<p>It is time to register for next year’s hs classes and we are wondering what math D should sign up for. She is a sophomore with a high A in trig. Can she skip precalc (which I understand is sort of a review of algebra and trig) and go directly to AP Calc, or would it be better to take a year of precalc before going to AP Calc as a senior?</p>
<p>Does anybody have any opinions or experience with this situation? Thanks!</p>
<p>We are not allowed to skip pre-calc, but it is my understanding that many schools do allow it…What does her teacher recommend?</p>
<p>D1 is the math geek of the family; I believe she found precal useful. She was very young when she took it, so part of it may have been a maturity thing. D2 had A’s in trig, but had to call in the big guns (D1’s bf, mostly) to help her get through precal. You should probably contact your D’s trig teacher, as well as the head of the math dept at your hs.</p>
<p>You may be better off asking the calc teacher. Here, trig and precalc are combined into a 1 year class. Way back when i was in HS, algebra 2 and trig were one class. There is not enough to trig to take up a whole year, she may be getting some precalc already, but I think the calc teacher should have an idea how she may do without the precalc class.</p>
<p>Our juniors take AP Stats, then go on to AP calc as seniors.</p>
<p>You should definitely speak to the calc teacher. I’m surprised that your school offers tring and precalc as separate courses. D’s school followed the standard algebra II (including tring), precalc, AP stat, AP calc sequence.</p>
<p>I know that some schools now offer something called “intro to precalc,” which I guess is trig taught at a slower pace.</p>
<p>Our HS had something called FST (functions, stats, trig) which was their version of precalc. DS skipped FST and went straight to AP calc in his Junior year, but to be safe, he spent some time over the summer with a retired calc teacher and made sure that he wasn’t deficient in any of the areas covered by FST that had not been covered in his other courses. My recollection is that there were not very many such areas. He took AP stats senior year.</p>
<p>Don’t know if this helps at all or if the courses are equivalent.</p>
<p>Do not skip Precalculus. It is very helpful for more advanced math courses.</p>
<p>Maybe look at a SAT II Math prep book. The SAT subject test has no calculus. If it looks mostly familiar to her, then skipping pre-calc might be OK. If it looks difficult then she probably hasn’t mastered the pre-calc material sufficiently to skip the course.</p>
<p>I skipped Pre-Calc because of scheduling conflicts and took Calc as a Sophomore right after Algebra II and Geometry. I struggled a little bit at first because my high school did trig and limits in Pre-Calc, but I ended up doing very well. At that time I learned to sit down with a textbook and read up on missed material on my own.</p>
<p>I second the suggestion about asking a teacher at your D’s high school because we don’t know her math skills or the school’s curriculum.</p>
<p>Talk to your school. I know of a student who had the same situation- he actually was allowed to sign up for calc, but found he was put in precalc when school started. He talked to math teachers et al and was allowed in calculus after doing well on the final exam for the precalc course (he also did not miss out on material covered by missing the first part of the calc course as they reviewed precalc initially- my son’s excuse for not studying for his SAT II test). See if your D can test out of precalc. If she doesn’t do well you and she will know she needs it first.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t skip it without checking with the teacher what is covered. In our school they start in on the calculus book in about April. That said, my son said as a math course it covered less material than any he’d taken up till then and envied the kids who took it in summer school.</p>
<p>All great suggestions…thanks! I did speak to the trig teacher (who conferred with the calc teacher) and they thought D could take calc, but told D that the decision is up to her and her parents. It sounds like a good idea, though, to review the precalc curriculum and see if she knows that material. If she could benefit from the precalc course, it probably won’t be a big loss if she doesn’t get to calc until senior year, will it?</p>
<p>No. (10 characters)</p>
<p>My kids’ experience has been that concepts taught (or sadly, not taught) in pre-calc can make all the difference. Things that come up in many school’s pre-calc class will not make a difference the first semester of college calculus but come back to bite the kid in the backside the second.</p>
<p>Just depends on the student. Mine benefited by not skipping ahead in math. They were able to get a great foundation, score very high on standardized tests, count on solid A’s in math throughout high school by not skipping. There was some peer pressure to joing the super advanced math cohort to be considered really smart. D1 resisted this. She just didn’t see the need and will have a fairly respectable math record when she graduates - Calc BC senior year.</p>
<p>I took pre-calc my sophomore year and it was pretty helpful. Sure taking calculus junior year seems good and all, but having a strong pre-calc base is good for the math 2 test. But it all depends on your level in math i suppose.</p>
<p>If i was allowed to, i prob would have opted out of pre calc and taken calc my sophomore year. But its all about how good you are at math, so its different for everyone.</p>
<p>S began in pre-calc, and teacher suggested he transfer to Calc. She gave him the final exam. He moved into class taught by math dept chair, who assured me that if S didn’t fit, he’d find a solution.</p>
<p>I’d suggest talking to teachers & having your child skim the pre-calc book. If the path you chose doesn’t seem right, make sure a change is allowed.</p>