Junior year of high school is the most important year of high school as it’s a time when students face challenging coursework, standardized testing, and begin college preparations. Grades and activities during this year can significantly impact college admissions. It is important to pick courses that will let you succeed to the best of your ability. This article will share the path I took in choosing my courses and the experience I had with each course.

Math:

If you want to take a basic math course in your junior year, you should take trigonometry because it’s taught at a more digestible pace. Trigonometry is a branch of mathematics concerned with relationships between angles and ratios of lengths. Trigonometry can be used in geography to measure the distance between landmarks, in astronomy to measure the distance of nearby stars, and also in the satellite navigation systems.

If you want to take a higher level math course and are trying to decide between IB Applications and IB Analysis, keep in mind the rigorous course load these classes require. IB Applications is much easier than Analysis in my opinion. Applications focus on math that is more applicable in the real world. The course regularly utilizes calculators to input functions. Analysis focuses more on breaking down equations and writing lots of numbers down. The first semester of Applications can be challenging and you might get some bad grades on some of your tests. However, it is very easy to retake as the policy in the class allows you to retake individual questions instead of the whole test. This is true for both Applications and Analysis, but the second semester of Applications is much easier while Analysis is hard throughout the whole year. These courses are 2 years and the first semester of Application 2 is very easy as it is a curriculum that you have already done from last year. 

English:

If you want to take a basic English course just take English 11. In this class you will read books and do grammar exercises. The course should not be very challenging for the average student. 

If you want to take a more advanced course, but are not a huge fan of reading, I suggest you take IB Literature and Language. I enjoyed this course as you don’t just read books and write about it. You analyze different types of literature such as pictures, plays and movies. The class can be fun at times as it is not the normal English class that you are used to. You can see how photographers used certain angles to emphasize a message. This class is a lot easier than IB Literature as in that class you read about 13 books throughout the year and write a lot more than the latter. 

History:

If you are not a history lover I would suggest you take US VA History HN. The class goes from when the country was created to 9/11. I enjoyed this class as it expanded on historical concepts and events I was curious about, like World War I. The tests are not like your traditional multiple choice test as you are given two separate questions and you write at least a paragraph responding to each question. A usual class is about 45 minutes of notes and then you do a fun activity, like making a poster about a specific battle.

If you are looking for a more rigorous course you should take IB Histories of Americas. In HOA you learn about the history of both North and South America up until the 1950s. In this class, you will be expected to write two in-depth research papers, known as Internal Assessments, throughout the year. The tests in this class are also very difficult. The first type of assessment is a Paper 1, which involves analyzing a group of sources and providing thoughtful paragraph responses. The second type of assessment is a Paper 2, which consists of a five paragraph essay within a certain time limit responding to a prompt of their choosing. This class is a difficult but rewarding experience for those interested in advanced history or seeking an IB diploma.