Mathematics (compulsory for three years)
Algebra 1 algebra 1 (mainly quadratic function) and geometric geometry (mainly plane geometric similarity and congruence) basically, more than 65% of my high school classmates completed it in junior high school. American junior high school for two years. High school is a four-year system, in which mathematics requires three years (many people have four years).
In the ninth grade, I took Algebra 2 Algebra 2 (power function, trigonometric geometry, etc. ).
Take basic calculus (series and series, parameter equation, etc.) before calculus. ) When I was in the tenth grade.
The eleventh grade is AP Calculus AB/BC (AP belongs to college calculus course). AB and BC are different levels of university courses, which course to choose depends on the results of basic calculus. My school is pre cal, you can go to BC if you get an A, and you can go to AB if you are below A and above C. (Most twelfth-grade students who have completed AB calculus will take BC calculus. )
Some students will choose statistics, but I don't know the specific difficulty.
But don't think that American imperialists simply take math lightly? I almost didn't get an a when I pre? qwq)
Science (two-year compulsory)
Science courses are divided into general courses, honor courses and pre-university courses. Taking honor classes is basically based on GPA. AP (Pre-university Course) is to decide whether you can take AP course according to the current performance of the subject after completing ordinary courses or honorary courses.
Biology Our school requires students to be in the ninth grade (different schools have different time requirements for students of several grades to study biology). Feeling biology is the most difficult subject in my science. Basically, learning cell structure (Golgi apparatus), biosphere, evolution, and genes (ATP ADP, which is similar to domestic high schools) is mainly caused by language problems. My personal experience is that I don't translate anything (although it seems unreliable) because I have never been exposed to those words and just regard them as my first language.
The chemistry school requires the tenth grade, which is relatively simple. Is the chemical equation, equilibrium, ion (domestic level).
Physics is an elective course, so I feel that there are really few people in high school. I am in the eleventh grade of physics, and I feel fine in the first semester. I learned it in the second and third grades in China. So basically, I don't think I have to worry about general physics class, but I will worry about AP physics class.
Don't worry about English subjects. If the English foundation in China is not good, the school will also arrange English classes for students with English as a second language.
Compared with Chinese mainland, American high school courses are generally rich, especially the second language, art and physical education courses. The biggest feature of American high schools is that students can locate and choose courses for themselves according to their actual situation.
The competitive pressure to apply for American universities is also great. Many times, universities will refer to social services (volunteers) and school sports teams in addition to students' academic level.
Based on the credit system, American high schools offer many compulsory courses and elective courses, including five main courses, such as English, literature and history, mathematics, science and foreign languages. The ninth grade course of mathematics is geometry, which covers the geometry content of junior high schools in China, but the topic is relatively simple. Science includes physics, chemistry and biology. Unlike in China, physics and chemistry are taught together, but one course is taught every year. Generally, the ninth grade students study biology, and then study physics and chemistry. For domestic students, physical chemistry is not as difficult as in China, but biology is much more difficult than in China. American high school curriculum difficulty classification is as follows:
1. Most ninth-grade students choose regular courses, which can be understood as ordinary difficulty courses. For American students, the ninth grade is also a transitional grade, so the course is not difficult.
2. In the tenth grade, I began to choose the honor course, and the difficulty of the course was upgraded. Honors courses are not optional for every student who wants to learn, and teachers need to evaluate them. For example, some ninth-grade China students are allowed to choose math courses with honor and difficulty because of their strong math ability.
3. Usually in the eleventh grade, students begin to choose ap courses (advanced placement), that is, courses with pre-university credits, which can be exchanged for freshman course credits. This is an AP college, and different universities require different scores. If you can't meet the score requirements, you can't exchange college credits. So you can get high marks instead of taking this course, which is very difficult. The average student has to study 3-5 courses.
Although the regular course is less difficult, you can't take this course in high school for several years. Apply to the university to see gpa scores. If they are all A+ in ordinary courses, the gold content is not high.
Generally, China students will have no problem in math and physics after coming to the United States, mainly for some semesters. After adapting to one semester or one year, they will have no problem, and most of them will become excellent. But English, history and other literature and history courses are more challenging. My suggestion is that it is very helpful to do as much language preparation as possible before studying in the United States, such as TOEFL, and get high marks after training, especially reading and writing. You should do more exercises and make other preparations. For example, sports and literature and art, it is best if you have one or two specialties. In short, American high schools are not stressful, but they are colorful enough. It is normal to encounter some challenges. As long as you prepare as much as possible in advance and work hard enough after you go, you can adapt well.
mathematics
American mathematics is generally taught in the order of basic algebra-geometry-advanced algebra-calculus preparatory course-calculus. Generally, after finishing junior high school in China, you can take the calculus preparatory course directly, which mainly involves some functions (especially trigonometric functions). After taking the pre-calculus course, you have theoretically finished studying high school mathematics. Then you can take courses like calculus. Calculus belongs to AP class, which means AdvancedPlacement, and refers to the basic course for freshmen who are open to senior high school students.
APCalculus can be divided into AB and BC, and the latter has more contents about sequence, convergence judgment and Taylor expansion than the former. I think BC is more complicated than AB, but it is nothing more than memorizing formulas. If you take calculus, there is no doubt that BC is the first choice If you can finish calculus before 12, you have three development routes as the case may be. The first is that if the school offers courses, you will continue to study in depth. Although there is no national unified university-approved exam like AP course, each university will have its own placementtest at the beginning of the semester. If you study hard, you will learn more when you are a freshman (such as analysis, abstract algebra, etc. The post-calculus in our school focuses on cultivating interest, and the teacher will give us a menu for students to vote for the subjects they are most interested in. I have learned a lot in the past two years. At that time, most of the things were fun, and they were forgotten after learning. Second, you can learn statistics (APSTAT), which is quite simple but super practical, so that you can scientifically understand the credibility of various statistical data around you. This course is also a compulsory course for college students who want to take the psychology exam. The third is to learn computer programming. This course takes a little time, because the workload of programming is a bit heavy, unlike other courses that only need to flip through books, but you will have a relatively macro understanding of programming after class. Although you study JAVA, you know everything. Other languages like VB and c++ can understand without writing.
Science, science
There are three kinds of science in America: physics, chemistry and biology. The general requirement is that all three subjects must be completed before graduation. Every course has an honor course, which is faster and more difficult than regular courses. Those with excellent grades can consider taking AP course in the second year, which is equivalent to the basic course of freshman. Among these three courses, AP chemistry is the simplest, and physics and biology are neck and neck.
AP physics is divided into B and C. Unlike AB and BC in calculus, the difficulty of physics B and C is quite different. B is just an upgraded version of honorphysics. It can be said that as long as you learn honorphysics well, you can pass the exam of B, while C only involves mechanics and electromagnetism, and solving problems requires calculus. Mechanics is smooth, but most of electromagnetism has nothing to do with China, so it is difficult. I was tortured to death by Gaussian surface when I was studying.
In fact, AP biology is far less difficult than physics C, but for China people whose English is only a second foreign language, there are many reciting contents and complicated technical terms. Suitable for those students who study hard and have excellent memory. To say that AP biology is a science is actually more like a liberal arts than chemical physics. Also, for students studying AP biology, they generally need to study honorbiology abroad for one year. However, for students who want to take AP physics and chemistry, as long as they have the foundation of senior one in China, it is no problem to take these courses directly. In addition, AP environmental science is also taken by many people. This course does not need any foundation, simple AP, but whether the university will admit it is another matter.
English English
Grade 10- 1 1 studying English and American literature, involving Emerson, edgar allan poe, Mark Twain and others. We will also learn some medieval English poems (such as Chaucer's theCanterbury tale and Milton's paradiselost). For example, many poems are unheard of in appearance and pronunciation. But in the exam, you won't dig out a word to ask what you mean now. Most of them ask some questions according to the feelings of the characters and the plot of the story. As long as you study hard every day, it is not difficult to cope with the teacher's quiz. According to American students who are studying AP, there are often some questions about the expression of the author's articles in their exams, such as personification, exaggeration, comparison and so on.
foreign language
American high schools offer Spanish, French, Latin, Chinese and German. French and Spanish are the most popular. Although French sounds good and seems very popular in China, the more popular language in the United States is Spanish. Latin is a kind of old English. Many English words are derived from Latin, and no one uses it now. All languages have AP courses, but for China people, I really haven't seen anyone take AP courses, because language AP courses are usually offered after learning a language for four years. Of course, if you are really not interested in a second foreign language, you can not go to school, because English is our foreign language after all.
history
There are the following kinds of history classes in the United States: western history, European history, American history and American government. Western general history and European history are aimed at students of grade 9- 10. If you want to take an AP course in grade 10, you should of course take AP Modern European History. American history is a compulsory course, which is generally completed in grade 1 1- 12. The remaining year is to study economics according to personal interests or the US government. It is worth mentioning that American history is also divided into ordinary American history and AP American history. The latter learns much more carefully than the former.
Generally speaking, ordinary American history lies in understanding history, and knowing what happened is enough. AP American history lies in understanding and evaluating the history of historical criticism. History is generally read a lot, so it is necessary to grasp the key points at this time. You can't read every word in the book carefully. Know which are the main information test sites and which are just a glance. Because there are many test sites, it is also important to find out the teacher's routines, and it will be easier to get familiar with them.
For students who want to take AP American history directly when they arrive in the United States, it is best to familiarize themselves with American history before going. Finally, it is worth mentioning that there will be a big paper on history at the end of almost every semester, about 6-8 pages. You should choose your own topic and look up the information yourself.