AP Physics 1 / Topic
Kinematics
Unit 1 describes motion without asking why it happens: position, velocity, and acceleration in one and two dimensions, motion graphs, free fall, projectiles, and relative motion.
What the exam asks
- Translate among position-time, velocity-time, and acceleration-time graphs (slopes and areas)
- Apply the constant-acceleration equations to 1D motion and free fall
- Break projectile motion into independent horizontal and vertical components
- Reason about relative velocity between reference frames
- Distinguish average from instantaneous quantities and speed from velocity
Key formulas and rules
v = v0 + at; x = x0 + v0t + ½at²; v² = v0² + 2aΔx
slope of x-t is velocity; slope of v-t is acceleration; area under v-t is displacement
a = g ≈ 10 m/s² downward, independent of mass
horizontal: constant vx; vertical: free fall; time links the two
vy = 0 but a is still g downward
Question bank breakdown
44
3
11 easy · 25 medium · 8 hard
Skills covered
Every question in the bank comes with a worked explanation, and most add a per-choice breakdown so you learn why each wrong answer is wrong - not just the key.
Sample question
From the free tier of the ScoreMint AP Physics 1 bank - try it, then check the answer.
A car starts from rest and accelerates uniformly at for . It then travels at constant velocity for another . What is the total distance traveled by the car during the entire ?
- A.
- B.
- C.
- D.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. This problem requires breaking the motion into two phases. During uniform acceleration from rest: m, reaching m/s. During constant velocity: m. Total distance = m. A common mistake is applying the acceleration equations over the entire time interval, but the kinematic equations for constant acceleration only apply within each phase where acceleration is constant.
Study tip
For any projectile question, write two columns (x and y) and solve for time first - time is the only quantity the two directions share.