<p>While it may not be relevant to the OP, another subject for careful planning is science. If one expects to take at least one AP science class, then the typical sequence would be Bio, Chem, Physics. At our HS, the default science class was called integrated physics and chemistry, which is not a substitute for physics or chem. I had to lobby to get my non-GT son into Bio instead. Otherwise, he would have had to double up somewhere in order to take an AP science. (Of course, the sequence may vary in your HS or state, but the message to plan ahead is still a good one.)</p>
<p>^^^: A better sequence for science might be as follows
Physics
Chemistry
Biology
AP - {Any one}</p>
<p>I think every high school does science differently, as we all did Bio (regular, non-AP), a sort of general science (which had like 2 weeks of physics, 2 weeks of chemistry, and several weeks of earth science and a few weeks of astronomy, and probably a few other things), then you could take regular or AP chem, regular (I think equivocal to AP physics B?) or AP physics (C), or AP biology, your junior/senior years. Not much wiggle room beyond that.</p>
<p>mom2sons, I know what you’re saying. People feel that I shouldn’t think about all of her four years, but you have to make their freshman schedule according to what you think they’ll do over the next 3 years. Apparently, all high schools are not created equal :)</p>
<p>emgamac, that’s why I’m thinking through this now, so that I’m prepared when we meet with the counselor. As we all know, not all counselors are created equal either 
And since so many kids around here don’t aim for 4 year colleges (and don’t mention Ivy), I would suspect that the counselor would already have a plan etched out that is probably a lot different than ours.</p>
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<p>People are wrong.</p>
<p>The courses your daughter takes as a freshman will affect her course choices, and maybe even college choices, later.</p>
<p>Foreign language is the obvious example. If she has not taken foreign language before and does not start as a freshman in high school, she cannot go beyond Level 3.</p>
<p>Equally important, in many high schools, is the choice of honors versus regular classes. It is often difficult to get into the honors track later, especially in a sequential subject such as math, if you weren’t there as a freshman. And it’s usually the honors track that leads into APs later. So choosing a regular rather than honors-level course as a freshman may mean not being eligible or prepared to take an AP course in the same subject area later in high school. </p>
<p>From personal experience, I would push the honors classes, unless the student is clearly not suited for honors in a particular subject. Regular classes tend to have more discipline problems. They also tend to have more special education students mainstreamed in, making the teacher’s job more challenging, as he or she has to meet the needs of a much wider variety of students. And regular classes are often run according to stricter rules. My son, who hated laboratory sciences and knew that he would not major in a science in college, decided to take regular chemistry rather than honors chemistry in 11th grade. He ended up getting a C – mostly because he tended to turn in homework late, arrive at class late, and otherwise break rules that did not count against him much in honors classes but brought his grade down drastically in the regular class.</p>
<p>One more point: if your daughter looks at her high school course catalog in its entirety, she will probably discover that there are many more interesting electives available for upperclassmen than for freshman and sophomores. To have room in their schedules for these electives, most freshmen take a lot of required courses – usually 5 academic subjects (English, math, science, history or social studies, and foreign language) as freshmen, along with at least one of the non-academic courses required for graduation (such as fine arts or technical education or speech or whatever else your district requires). Students with a special interest in a particular area who want to include it in their programs every year (I’m talking about things like drama, orchestra, band, chorus, or maybe computer science) sometimes wait on the non-academic required courses, but it would be rare (and, I think, unwise) for them to not take five academic courses as freshmen.</p>
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<p>This is typical in instances where foreign language is taught at a slower pace in middle school than in high school. It is very common to have middle school foreign language courses that take two years to complete the equivalent of high school Level 1. There are other instances, however, where foreign language is taught at the high school pace in middle school, with students completing Level 1 in one year. Those who start in 7th grade can complete Level 2 in middle school and go into Level 3 in high school.</p>
<p>Thanks so much Marian - I can see that you completely understand where I’m coming from. I don’t want her high school courses to impede her college acceptances. She’ll already have enough to worry about with GPA and SATs. :)</p>