We have periods 1-6 every day 7:55-2:55, zero period starts around 6:50 but neither of my kids have done it. It has been pretty much the same schedule for at least 30 years.
@khmama S20 is on a A/B block schedule. He has 8 classes split into 2 days. There is a co-curiicular period that is bundled with lunch period. My understanding is kids will use the co-curricular period for labs, Q&A with teachers etc. We also have limited AP options (compare to D17ās HS). Because the required classes and their pre-reqs seem pretty strict to me. I have yet to get a chance to talk to GC to fully understand it. Waiting for back to school night, maybe?
@khmama my S16 was on a block schedule with 8 classes split into 4 per day. We also have (I think) 23 APs. But the number of APs had more to do wth a high school that has almost 4000 students.
@LKnomad I hadnāt thought about how the size of the school affects the APās offered. Our HS is about 2,000 students and offers 15 AP classes (but one is for native Spanish speakers, so my daughter cannot take it). I think my biggest peeve about the whole AP thing is that lack of access to them for freshman and sophomores. Only one AP class allowed, beginning in sophomore year. It seems like the juniors and seniors have to jam-pack their schedules once they are open to take the rest of the AP classes. We are very fortunate, though, that we have a great junior college in our town, and students seeking more advanced courses can take them there.
We have about 20 AP classes offered at our high school but, like many others, students can only take 1 each during freshman and sophomore year. Depending on your math sequence & science sequence, however, the number of APs available in Junior year rises sharply to 4 (APUSH, Calculus AB or BC, AP English Language/Composition, AP Physics). It is sort of āall bets offā in Senior year, because you can conceivably take AP Gov/Econ, AP English (they offer 2 different english AP classes), AP Foreign Language, AP Calc BC or AP Stats, or AP Bio or AP Chem, or double on a math or science AP. There are kids who take 6 total APs in their Senior year.
So, I guess if you took all the APs available to a schedule you could conceivably take around 12 by the end of Senior year. If you had proficiency in a foreign language outside of school, you may be able to take 1 or 2 more tests (for those foreign languages) but it would be hard to fit in the schedule, as gym is a required class all 4 years and you canāt get out of lunch without a waiver. So six classes is what you can take total during each year (full year classes, not 1/2 credit).
At our school history sequence is
9: History of Asia or AP World History
10: European History or AP European History
11: US History or AP US History
12: any other history classes offered (11 of them to choose from)
For science, our sequence is physics-chemistry-biology. The school offers regular, honors and AP of each course. There are other science courses in addition to these three such as astronomy, organic chemistry and research courses in many areas.
English APs start in Junior year.
I think AP Lang Junior year and Lit Senior year is pretty standard.
Iām a big proponent of kids taking all three core sciences before taking an AP science.
Iām baffled why Spanish AP would be only available to Native speakers. Our school offers:
1 (can be taken in eighth grade)
2
3
4 (AP Lang)
5 (AP Lit)
For Spanish, French and Japanese. The fifth year is currently not offered for Chinese, but that seems to be more lack of demand.
For spanish, we have
1 (most people took in middle school)
2 ā placement test decide where you start HS from
3
4
5 AP only comes in post Spanish 4
I wonder why they require 5 years of a foreign language to take the first AP. Most schools do 4 and kids do fine.
@VickiSoCal It is 4 years, Spanish 1-4, and then AP. So my D17 starts HS from Spanish 2. She finished spanish 4 junior year and is taking AP Spanish senior year. S20 will need to do the same.
Right, thatās what Iām saying, it is unusual to require 5 years of a language to take the first AP (Language and Culture). Most schools only require 4 and students take the second AP (Literature) after year 5.
re: APās. I believe one can self study for any AP test without taking the class though Iām not sure if the school/district has a say in that. Our school offers Span 1-3 then Span IB. We are new to the IB program and are still learning about it. Iām assuming one can take an AP test after the IB class and be just as prepared.
Yesterday, a friend of mine told me that her D took AP HUG last year and chose not to take the test (didnāt tell mom, either.) Personally, Iād encourage this D to review and take that test. (Of course, I donāt know the whole story, perhaps she wasnāt doing well.)
My older D was stressed about studying for 2 other AP tests.chose not to test in AP Psych event though she was getting an A. She sorely regretted her decision. In her freshman year in college, she realized how valuable the AP college credits were in lightening the load. I encouraged her to try for credit by taking the CLEP but she was overwhelmed with her class and sport schedule and decided against it.
@VickiSoCal sorry I should have clarifiedā¦our high school has 2 AP Spanish 4 classes - one that is specifically listed for native language speakers, and a general one for non-native language speakers. I donāt know how common AP Spanish 4 for native language speakers is. Our school does have a high percentage of students whose first language is Spanish, though, so I can see the need for it at our school.
Our school has heritage language classes for Spanish and Chinese, I think they are separated until year 3.
@lilmom our kids have the option to take the the AP test and/or the IB SL test after Year 4 of a foreign language and the AP Lit and/or the IB HL test after Year 5.
My older daughter got a 5 on IB SL Spanish and a 3 on AP Spanish Lang after Year 4. (Sheās a future chemistry major and language is so not her strong suit) My understanding is 4/5 on IB is about equivalent to 3 on AP and 6 is a 4 and 7 a 5. Very approximately.
@VickiSoCal, our school is the same for the first four years of Spanish. I wasnāt even aware there is an AP Spanish Lit - and though we have a large native-Spanish population, too, I guess thre is not enough demand or not enough resources for it. Frankly, Iām not sure if my daughter would take it even if it was offered - sheād probably choose another AP, i.e. Comparative Government.
Mine wanted to do both years of AP Spanish. Until she actually got part way through the first year. That dream died quickly. 
We have very few native speakers and Spanish 1, 2,3H, 4AP (Lang & Culture), 5AP (Lit).
I remember both my kids did one year of language that did not count before they started counting the year 1 for language. So they did beginner year of spanish followed by year 1 to year 4 which was AP language.
Ugh foreign language. Forget APs here. S20 will be doing DE ASL as a Jr. He still gets a bump in grade for a CC class and knocks out his language requirements (unless a school requires an actual language, and then we will do a disability waver for auditory processing.)
We are going to aim for an APHG test, without an official class. He is allowed geography through his homeschool charter but it is plain geo so I will spiff it up with human/political geo and see what happens. My main goal is to see how hard it will be to get CB accommodations, and find a school that will allow, accommodations for a child who is not one of their own students. The AP test is an actual test of this more than a test of APHG
@LKnomad I was told at Dās high school that there was no bump in grade (weighting) for ASL classes taken at the junior college. Iām not sure if it is the same for all public high schools in California, or if itās just the policy of our school district.