Honors Chemistry - FAQs
Q: What makes this an Honors rather than a general chemistry course?
A: The topics that we cover and the depth and breadth in which they are covered make this an Honors level course. The subject matter in Honors Chemistry extends beyond the standard curriculum offered by a general course. Simply stated, the Honors course is more comprehensive and more difficult than a standard high school course in chemistry.
Q: Does this course help prepare students for the SAT® Chemistry Exam?
A: Yes. This is a comprehensive first-year chemistry course which includes but is not limited to a thorough review and special testing designed to prepare students to sit for the SAT® Chemistry Exam. Students take several full exams that mirror the actual SAT® Chemistry Exam including multiple choice and true/false/correct explanation questions. Students are taught strategies to assist them to achieve optimal performance on the exam.
Q: Why do you use an earlier edition of the textbook rather than the latest edition?
A: Sometimes the changes between textbook versions are simply cosmetic. To keep our courses affordable, it is our policy to switch to a newer more expensive version of the text only when the latest version has real content changes and/or if used copies of the earlier edition are unavailable.
Q: Why do you use an earlier edition of the textbook rather than the latest edition?
A: Sometimes the changes between textbook versions are simply cosmetic. To keep our courses affordable, it is our policy to switch to a newer more expensive version of the text only when the latest version has real content changes and/or if used copies of the earlier edition are unavailable.
Q: If I'm planning to take AP Chemistry next year, do I really need a first year Honors Chemistry course? Won't there be a lot of overlap between the two courses?
A: The AP chemistry curriculum is based on the assumption that the student has already had one full year of chemistry. With that premise, it is almost impossible for a student who has not already had a year of chemistry to keep up with the AP course. The AP Chemistry course will be easier for the student who has taken Honors Chemistry rather than a general chemistry course.
With regard to overlap, while AP Chemisty will be easier after one year of Honors Chemistry, the material covered in AP will be wider in scope and studied in greater depth.
For example, in Honors Chemistry we cover weak acids using polynomial equations and logarithms to calculate their acidity levels. This takes two weeks of work for most students to understand and become fluent with the concepts. In AP Chemistry it is assumed that the student already knows the properties of weak acids the acidity calculation. In AP Chemistry, only one day of review is spent on these basic equations. We then immediately use the learned concepts to go into the buffering effects of the products of weak acids and expand the use of the equations to differentiate the three parts involved in the titration of a weak acid. A student who has not had the basics of weak acids would have to pick up the two weeks of work in one day.
So, the Honors Chemistry course is not so much overlap, but rather the sound foundation that will help assure success in AP Chemistry.