Superstudy's Guide: The Final Month of APUSH Prep

How to Make the Most of April and Ace the Exam on May 9

The AP U.S. History exam is fast approaching—but there’s still plenty of time to raise your score if you study smart. At Superstudy, we help students take what they know and turn it into high-scoring essays and confident test-taking.

Below, find an approach for mastering APUSH in the final month as well as calendar to plan out each week leading up to the exam:

🔁 1. Focus on Thematic Review, Not Chronological Cramming

Use the College Board’s themes—like Politics and Power or Culture and Society—to guide your review.

🧩 Create thematic timelines or graphic organizers:

• Trace civil rights from Reconstruction through the 1960s.

• Compare government’s role in the economy in the Gilded Age, the New Deal, and Reaganomics.

📝 2. Master the Rubrics for DBQ, LEQ, and SAQ

It’s not just what you know—it’s how you write. Learn to work the rubric.

🕐 Practice:

• Thesis writing in under 5 minutes

• LEQ outlines in under 10

• SAQs with precise evidence and no fluff

✅ Use a checklist: Did I explain significance? Did I include outside evidence?

Pro Tip: Grade your own DBQ using the official rubric. You’ll think like the exam reader—and write like one, too.

📊 3. Prioritize Weak Units Based on Practice Test Data

Don’t study everything equally. After a timed practice test, analyze:

• Which periods are weak? (e.g., 1754–1800)

• Which skills need work? (e.g., document sourcing, contextualization)

Then spend 2–3 days zeroing in on just those.

🔍 4. Study by Comparison: Same Skill, Different Era

APUSH loves comparison and change over time. Build your sets:

• Populists vs. Progressives

• Federalists vs. Whigs

• 1920s Red Scare vs. 1950s McCarthyism

• Vietnam vs. Iraq (use with care)

These comparisons are gold for LEQs and DBQs.

⏱ 5. Simulate Exam Conditions

Don’t just review—rehearse.

• Write 1 DBQ in 60 minutes

• Write 1 LEQ in 40 minutes

• Write 2 SAQs in 25 minutes

No notes. No phone. Build real-world stamina.

📚 6. Build Your “Last 10%” Notebook

Keep a list of:

• Names and facts you forget

• Favorite outside evidence

• Go-to sentence starters for document analysis

This is your cheat sheet for final review.

🎧 7. Use Active Recall and Interleaving

Don’t just reread—remember actively.

• Quiz yourself with flashcards

• Mix topics each session: Civil War + Cold War + Progressive Era

• Teach someone else what you just reviewed

If you can say it simply, you truly know it.

✅ 8. Know What You Don’t Need

🚫 Don’t memorize dates for every battle. 🚫 Don’t study every president in detail.

Focus on turning points, big trends, and the figures who shaped them.

🗓 Need a day-by-day study calendar? We’ve got you covered. Download the full Superstudy APUSH Calendar here.

Want to work with one of our award winning tutors who knows exactly how APUSH is scored and teaches students like you all day long? 📬 Contact Superstudy and we’ll match your student with an expert to guide them to the finish line.