How to manage taking a difficult course load sophomore year?

I’m currently an incoming sophomore in high school, and I’m wondering what are the best ways to manage a very challenging course load without a study hall. I’m trying to shoot for straight A’s.

Here are the classes I am taking:
-Honors biology
-Honors English
-Honors geometry
-Honors algebra 2
-Spanish 2
-AP Computer Science
-Duel enrollment U.S. history at a community college
-Engineering elective (required)

To sum it up, I’m taking almost all honors classes and two college courses.

What have you found to be the easiest methods for studying for the classes I have listed? Are there any subjects that you have found easiest to study for together to be more time efficient?

Also, any more general advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks for the help!

I’ve taken geometry and self-studied Algebra II, so I think I can help you there. In these math classes, just make sure to pay attention and ask questions if necessary. Practice difficult topics on IXL or Khan Academy, and don’t be afraid to ask your teachers for extra help. It is difficult to take 2 math classes at once and do well, but it isn’t impossible (especially if you work hard). Algebra II and Geometry DO NOT overlap. Taking AP Computer Science on top of these two math classes is certainly even more difficult.

Honors Geometry – Studying is key for this class. You have to memorize theorems and postulates along with properties of different shapes (and some formulas). The pythagorean theorem (a^2 + b^2 = c^2) is going to be used a lot in the course, along with Special Right Triangle.
Make sure you know your basic Algebra I (completing the square, factoring polynomials, FOILing, finding slope, etc.). You will not need to work with parabolas.
Proof-writing is going to seem difficult at first, but practice makes perfect. :slight_smile: Make sure to memorize all postulates and theorems, and this shouldn’t be too difficult.
I found the Law of Sines and Cosines the hardest, mostly because it is very easy to make “stupid mistakes.” A lot of students also struggled with similar right triangles.
My favorite unit was right triangle trigonometry :slight_smile:
Geometry is a fun class, and I think you will enjoy it.

Honors Algebra II-- This class is basically just an addition to Algebra I. You will work with complex numbers, parabolas, logarithms, (maybe) vectors, factoring four-term polynomials, etc. Some memorization is necessary for success in this course.
Like I said for geometry, make sure you remember all of your basic Algebra I and this class won’t be so difficult. Khan Academy is REALLY useful for this class, and I learned a lot just by watching their videos and completing their sample problems.
Some students might struggle with complex numbers, but once you get the hang of it, it isn’t that difficult. :slight_smile:
My favorite part of Algebra II is logarithms.
Algebra II is also pretty fun.

Now, for the non-math classes:

Honors English and D.E. U.S. History may overlap. At might school, English 10 includes literature involving American history. My best advice for you is to practice your writing skills as both of these classes emphasize strong writing. Reading and learning new vocabulary may make this easier. You may be able to study for these classes together, depending on your school.

I know APUSH uses the textbook A LOT and that may be the same with the D.E. US History you are taking. Regardless, read from the book and take notes on important concepts.

Engineering Elective – I’m not sure what to expect from this class.

Honors Biology – Make sure to memorize the vocabulary. Read from the textbook and take notes on important concepts. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or request extra help. My school does one lab a week, and they must write a lab report for every lab.

Spanish II – I would make sure to review your Spanish I vocab / handouts over the summer. Have conversations with friends in Spanish, read short texts, etc. to make sure you don’t forget everything over the summer. In Spanish II, you go over conjugating verbs in past-tense and with -ing endings. There are rules for conjugating verbs this way, just like in Spanish I (ex: verbs conjugated with Yo in present tense generally end with “o”). Quizlet or Flashcards may help you memorize vocabulary.

Good luck with your sophomore year! If you do your homework, read through the textbook, study, and participate in class, then you will be fine!!!

@h08vs20 Thanks so much for the advice!! Actually, my school uses Kahn Academy for mathematics homework instead of actual homework, so I have a lot of experience with that. (I’m in the STEM program at my school.)

The one thing I am worried about is AP Computer Science. I took Intro to Computer Science (pre-AP) with only knowledge of algebra 1 (they usually require you to at least be concurrently taking geometry) because I had such a high math grade. I did stuggle the most out of everyone, but I still managed an A. However, this time I actually am meeting the requirements because I’m taking algebra 2 concurrently. Did you take AP Computer Science, by any chance?

Also, what was your experience with Spanish 2? I had a terrible Spanish 1 teacher who only gave out packets, resulting in my writing skills being really good but my speaking and listening not up to par. I did get an A but I feel like because of my teacher’s lack for preperation in listening and speaking that I will struggle in Spanish 2.

Anywho, I’m not really worried about any of my classes except for those two. What was your experience in APUSH? My D.E. US history set up will probably be really similar to APUSH, except tought by a professor and it’s only a semester long.

Make sure you don’t take more than you can handle…it is better to do well than to do poorly in DE classes.

I wouldn’t take a DE class as a sophomore. Your schedule is very rigorous and doesn’t need that added burden. Focus on your extracurriculars and get plenty of sleep (otherwise you’ll harm your brain <- summary, for details look it up.)

Here are the classes I am taking:
-Honors biology
-Honors English
=> standard for a strong sophomore, should be a non issue

-Honors geometry
-Honors algebra 2
=> will be tough but you seem really good at math

-Spanish 2 => purchase “English grammar for students of Spanish”, which will outline the differences and difficulties for an English speaker. You may find grammar exercises online. Use Quizlet.

-AP Computer Science => if Principles, good. If A: perhaps a tad too ambitious, unless you’ve had programming experience.

-Duel enrollment U.S. history at a community college => am really doubtful about this. Can’t you take APUSH junior year? If so, take another class. This is will like APUSH but super intense, with only 4 months to learn a LOT of content.
In addition, no school, even the elites, expect a sophomore to take college classes. If AP human geography is offered, it’d be an easy introduction to Ap classes and it’d still count as a social science. AP Economics is another one you could take, as it’s a bit easier than AP Euro or APUSH.

-Engineering elective (required)

DD just finished sophomore year with a similar schedule. SHe swears by Quizlet for studying vocab, etc. they had a small group who worked together on some of their flashcard sets

Why are you taking the dual enrollment history class? Doesn’t your school offer any AP history classes? Have you considered transportation, scheduling. cost, and time lost to commuting to attend the cc? Are you aware that a college class should be moving twice as fast as a hs class, and so it seems you will have the equivalent of 9 hs classes the semester you take the DE? I’d be a little concerned about that. AP would be spaced out over the year and not overload you with work one semester, and it would save all that time commuting.

Hi, sorry for the late reply on this thread. I had to take history at CC because I didn’t have enough room in my shedulde to take it at my high school. The CC is very close to where I live and the costs are covered by College Credit Plus.