<p>Well, I'm a sophomore right now, and I'm wondering if I should take PreCalculus Honors or Calculus Honors next year. I'm taking Algebra 2/Trig Honors right now. Math is definitely not my best subject, but I'm getting by with a high B. I have no idea if I'll get A's with Calculus Honors, but I know I can get A's with PreCalc. And I'll be busy with orchestra, newspaper, 3 ap classes, and other credits, so I'm not sure how much time I have left to study HARD if I did take Calculus. But it looks good to challenge myself, right? Hmm...</p>
<p>Also, I'm definitely NOT planning to be a math major. XD </p>
<p>I'm just wondering which is the better option. Go for the slightly easier course that'll guarantee me an A, or stick it out with a course that I have to work REALLY hard for to get A's while still trying to juggle other courses and extracurriculars.</p>
<p>It’s typical to take precalculus before taking a regular calculus course, so I’d recommend doing that. You’re only a sophomore, so it’ll allow you to take precalc and then calc (honors or AP) your senior year.</p>
<p>The fact that you don’t consider math to be your best subject only reinforces my opinion. :)</p>
<p>Well it sounds like you already know what you want to do, you just want people to tell you it’s okay to not take harder math. Ideally, getting an A in the full on Calculus class is “better”… [I’m not fantastic at math, but I didn’t find pre-calc to be very difficult.]</p>
<p>Ultimately, it’s gonna be nice to get through high school without wanting to kill yourself from taking on too much. Cause if you’re dead, you can’t go to college.</p>
<p>Well my teacher recommended me for PreCalc, but if I wanted to, I could challenge the system and go straight to Calculus (and my counselor told me that challenging is an easy process). Both my teacher and counselor told me if I’m getting B’s right now, then it’ll stay being B’s if I go to Calc. And then my older friends who are taking Calculus are telling me it’s not that hard and that I could pass, but I have my doubts. If I do go into Calc next year, then I can take Calc AB or BC senior year. But I’m kind of scared for that, too. >.<</p>
<p>Take Precalculus Honors. If you’re getting a High B now, you won’t do yourself any favors by skipping the prerequisite to go straight to Calculus. If you take Precalc, you’ll still finish Calculus before high school is over (which is better than average) and show colleges that you are taking a rigorous course of study.</p>
<p>I agree with Seattle Mom. A lot of kids flounder in calculus because they don’t go in with a really sound understanding of trig and precalculus. The more solidly you build the foundation, the easier you are going to find calculus when you get to it. This is especially true if math is not your strong suit–the real whizzes can often figure this sort of stuff out on the fly, but if you’re not one of them, don’t stress yourself out in what looks like it will be a busy junior year.</p>
<p>I would strongly recommend you take a look at a standard college calculus textbook to see if you find the material to be difficult or not. The Early Transcendentals book by James Stewart is an excellent starting reference point, though it may be <em>slightly</em> more difficult than what most high schools teach in their AP classes. If you feel that you are more or less comfortable with the material, I would suggest you go ahead and take the AP Calculus class.</p>
<p>From personal experience, it seems that Pre-Calculus simply provides a basic coverage of trigonometry and some advanced algebra. I feel that the trigonometry is more or less easy enough for self-study, and the algebra stuff doesn’t include any relevant new concepts.</p>
<p>That being said, it depends on your comfort level with math.</p>