How many science courses will your kid take in HS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC1: just started his fourth year of college majoring in Computer Engineering
09: Honors Biology/Honors Geometry
10: Honors Chemistry/Honors Alegbra II
11: AP Chemistry and Honors Physics (they did not offer AP Physics 1 yet)/ Honors Precalc
12: AP Physics C/ AP Calculus BC and AP Statistics

DC2: just started his sophomore year of college majoring in at least Math and trying to decide on double
09: Honors Biology/Honors Algebra II
10: Honors Chemistry/ Honors Precalc and AP Statistics
11: AP Biology & AP Physics 1/ AP Calculus BC
12: AP Chemistry & AP Physics C / Multivariable Calculus and Matrix Algebra

Not sure if you will come back to see this but really curious

1. Was it their choice to accelerate so much??? or honestly was it more GPA padding/trying to get into a good college by taking the "toughest courseload"
2. Assuming they got good scores on some of the tests. Did their college advisors warn about skipping the foundation courses
3. What did your sons end up doing. Did your sons skip the first College Calculus course and go directly into the second course or did they start with the first class 110 of University Calculus, what about physics. I'm assuming they could used the AP Chem and Bio credit(s) since that isn't their fields of study and getting credit for AP Stats makes sense too.

Not the PP but it's common practice that a 4 or above on the AP BC Calc exam means you skip Calc 1/2 in college and go straight for Calc 3, whatever numbering system your college/university uses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC1: just started his fourth year of college majoring in Computer Engineering
09: Honors Biology/Honors Geometry
10: Honors Chemistry/Honors Alegbra II
11: AP Chemistry and Honors Physics (they did not offer AP Physics 1 yet)/ Honors Precalc
12: AP Physics C/ AP Calculus BC and AP Statistics

DC2: just started his sophomore year of college majoring in at least Math and trying to decide on double
09: Honors Biology/Honors Algebra II
10: Honors Chemistry/ Honors Precalc and AP Statistics
11: AP Biology & AP Physics 1/ AP Calculus BC
12: AP Chemistry & AP Physics C / Multivariable Calculus and Matrix Algebra

Not sure if you will come back to see this but really curious

1. Was it their choice to accelerate so much??? or honestly was it more GPA padding/trying to get into a good college by taking the "toughest courseload"itwasnt really an acceleration, they just took the next course in the sequence. We are a math and science family. They were in gen ed English for most years.
2. Assuming they got good scores on some of the tests. Did their college advisors warn about skipping the foundation courses the older one got 4s onhis APs and the younger one got 5s on all of his. No advisor warned of skipping foundation classes, in fact, they discovered they have had an excellent foundation.
3. What did your sons end up doing. Did your sons skip the first College Calculus course and go directly into the second course or did they start with the first class 110 of University Calculus, what about physics. I'm assuming they could used the AP Chem and Bio credit(s) since that isn't their fields of study and getting credit for AP Stats makes sense too. [b]the older one only took one semester Calc credit because other people warned him of skipping too much. It turned out to be a total repeat, which was fine for him because it made for an easy first semester and he started out with an excellent GPA. His GPA has been better than it was in in HS (unweighted of course). The AP Stat course ended up being useless for both of them. He skipped with AP Chem but took AP Physics as he got a 4 and they required a 5 to skip. He got the most credits from his AP histories.

The second one got credit for the whole first year Calculus and another semester of Matrix Algebra and Multivariable Algebra, he went straight into second semester sophomore year math. He also go credit for a year of physics and went straight into Quantum Physics. He did really well in both. He got a semester each for Bio and Chem. He took has been doing very well in college and has found himself very well prepared by his HS classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some of this is ridiculous. If you are majoring in computer science or mathematics there is no need to have APs in the big 3 sciences, they are considered completely distinct subjects and normally even the 101 level courses are not required for those in Math or CS undergrad programs. You're better off taking higher level CS and math classes and easing your load on AP, lab heavy, science courses.

How does one know what their major will be in HS? Isn’t that the time to take as many different classes to figure out what you like?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of this is ridiculous. If you are majoring in computer science or mathematics there is no need to have APs in the big 3 sciences, they are considered completely distinct subjects and normally even the 101 level courses are not required for those in Math or CS undergrad programs. You're better off taking higher level CS and math classes and easing your load on AP, lab heavy, science courses.

How does one know what their major will be in HS? Isn’t that the time to take as many different classes to figure out what you like?

Of course it is. Though I'll admit many kids have a strong idea of their interests and even if they're varied, they don't tend to be super broad (when boiled down to the types of offerings their HS would have). But the idea that they all need to be AP level or above is absurd. Balance your kids before they burn out, there is plenty of time for that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some of this is ridiculous. If you are majoring in computer science or mathematics there is no need to have APs in the big 3 sciences, they are considered completely distinct subjects and normally even the 101 level courses are not required for those in Math or CS undergrad programs. You're better off taking higher level CS and math classes and easing your load on AP, lab heavy, science courses.

Not true if you want to study Computer science at Virginia tech since its in the engineering school. Physics and Chem are required first year classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of this is ridiculous. If you are majoring in computer science or mathematics there is no need to have APs in the big 3 sciences, they are considered completely distinct subjects and normally even the 101 level courses are not required for those in Math or CS undergrad programs. You're better off taking higher level CS and math classes and easing your load on AP, lab heavy, science courses.

How does one know what their major will be in HS? Isn’t that the time to take as many different classes to figure out what you like?

Of course it is. Though I'll admit many kids have a strong idea of their interests and even if they're varied, they don't tend to be super broad (when boiled down to the types of offerings their HS would have). But the idea that they all need to be AP level or above is absurd. Balance your kids before they burn out, there is plenty of time for that.

Some of us will happily take the free college credit vs the thousands of dollars college credit, thank you.

[Anonymous]

DC 1:
9th: Pre-AP Bio
10th: Pre-AP Chem
11th: AP Environmental Science
12th: AP Biology and Physics
(more of a science kid)

DC 2:
9th: Pre-AP Bio
10th: Regular Chem
11th: AP Environmental Science
12th: Oceanography
(not a big science kid)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For a STEM major in college it's important to do well (well-enough) in: AP Physics C, AP Chem, AP Calc BC, AP Bio. Exposure to 3-4 or those. Whatever else, whatever prerequisite classes gets the student to that level, is ideally, what should be on their schedule.

Not really. Not all schools make that possible.

My kid is in engineering school now. He took neither AP Chem nor AP Bio. He took honors for both when offered. Thereafter he took all the physics he could and all the calc he could. Not every solid student by Junion Year was a super hotshot as a freshman.