Public preview · AP Computer Science Principles
Educator CSP Lab helps students investigate computing, explain algorithms, build programs and prepare for AP CSP — and gives teachers the evidence to direct revision.
Scenario
A student wants clubs that still have at least 3 places.
Checkpoints
PROCEDURE countAvailable(capacities, minimum){ count ← 0 FOR EACH places IN capacities { IF (places ≥ minimum) { count ← count + 1 } } RETURN count}
| pos | places | places ≥ 3 | count |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | false | 0 |
| 2 | 5 | true | 1 |
| 3 | 2 | false | 1 |
| 4 | 8 | true | 2 |
Written hint 1
The loop visits every value. Which values make the condition true?
Explain
Why does minimum make this procedure reusable?
How it works
Short readable lessons introduce an idea through a realistic scenario and a worked example.
Students predict, then step through an algorithm and watch each value and condition change.
Notes, tests and reflections ask students to say why the program behaves as it does.
Checks link missed ideas back to lesson sections so students revise and try again.
Course
The course map is organised by the five AP CSP Big Ideas: 35 topics with 70 authored lessons and 30 investigations. Also available is the separate 12-lesson, 8-lab pilot, plus Sequence 1 and a short sample activity. The course follows all 35 current topics; educator review and classroom calibration remain pending.
Big Idea 1 · CRD
Collaborating, designing for a purpose, and finding and correcting errors in programs.
4 topics
Big Idea 2 · DAT
Representing information with bits, compressing it, and extracting knowledge from data.
4 topics
Big Idea 3 · AAP
Variables, conditions, iteration, lists, procedures, and reasoning about algorithms.
18 topics
Big Idea 4 · CSN
How the Internet works, fault tolerance, and parallel and distributed computing.
3 topics
Big Idea 5 · IOC
Benefits and harms, the digital divide, bias, crowdsourcing, ethics and safe computing.
6 topics
Assessments and Create practice
Five teacher-scored parts contain 70 original AP-style questions with current topic weighting and question formats. Public self-checks provide immediate explanations. A timed full-exam simulator is still planned; no AP score is predicted.
Explore classroom assessmentsPractice projects kept clearly separate from official Create performance task work, which students submit through the AP Digital Portfolio. A four-prompt written-response rehearsal is available as a classroom assignment. Create Studio itself is still planned.
Read about Create StudioAvailability