re: AP classes vs honors classes vs college prep classes
If there are three levels of classes offered, “college prep” will be the more basic version and “honors” will be a bit more difficult. Both of those will cover the material that is required by your state of residence for a high school diploma. Depending on the grading system that the school uses, the honors class might have a weighted GPA (an A = 5 points instead of the standard 4). If honors classes are weighted, normally AP classes are weighted too.
AP classes follow curricula defined by the College Board, and students who complete them can take nationally standardized exams. Depending on the results of the exams, some colleges will award college credit once a student has enrolled. Some high schools will require that a student complete the college prep or honors version of a class before enrolling in the AP version, but other high schools will allow students to enroll directly in the AP course without any previous exposure to that subject.