Multiple APs?

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

<p>Hi, I am currently a rising sophomore and I'm planning on signing up for AP Physics, AP Calc, and AP Psych next year. Before my highschool career I hardly got A's, and was sort of a rebel (lots of referrals and in school suspensions). I got an F in first semester of my 6th grade science class, and C's in Algebra 1 and French 1 (eighth grade year). But, as I stepped into highschool, I knew I had to pick up my game to succeed and be happy. This year I took French II, Honors Geometry, Honors Algebra II, Honors English, AP Human Geography, and Honors Biology (and gym/health). I passed with straight A's (and a few 100% averages), as well as getting an 1820 on my SATs (I took them in 7th grade aswell and got a 1330). To be honest, I feel I was slacking on my work this year (lots of unfinished homework, not too much studying besides Biology), and even though 3 APs (not sure if if calc is the two course, or if physics is the two courses but I think ill be in them both all year) is a plateful, I feel like if I put in 100% effort (compared to my 60% effort freshman year) I'll be able to pass with flying colors.
I'm currently Pre-cal (over the summer), and I have a 93% (Due to a unit I had to rush through because I was busy with my sister being in the hospital), and find the overall class pretty easy. I really want to succeed in my AP classes and prepare for them during the summer. I also must add I have terrible study skills and only really started studying this year. Also, I know it seems silly, but I'm shooting to be valedictorian. I understand it takes alot of commitment, and its cool if I dont get it, but its like--I'm aiming to be the best, but if I'm not, I'll still be pretty great. This year's valedictorian has something like a 5.375 GPA and was accepted (with a full ride i believe) to Harvard. (our school counts AP's as 6.0, honors as 5.0)</p>

<p>Okay so bottom line:</p>

<p>Any good books I could start using now to prepare for these classes?</p>

<p>Tips on studying, staying focused, and note taking? </p>

<p>What should I take next year? (I'm thinking about pursuing either something in the medical, programming, or engineering careers. My school also offers around 26 APs, six of which are probably languages) AP Stat, AP Biology, AP Earth, AP US History, AP Euro, AP English, AP Computer Sciences, and AP World are all offered.</p>

2

<p>Do what you think you can do, if you found the past year very easy, as in you didn’t have to work too hard, you can probably do it. As a sophomore I’ll be taking 2 or 3 AP’s, Calc, World, and possibly Music Theory. What you’ll probably want to do is just step up with it and really study, because it shouldn’t be as easy.</p>

3

<p>I think you’ll do great. Physics and Calc together might be kind of a doozy. (Which Physics and Calc, might I ask? Physics B and Calc AB together should be fine, but if you’re taking Physics C or Calc BC or both I might reconsider. Especially because you’ll probably want to finish a calculus course before you take Physics C.) You’re only a sophomore, you have time. </p>

<p>If I were you, I think I’d take Calc, either Physics B or Biology, and Psych sophomore year. I know Psych is an easier AP and I’ve heard Earth is also pretty easy, so maybe you could add Earth to your sophomore load. Or save it for junior year if you want. Then junior and senior years, take all the science and math courses you didn’t take, take Comp Sci, and consider some humanities classes. I loved US History and you should definitely think about taking AP English. </p>

<p>As for studying and note-taking, that’s a really personal thing. It also varies from class to class. I took no notes at all in Biology this year but took furious notes in Calc BC and succeeded in both courses. My advice is to spend the least amount of time needed to ensure excellence.</p>

4

<p>At my school students tend to take this Physics course I’ll be taking and Calculus together (thats what the physics teacher suggested). I dont know if its B or AB or C or BC, because the teacher at first refused me being in AP Physics as a sophomore, and my mom had a meeting with my counselor and I wasnt there to listen to all the final details of my schedule next year. But I do know the prerequisite to the Physics class is just Algebra II. </p>

<p>Earth at my school isnt hard, but the only teacher who teaches it is rumored to give a ton of homework (thats what I’ve heard, but not directly from students who’ve taken the class). If it fits in my schedule I might take it second sign up for it second semester (after I know I can handle the other courses) .</p>

<p>I have a habit of caring about the class as much as the teacher. In eighth grade, the teacher I had was the strictest, hardest teacher I’ve ever had and pushed us to our best. I did her homework every night and went to her tutoring sessions every week (even when I felt I didnt need it). In my biology class this year I really liked my teacher and always made an effort to pay attention, take good notes, study hard, and complete homework. Classes like Algebra II however, where the teacher wanted us to just learn bare minimum (if I asked a question about how to do something or what something was she would often respond with ‘you dont need to know that’, or ‘its too complicated’). She graded assignments and homework at a glance (and answers filled in would do) and had no control over the class in general. I had many zeros for missing work at the end of the year, and never once studied for her class. I agree with you completely about studying depending on the class, but even when studying is called for, I’m not sure I do it well (studying for AP human was horrendous, I would always try to read the chapters to study but never could do it all the way through because I felt it was a waste of time to read every detail when half of it wasnt going to be on the test). Biology was just remembering processes and everything was connected (if i needed to know what one thing, I had to know another first. This incomparison to just needing to know random names and theories and dates in AP human).</p>

5

<p>I’ve had both sorts of teachers. If you get a teacher like your Algebra II teacher, just do whatever it is you need to do to get the A. Not studying is fine if you can get away with it. If filling in answers was all you needed to do to get the grade on homework, then why did you have missing assignments? Just take the ten minutes to do the homework. That’s like free points. In that situation, if you really care about the subject and want to learn more, there are lots of resources available to you online - you can do your own explorations of the material if your teacher isn’t giving you enough. Or maybe you can talk to a different math teacher or tutor after school or something. If you don’t really care that much about that subject, then that’s fine too. Just get through it so you can move on to bigger and better things.</p>

<p>The beauty of AP is that it’s the same curriculum nationwide, so if you’ve got a lackluster AP teacher who you don’t think is preparing you well for the exam, you can find other teachers’ resources online easily. And study books and stuff. </p>

<p>You’re saying you weren’t able to read full chapters of your HG textbook? For courses like HG that are all memorization anyways, I think study books or flashcards, whichever works better, are the superior choice anyways. Those have only the information you need to know. If you’re stuck with a textbook, you can always try skimming textbooks. Make sure you understand the main idea of each concept or paragraph and then move on. Works for me sometimes.</p>