9th Grade:
-AP Calculus AB (or Pre-Calculus Honors)
-English 1 Honors
-Honors Biology
-AP World History
-Spanish II Honors
-AP Computer Science Principles (T/T)
What do you think of this schedule?
I am most likely taking Calc or Pre-Calc because I am advanced at math for my grade level (I am currently in Geometry at school; I have finished Algebra 2 outside of school with an A+, currently finishing a Pre-Calc Honors class online with an A, and I am self-studying/taking another course in Calc over the summer).
My high school allows freshman to take APWH, and I have always gotten A’s in history.
In addition, my high school has a tech program (T/T) that requires students in the program to take AP Computer Science Principles during freshman year, so since I am in the program, I have to take the class. I have prior knowledge of coding in Python and C.
However, there are other advanced math courses that I can take at an adjacent junior college, if I choose to do so.
This is my planned math sequence:
9th: Calculus AB (OR Pre-Cal Honors)
10th: Calculus BC (if I take Pre-Cal in 9th grade, my school will allow me to enroll in this class if I earn a B+ or higher)
11th: IB Math 2
12th: AP Stats
No matter what decisions you make, you have a robust schedule planned out that will surely fulfill the academic requirements of prestigious schools. Now, as for specific classes:
AP Calculus AB (or Pre-Calculus Honors)
It’s a toss-up. I found both courses to be pretty understandable if you had a certain affinity to math. Honestly, the choice is up to you, because AP Calculus AB is a wonderful class that was my favorite and probably looks great academically, but Pre-Calc Honors has the opportunity to give you a little extra breathing room to work on extracurriculars without much stress (at least as a freshman).
Is there the possibility of a double-math senior year like I’m doing? Because AP Stats is really not super intensive after IB Math, which essentially covers everything in AP Stats plus AP Calc.
AP World History
AP World History is typically a sophomore class mainly because of the writing skills freshman have yet to develop, but if you feel confident in your writing then I say go for it.
AP Computer Science Principles (T/T)
I wish I had this class at our school! Apparently we’re supposed to get a CompSci teacher but it won’t happen until next year when I’ve already graduated.
@IBscholar, do you know how much of Pre-Calculus is actually used in Calculus? Specific topics that are often used to solve calculus problems? I was thinking that I could focus on those topics before next year.
Also, would AP Human Geography be a better choice than APWH? I have heard that the course is relatively easier to understand and more suitable for freshmen students.
I can’t talk about APHG because I’m not familiar with it, but I’ve heard APWH is one of the harder APs. I don’t know you so I can’t accurately say what you should do, but if you think you can handle the increased workload of 3 APs, go for it. But you definitely don’t want to burn out in only you freshmen year.
If you are taking a graded online honors precalculus class now, why would you repeat the class next year? Makes no sense to me.
If your school teaches calculus as a two year sequence it is not advisable to skip AB and jump into BC. When would you learn the AB material?
However, if BC is taught as a first calculus class, covering AB in the first semester, then it seems very repetitious to take AB first. Assuming this is the case, if they won’t place you into BC on the basis of your online precalculus grade, perhaps you can ask to take their precalculus final and see how you do. If they insist on precalculus or AB, you should take AB. You won’t learn anything new in precalculus.
Be warned that AP world history is a lot of work. Is it usual for freshmen to take it in your school?
Hmm, I missed the part about you taking a calc class over the summer. You really don’t need to do this if you are going to take AB in the fall. It doesn’t take 3 classes to master calculus. Find something more useful to do with your summer than just repeating school classes.
In terms of Pre-Calc, it honestly depends on where you are since it varies so much in scope. I would ask the school you’re attending for a curriculum syllabus in terms of how much they cover in that class, but if they believe Pre-Calc and transition towards Calc BC immediately, then I assume they’ll cover the basics of a lot of Calc stuff in Pre-Calc (i.e. limits, basic derivatives/integrals, sequences and series, etc.)
I would 100% recommend AP Human Geography over AP World History in terms of rigor and course load. It was my first AP class and it really is more suitable because it demands more knowledge and less synthesis on the exam, so it’s a great introductory AP course.
For your freshman year, I’d recommend AP human Geography - it’s actually a “gateway to AP” class for freshmen, meaning you could take APWH sophomore year with minimal trouble. Along with the other 2 APs you’d take (and since you’re getting an A in a precalculus class, there’s no reason why you should retake it, so stick to Calc AB, with BC sophomore year;
Is IB level 2 the HL class or the SL class? After BC, you’d need the HL class. Then you’d need to take more advanced math at the junior college (probably discrete math, diff eqs, and calculus-based stats, which are NOTHING like AP Stats.)
AP World History is rather difficult, especially for freshmen. Countless sophomores at my school suffer in that class, since their writing and historian skills are not sufficient to get a 4 or 5 on the exam. The essays can make or break your AP score, so simply knowing the information isn’t enough. I would advise you to take the course in sophomore year.
AP Human Geography is a much better option, especially because the free response questions are easier (IMHO) and the topics are much more broad and easier to understand. Plus, APHG is more interesting than APWH.
I am currently taking APWH and self-studying APHG, and APWH is 100x harder than APHG.
AP Calculus AB will be pretty tough for a freshman. AP World History is a sophomore class however if you are extremely devoted it is not too bad just a lot of studying and notes and things to memorize. AP Computer Science I have no clue I would check more into it. The rest of your classes should be fine however
I am pretty sure that AP world history will be more work than AP human geography, from seeing how hard my kids work in AP world, though we don’t have personal experience with AP human geography, everyone on this site says it’s pretty easy. However, I think you should choose based on what you are interested in. You can find a detailed curriculum for it on the college board site, so have a look. If you are interested in the material for AP human geography, start there. It will be easier and that’s probably good as you settle in to a new school. But if you aren’t interested in it, and if your EC commitments aren’t extremely heavy, I think you could manage the schedule with AP world as long are you are willing to work very hard.
This is all assuming that math is quite easy for you. My daughter is actually taking AB and AP world right now. She probably spends twice as much time on AP world as on AB, and as I mentioned, I consider our AP world class to be AP world “lite” compared to what it’s like in some schools. If you have to work really hard in AB, you may regret being in both as you go into a new school, especially with the computer class which probably also will be timeconsuming.
And if your ECs are extremely timeconsuming then I would choose an easier path. You don’t want to get in over your head.
IMO,if your school offers it, I’d take AP European Hist. I took AP World History, AP Art History and AP European History all this year and it’s safe to say APWH sucked not because it’s hard, but its boring and broad. Art History is a class I’d recommend to intensive kids that would go to a museum every weekend and love to write essays on all kinds of artworks. AP Euro, however, I though to be a very enlightening class and a gateway to better understanding of how a civilization would start up. It also covers the least amount of history out of all the AP HIST classes (400-600 years). So in Feburary in APWH when we JUST started to cover the Renaissance and Reformation, in AP Euro we were covering WWII and Cold War (its good review)!!!
AP Human is also a really good class, you should seriously do it.
