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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Bumping this thread as we we enter high school course selection season for  2025-2026 school year.

For kids who have done basic computer programming at summer camp / after school, 
and strong advanced math, 
and took Foundations of Computer Science in 8th,
what's good for CS/tech in 9th?

AP CS Principles and Computer Programming 1 both seems mostly redundant, like they overlap both Foundations  / extracurricular studies, and also AP CS A.

So jump into AP CS A in 9th?

Or do an "Engineering/Technology" (hardware/robots) in 9th, and come back to AP CS A in 10th ?

For Engineering/Technology, there are also many similar but maybe alternative courses.

No prerequisites besides math level:
Foundations of Tech
(Advanced) Foundations of Engineering  and Tech
(Advanced) Intro to Engineering Design 
...and 3 more Advanced courses, strangely with no prerequisites.

Foundations of Tech[/quote]

My kids didn’t take the engineering tech class so I can’t say if that’s useful.  Java wouldn’t be too hard for a 9th grader BUT it can be a frustrating class particularly if the teacher isn’t particularly good at your HS.  9th grade is a big transition so really think about whether it’s worth adding a headache like that for a 9th grader especially if they are taking other advanced classes.  Mine  took Java in 10th grade and 11th grades and even thought they are good programmers it was still a frustrating class as it’s not always clear what is being asked.  They said the programming was easy but the other stuff (multiple choice questions etc) were really confusing and didn’t always make sense.[/quote]

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