Joe Warnimont
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14 AP German Practice Test Resources to Help You Score a Five
Interested in scoring a five on your AP German exam?
It sounds like a lofty goal, but with a decent amount of work and practice tools that reflect the type of testing you’re bound to go through, you can come out happy with a three, a four or even a five.
The great thing about the AP German exam is that you don’t get penalized for doing poorly, but you do get a chance to advance your college career—and save tons of money on college credits!
To get the score you want, you need the best AP German practice test tools below.
Contents
- AP German Exam Practice Websites
- Physical Books for AP German Exam Practice
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- 6. “Prufungstraining (Exam Training): AP German Language and Culture”
- 7. “Orientierungskurs Deutschland” (Orientation Course [On] Germany)
- 8. “Entdeckungsreise (Voyage of Discovery) D-A-CH”
- 9. “Aspekte (Aspects) 2 (B2)”
- 10. “Hammer’s German Grammar and Usage”
- 11. “Einfach Grammatik” (Simply Grammar)
- 12. “German Grammar Drills”
- 13. “Practice Makes Perfect German Vocabulary”
- 14. “Mastering German Vocabulary: A Thematic Approach”
- Tips to Prepare for the AP German Exam
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
AP German Exam Practice Websites
1. College Board
Price: Free (requires sign up)
Available on: Website
The College Board website is one of the more reputable options for finding practice exams, because it has versions of the test from the past 10 years.
You get scoring guidelines that help you understand how the graders evaluate your responses, as well as free response questions and audio prompts. The free response questions are available as PDFs, making it easy to print them out.
2. Albert.io
Price: See pricing page here
Available on: Website
On Albert.io, you’ll get a series of questions grouped according to topic and level of difficulty.
For example, if you click “Citizenship” under “Families and Communities,” you’ll get seven questions rated “Easy,” “Moderate” and “Difficult.” You have to read instructions, sample texts and multiple-choice questions entirely in German, but you have to sign up to see them all.
3. Quizlet
Price: Free (with in-app purchases)
Quizlet can help you review German terms and vocabulary that often appear on the AP test.
All of the Quizlet flashcards are made by users, and clicking on any of them gives you the German and English versions of the words with German audio clips. You can even make your own vocabulary tests that can help you retain the information you need.
4. Shmoop
Price: See pricing plans here
Available on: Website
Shmoop’s German AP test prep module has four full-length practice exams, drill questions, answers and explanations and a large glossary of around 500 German words.
Test taking tips and strategies are also included, along with grammar reviews for subjunctives, adjectives and articles.
5. Goethe Institut
Price: Free
Available on: Website
What better way to practice for your AP German exam than with resources from an organization dedicated to promoting the German language around the world?
Although the link above isn’t specifically geared toward AP German test takers, it’s still a good primer for those at the B1 level. You’ll also find practice exam materials for the A1, A2, B2, C1 and C2 levels.
Physical Books for AP German Exam Practice
6. “Prufungstraining (Exam Training): AP German Language and Culture”
This paperback AP German training book has examples from each of the sections on the real AP German exam. In fact, it’s one of a handful of textbooks specifically dedicated toward preparing for the AP German test.
The organized sections make it easy to comprehend. Some of the chapters include practice exams, speaking for presentations, interpretive communication and interpersonal writing. Each section is complemented by a solid list of vocab words.
In addition, the book comes with two audio CDs to help you perfect your German pronunciation.
7. “Orientierungskurs Deutschland” (Orientation Course [On] Germany)
This book can help you brush up on your knowledge of German culture. You’ll find this useful considering that the AP exam may reference certain moments in history, religions, famous Germans and more.
All chapters have suggestions for additional research and projects, and you can find sections for unique studies into social networks, the environment and the German workplace.
Even after you’ve taken (and passed!) the AP German exam, you can keep this book handy for when you finally decide to work or live in Deutschland permanently.
8. “Entdeckungsreise (Voyage of Discovery) D-A-CH”
This intermediate cultural reader touches on three of the primary German-speaking countries: Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
I like that it includes writing exercises, group work and internet research projects. You can use this book with classmates or suggest it to your teachers if they’re looking for a supplementary practice book.
You can also keep it along with your travel guidebooks in case you’re planning to stop by the countries I mentioned earlier.
9. “Aspekte (Aspects) 2 (B2)”
This intermediate German exam practice book looks at grammatical structures and vocabulary, encouraging you to communicate as much as possible in German. This is done with the help of audio material, video and exercises.
The reading sections prepare you for delving into more complex, authentic German texts, which are a must for the AP German exam. Despite this substantial coverage, the explanations are easy to understand and follow, so studying feels less like a chore.
10. “Hammer’s German Grammar and Usage”
If you want to focus on German grammar in particular, there are few better resources (in English anyway) than this one. “Hammer’s German Grammar and Usage” is a comprehensive book on the ins and outs of modern German grammar.
You’ll get vital information on things like the differences between formal and informal registers, pronunciation, similarities between German words and their English counterparts and other resources you can look up online in addition to this book.
11. “Einfach Grammatik” (Simply Grammar)
This resource is meant to be a grammar refresher before the big test.
Exercises are organized according to language level, and the book uses modern written material like emails and texts to make it easier to digest.
What I really like about this book is that it’s geared toward visual learners. Of course, the AP German exam will be entirely text-based, but if you find that pictures help those vital concepts stick, then by all means go for this one.
12. “German Grammar Drills”
Aimed at beginning and intermediate German learners, this textbook will give you all the practice you need to prepare for the AP German exam. Despite what its title suggests, this isn’t an exercise-only workbook: you’ll also get a quick review of the grammar concepts that the exercises will cover before you dive in.
If you want to practice your pronunciation as well, you can also download the McGraw-Hill Language Lab app to your iOS or Android device and access the audio files that come with this book from there. The app also offers interactive exercises in addition to the ones given in the book, so downloading the app is a must if you want to make the most of this resource.
13. “Practice Makes Perfect German Vocabulary”
In case you need to work on your vocabulary, you can also pick up this book from the “Practice Makes Perfect” series.
What I like about this one is that it teaches you a systematic way of building vocabulary using the words you already know. And because it also offers grammar notes on each word, you’re able to see how they’re used in context.
Lastly, as you may have guessed from the book’s title, there are plenty of exercises that’ll ensure you truly master all those words by the time Exam Day comes.
14. “Mastering German Vocabulary: A Thematic Approach”
Although this book was published way back in 1995, the vocabulary acquisition techniques here can still be useful to you.
You’ll learn to classify words according to theme, which makes learning them less overwhelming than if you, say, try to master the 1,000 most common German words in one sitting and without context.
By learning new vocabulary this way, you can easily pick out words that will be immediately useful to you (e.g., daily routines) versus the more specialized ones that are only useful in certain contexts (e.g., vocabulary on body parts).
Tips to Prepare for the AP German Exam
Remember that the German AP exam has two sections. One section is free response and the other is multiple choice. This means you should practice as much as possible before the test to ensure you feel good about both.
Actively participate in class. Ask your teacher for advice and find some study buddies prior to the test. Have your study buddy help you with their strengths and vice versa. You can also find a German language exchange partner and concentrate on the areas you have trouble with. (For example, you can circle areas on test exams that confuse you.) What’s important is to constantly speak in German and communicate via email with German words to strengthen your writing skills.
Start reading German text from various different sources. Start with books and magazine articles. Highlight areas you have trouble with and discuss them with your teacher and/or study buddy. Read for 20 minutes every day, using these important tips.
And remember, reading doesn’t have to be limited to books, newspapers or magazines. Even reading captions can count! For example, you can read along with the captions on the native-speaker videos on FluentU, a language learning platform that features music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
A huge library of videos on all sorts of topics mean that you can always find something interesting to watch. Fun, adaptive exercises let you practice what you’re learning, ensuring that you truly understand all your new vocabulary and grammar.
FluentU tracks your progress and will let you know when it’s time to review using multimedia flashcards that keep learning dynamic so you never forget what you’ve learned. Check out FluentU’s official website to learn more and download the app to your iOS or Android device.
Spend a few minutes every day practicing your German writing. Even five to 10 minutes a day writing in a journal in German can make a difference. You can ramble about your day and what you expect in the following days. When you want to use a word you don’t know in German, simply write the word in English next to it (in parentheses like this) so you can continue writing smoothly in German. Then, when your time is up, go back and look up the words with English translations. Try to use those German words in your next entry.
Compile a list of digital and offline practice exams. We’ve already covered these above, but your teachers likely also have practice exams or review materials you can borrow or photocopy before the test.
Ask teachers and tutors for help if you can’t figure something out on a practice exam. There’s nothing worse than skipping a practice exam question only for it to show up on the real thing. Talk to your teacher after class or office hours to help you resolve any questions.
These AP German exam practice tools can complement your work with teachers, study buddies, pen pals and tutors.
Don’t lock yourself in a room after going through these resources. Get out into the world and ask questions, verbalize your German knowledge and get feedback. Good luck!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
If you liked this post, something tells me that you'll love FluentU, the best way to learn German with real-world videos.
