AP Topic 4.6: Using Text Files.)
Part 2: Objects, Control Structures, and Class Design Lessons 6 - 12

Covers Unit 1 (Using Objects and Methods), Unit 2 (Selection and Iteration), and Unit 3 (Class Creation) of the Fall 2025 AP curriculum.

  1. Lesson 6
    Core 1 / Unit 1 Object Instantiation, Memory Management (References), Advanced String & Math Methods (Topics 1.1 - 1.15).
  2. Lesson 7
    Core 2 / Unit 2 Advanced Loops, De Morgan's Laws, Compound Boolean Expressions, and Nested Loops (Topics 2.1 - 2.8).
  3. Lesson 8
    FRQ Practice 1 AP FRQ Type 1: Methods and Control Structures. (Scenarios combining String methods and iteration.)
  4. Lesson 9
    Patterns and Algorithms 1 Basic Iteration and String Algorithms (finding max/min, extracting substrings, parsing digits) (Topics 2.9, 2.10).
  5. Lesson 10
    Core 3 / Unit 3 Class Design - Anatomy of a Class (visibility constraints, constructors, this keyword, memory storage of objects) (Topics 3.1 - 3.4).
  6. Lesson 11
    Core 4 / Unit 3 Class Behaviors - Accessor/Mutator Methods, Static (Class) Variables and Methods, Pass-by-Value Mechanics (Topics 3.5 - 3.9).
  7. Lesson 12
    FRQ Practice 2 AP FRQ Type 2: Class Design. (Designing and building a class from scratch based on given UML diagrams or tabular specifications.)
Part 3: Data Collections Lessons 13 - 20

The core of the 2025 AP curriculum: Unit 4 (Data Collections). Combining 1D arrays, ArrayLists, text files, and 2D arrays.

  1. Lesson 13
    Core 5 / Unit 4 1D Arrays - Array Creation, Index Management, Indexed and Enhanced For Loop Traversals (Topics 4.3 - 4.4).
  2. Lesson 14
    Core 6 / Unit 4 Wrapper Classes (Integer, Double) and ArrayList Methods (add, set, remove, get) (Topics 4.7 - 4.8).
  3. Lesson 15
    FRQ Practice 3 AP FRQ Type 3: Data Analysis with ArrayList. (Processing dynamically sized data.)
  4. Lesson 16
    Patterns and Algorithms 2 Array/ArrayList Algorithms (shifting, reversing) and Text Files (reading data from a text file using Scanner and File) (Topics 4.5, 4.6, 4.10).
  5. Lesson 17
    Core 7 / Unit 4 2D Arrays - Matrix Creation, Memory Structure, and Basic Row/Column Traversals (Row-Major) (Topics 4.11 - 4.12).
  6. Lesson 18
    Core 8 / Unit 4 2D Array Algorithms - Column-Major Traversal, Bounds Checking, and Neighbor Element Analysis (Topic 4.13).
  7. Lesson 19
    FRQ Practice 4 AP FRQ Type 4: 2D Array. (Grid algorithms, board games, or tabular data analysis questions.)
  8. Lesson 20
    Core 9 / Unit 4 Searching and Sorting Algorithms - Linear Search, Binary Search, Selection Sort, Insertion Sort (Topics 4.14 - 4.15).
Part 4: Recursion and Simulation Lessons 21 - 25

Covering recursion (now integrated into Unit 4) and comprehensive exam practice.

  1. Lesson 21
    Core 10 / Unit 4 Recursion - Tracing Recursive Methods, Base Case Concept, and Stack Memory (Topic 4.16).
  2. Lesson 22
    Core 11 / Unit 4 Recursive Algorithms - Recursive Searching and Merge Sort Algorithm Analysis (Topic 4.17).
  3. Lesson 23
    Multiple Choice Practice Multiple Choice Strategies, Speeding up Code Tracing, Informal Run-time Analysis (Topic 2.12).
  4. Lesson 24
    FRQ Practice 5 Full-Scope Mixed FRQ Exam Simulation (time management and scoring according to AP rubrics).
  5. Lesson 25
    Evaluation Simulation Analysis, Addressing Common Mistakes, Ethical/Social Impacts of Computing (Topics 3.2, 4.1), and Course Wrap-up.
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