<p>Okay, my daughter has 7 periods - one includes lunch- so spanks, how long is your school day....to take 7 ap classes, you need an 8 period day...what were the pre-recs to take each class, at our school, they build on each other, often with honors classes preceding.</p>
<p>My daughter will have taken 5 aps by graduation, and her other classes will include several honors....her focus is english and government and history....honors algebra and geomatry, and spanish at her school is really tough....the AP classes are limited in size and recommendations, etc are all needed....</p>
<p>Interesting how varied and uneven things are....</p>
<p>Oh yeah, our school has a 98% rate into 4 years, with numerous ivy etc placement, so I am guessing AP isn't everything..</p>
<p>Our very large (2400 students in 10-12) offers the following AP courses - European History (Grade 10 or 12), US History (11), US Politics/Govt. (12), Psychology (12), English Comp (11), English Literature (12), Comp Science A (11 or 12), Calculus AB (12), Biology (11 or 12), Environmental Science (12), Physics C (12). Our fifth year Spanish and French are not AP.
All students taking AP courses are required to take the AP test. The most AP classes a student can take is 9. Some of the students strong in both English/History and Math/Science do this. Others strong in one or the other take the English/Social Studies OR the Math/Science APs.</p>
<p>Citysgirlmom, You might have a little chat with your school's guidance counselor. My daughter's counselor has assured me that even though she has opted for take a few "honors" classes in place of "AP" classes that she will be checking most rigorous courseload available on my daughter's college rec's. My daughter actually feels that the honors classes at her school are much more valuable and educational than the AP classes because the focus is not just on prepping for the test. She has learned to write wonderful research papers and has enjoyed some of the other projects that she has been able to do in her honors classes that are NOT part of the AP curriculum at her school. So, talk to the guidance counselor and get an idea of what the difference between the two. I know with my son (currently a freshman), I am going to be much more selective about which AP's and which honors classes he takes - it will all work out in the end.</p>
<p>Citysgirlmom - My children's school (also Catholic) has six class periods. One class is mandatory religion every year, although this year for the first time they are allowing seniors to do an independent study version of the religion. They are also required to complete one year of art/performing arts. Stick in 4 years of math, 4 years of English, language, science and history and there are very few opportunities for electives. My daughter has ended up doing all of her science classes in summer school so she can squeeze in electives. Just want to add that we also have a 98% rate going on to 4 year schools so the lack of electives doesn't seem to hurt anyone.</p>
<p>Five AP's plus honors courses will be plenty for your daughter if she has solid grades, test scores, etc. As I said, the average number of AP's for Stanford admits is FIVE!</p>
<p>we have a 9 period day...some classes have requirements, others don't...they're easy to get into, but most people who can't handle them end up dropping within the first few weeks</p>
<p>i know that i haven't posted in a while, but i wanted to put my two cents in here.</p>
<p>i think for myself and many others, taking ap courses is a way to distinguish oneself from the rest of the pack (not just in admissions, but in the every day school work). you are challenged more, your peers are brighter, the teachers are more helpful (usually), and the basic foundation is layed for any student to take the AP textbook and figure out how to get the 5 regardless of the teaching quality. i have never been a math/science person, but i always took APs and accelerated courses in the subject knowing full well that i would NOT get even close to a 4 or 5 on the ap test - even with intense studying! in my sophomore year, i doubled up in science and took chemistry as well as ap biology. i got a 3 on the ap bio exam and did fair in the regular chem class. certainly nothing to boast about on a transcript, but the experience was worthwhile! this past semester i took "human biology" at the local college and found that the AP biology background served me very well...and it made the class much more interesting as i could focus on some of the scientific nuances of the course. thus, in the end, taking that class was detrimental rank/gpa wise, but it was helpful in my academic career. i also met great, intelligent friends who fostered incredible discussions within the class. the next year, i took ap chemistry and almost died. i got a 2 on the exam after months of waking up early for review and staying after school for extra help. sure, it was a pain, but there were a ton of great times in that class. though i doubt i will ever be needing that chemistry knowledge, conquering such a difficult course was worth it in the end. just recently, i was named my school district's only "ap scholar with distinction". the pride in knowing i was able to handle the courseload, struggle through intense science courses, and bolster my "AP average" with a few 5's in the humanities proved to me that challening oneself with an intense AP curriculum is well worth the effort.</p>
<p>sure, there were years when i had no lunch period, but they payed off in the end not only via college acceptance but through classroom discussion and intensive academic experiences.</p>
<p>while i understand that some people think kids are crazy to simply pack as many APs into their schedule as humanly possible, it can actually be more than "application padding" but intellectual curiosity and academic rigor instead!</p>
<p>Our district high schools offer 17-21 AP's (as defined by the CB), in addition to a full range of honors courses (UC-approved only). Of course, there are some overlaps, such as Calc AB and Calc BC, as well as Physics AB and Physics BC.</p>
<p>Most top kids take 7-10 AP's (possibly one Soph year, 2-3 Junior year, and 4-5 senior year), but testing is not mandatory. On the other hand, we are vigilant in encouraging all kids to try to take the test. (Teachers that discourage kids from attempting the test are somewhat self-serving in that they could be concerned about their personal bragging rights about the pass rates of thier class.) Beyond pass rate (3 = C), a better question is what % of kids get a 4 or 5?</p>
<p>Since the average at a school like Stanford is 5 APs, I wonder if taking 10 helps in the admissions process, as Ilcapo infers, or its just overkill. Anyone have any thoughts/insights?</p>
<p>btw: the parochial schools of which I am aware offer a full range of AP or IB.</p>
<p>Thanks Carolyn, our kids so are soooo much alike....my daughter took world history last summer and needs to take gym this summer take the classes she wants....otherwise can;t get in the pre-recs needed..</p>
<p>thanks, Spanks, our school's APs are tough to get into....and the work isn't that far "above" the honors classes, go figure....and as I said before, one period is for religion, which, thankfully get more intersting as a student moves on up...</p>
<p>Carolyn, my S's Jesuit HS is similar to your D's Catholic school. There are strict rules governing how many AP and honors courses a student can take at one time. The student must petition for permission, and the parents must approve also. The school offers 16 AP classes this year. Many kids who graduate with 9+ AP classes took algebra in 7th or 8th grade and science courses during the summer. S took chemistry at the local jr. college in order to take AP Art History in his junior year. </p>
<p>From what I've seen, the AP courses at his school are definitely not watered-down. Theology requirements can really kill a schedule, though, can't they?</p>
<p>Well, I go to a pretty average high school, not terrible, but based on money, we just don't have the resources of some of the higher ranked publics. We offer 14 AP's (2 double-blocked ones). We offer 2 honors classes: honors english 9 and 10. AP's carry a 5.0 weight, honors none. The reason we have so many students taking so many AP's is because it's the only option for good-great students because of the lack of honors courses.</p>
<p>My daughter's high school offers between 25 and 30 AP classes. She'll probably graduate having taken 10 APs (no science!) - we've got 4x4 block scheduling.</p>
<p>needs to take gym this summer take the classes she wants>>
Citygirlsmom - Yikes! Gym is waived pretty easily after freshman year at our school.</p>
<p>Kinshasa, yes, the religion requirements really do kill a schedule! However, luckily, our school seems to approach religion classes a little differently than alot of Catholic Catholic schools - less emphasis on theology, more emphasis on thinking about life and learning about ALL religions, not just Catholicism. Guess that's why our school is always in trouble with our Bishop. :) Both my kids really enjoy most of the religion classes and seem to get a lot out of them, even though we're not a particularly religious family.</p>
<p>Firefly, I may have asked you this before but how has your daughter done with AP tests on the 4x4 block schedule? Our local high school is on that schedule and is just starting to introduce some AP's this year. I'm wondering how they will fit all of the information in.</p>
<p>Carolyn, the senior year theology electives are pretty interesting. UC has approved the ethics course as having met a-f requirements and it's counted in GPA computation. From looking at S's work, it's an introductory philosophy class. The junior year requirement is social justice, a rather pertinent topic today.</p>
<p>The ability of some schools to offer a plethora of APs is, to a certain extent, a consequence of block scheduling.</p>
<p>Our hs (1800 students) is switching to block scheduling next year. For the present, it offers the following:
Calc (AB and BC)
Physics C (Mech and M&E)
Biology
Chemistry
US History
American Lit
Euro History
English
Spanish
French
Comp Sci.</p>
<p>Because of demand, US-History and American Lit (usually taken together) are available only to juniors and seniors, Euro-History and English are usually taken by seniors. It is possible to take AP earlier than junior year.
Students are encouraged but not required to take the exam. Many students also take college courses, most often in their junior and senior year, if they have exhausted the math/science offerings at the hs.</p>
<p>Just to give an alternative view, we homeschool our two and S (now in 11th) completed 10 AP exams by the end of 10th grade, but one was a repeat, so nine is the official CB count. D will do a bit less as she is planning to complete 8 exams by the end of 10th grade. Both plan additional AP courses in 11th and 12th grades because the AP curriculum in very good. We drive them around to neighboring school districts so the exams can be proctored. As home-schoolers, they are either getting online course instruction of self-studying.</p>
<p>If some of you are looking for additional AP resources outside of your kid's schools, there are online resources that work well with self-study.</p>
<p>Many of the young people I know over on the Art of Problem Solving site about math report that they self-study most of their AP courses. I see threads about that here on CC too. It is very possible in many schools in many parts of the United States to take the full course load and get decent grades, and still have time and energy left over to read books (or possibly take a correspondence course, but mostly just read a book) and then take AP tests. Anyone who gets a 5 on an AP test doesn't get second-guessed much about how the knowledge was gained. I'm sure a fairly substantial percentage of AP national scholars and other people with major AP awards have self-studied some of their courses. </p>
<p>Self-study, possibly with a wee smidgeon of correspondence study, is what we plan to do here. The current plan, subject to change, is for my son to show up for two AP tests next year (eighth-grade age). Homeschooling allows a lot of flexibility.</p>
<p>I guess we're just a bunch of hicks here out West. :-) The local high school only has five AP courses--European History, US History, Calculus AB, English Lit, and Biology. (They're a lot bigger on sports than academics, I am afraid. This is NOT a small school.) </p>
<p>We homeschool, but my first son took AP Calc at the high school, and my second son is taking AP Lit. Many kids who take AP classes do not take the test; however, I know that at least the Calc and Lit teachers do a great job of preparing the kids for the tests.</p>
<p>We have made good use of the community college for advanced classes.</p>
<p>tokenadult:
My S took two AP tests in 8th grade. He self-studied Calculus BC, using an excellent text that aligned well with the AP curriculum; he found that he needed only to do 1/3 of the exercises in the book, far less than what the hs teacher required students to do, so he was able to go at a faster pace. He also had help via email on AP test practices from a very kind retired AP-Calc teacher (now sadly deceased). He learned to use Equation Editor for the purpose. It worked out very well. For Physics, he found it useful to go to the high school as there were some labs he wanted to do and he enjoyed being part of a group (he made friends with the juniors in the class, which eased his transition to hs the following year). Of course, labs will not appear on the exam! One thing to consider: Some colleges require that students who have taken a lab science AP more than two years ago retake the introductory course. So it will be desirable for your S to take lab science courses in college soon after completing the AP.</p>