AP Chem or AP Bio junior year (at Blair)?
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Anonymous
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Blair recommends this track for its advanced students (non STEM magnet): Honors Physics, Honors Chem, AP Bio, then AP Chem or AP Physics senior year.
The Honors Chem teacher is telling kids to take AP Chem junior year. Says it is easier than AP Bio and that AP Bio will be easier after AP Chem. The school probably is saying do AP Bio first because it’s a graduation requirement to have a biology class, so they don’t want people saving it for senior year. Any advice about what to do? As background, my kid does well in the science classes so far — usually at a 95% or higher per marking period without much studying. Kid says doesn’t want to take AP Physics BC though. Would that be with the magnet kids? She thinks so and is likely intimidated by the thought. |
Anonymous
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I would listen to the honors Chem teacher.
AP Chemistry is not easier than AP Bio but the kids need a solid background in Chem to do well in AP Bio, if that makes sense. |
Anonymous
| Also, I'm not sure what grade your kid is in. Is your kid taking honors physics and honors chem now? |
Anonymous
| OP here. Kid took Honors Physics in 9th and is now in Honors Chem in 10th. |
Anonymous
Current 10th graders will have to take and pass the MISA (Maryland Integrated Science Assessment) at the end of 11th grade, and are supposed to have completed NGSS aligned Biology, Chemistry, Physics courses, which also include Earth Science.
If this is the recommendation, then I would stick with it, because they should have done some internal alignment to have that pathway make sense internally. It sounds to me like the AP Chem teacher is just trying to fill their class. |
Anonymous
| Take Chem first. You need calculus to do well in physics, physics to do well in Chem, and chem to do well in Bio. |
Anonymous
He's taking Honors Chemistry now in 10th grade. If Blair's advanced pathway is AP Biology next, then the Chemistry in Honors Chemistry as they are teaching it should be sufficient for AP Bio. |
Anonymous
| If she doing to have to take both, I would go with the general sequence of whatever they recommend. It may not be because of content, it may be because of scheduling and you wouldn't want her to be a outliner. Bio is more language based but it sounds like your DD is handling both well. |
Anonymous
| PP here with a better comment. Going from one chem class into the next chem class is better i would like. |
Anonymous
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Be aware that AP Chem at Blair usually has a large fraction of Magnet students. One class this year is over 90%. Magnet students do not take AP Bio.
They might take one or both of the AP Bio tests but usually do so with a mix of required and optional magnet classes and some self study. I'm not sure if this makes AP Chem actually harder but it does mean that most everyone starts with much more than an honors chemistry background. |
Anonymous
| I don't want to give advice since my kid isn't at Blair, but I will say that it's possible to take two sciences in the same year. My kid is in AP physics and Honors bio this year. |
Anonymous
If the teacher of the Honors Chem class is telling you that your kid would be better prepared for AP Bio if they took AP Chem first, I would listen to the Honors Chem teacher. It's also possible the the Honors Chem teacher is simply saying that a kid will do better in AP Chem if they go into right after taking Honors Chem, rather than waiting a year. That makes total sense to me. |
Anonymous
Do magnet kids also take AP Physics? |
Anonymous
| So would AP Bio be the first HS biology they take? That would be a mistake. |
Anonymous
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Here’s the science sequence I would recommend, mostly for a STEM kid:
9th grade: Honors or Research Bio (1 science class) 10th grade: Honors or Research Chem (1 science class) 11th grade: AP Bio or Chem and non-AP Physics (2 science classes) 12th grade: AP Chem or Bio (whichever one was not taken in 11th grade) and AP Physics (2 science classes) |