AP Biology: The New Sophomore Elective
The sophomore AP Biology class with Mrs. Dimitriou
This year, AP Biology is being offered to sophomores as a new elective. In past years, AP Bio was only offered to seniors, but now it’s being offered to Montrose sophomores. It may sound absolutely ridiculous for sophomores to take one of the hardest AP classes at Montrose, but the 10th graders are up for the challenge. For some, taking AP Biology in sophomore year means that when senior year comes around, they will have more of an opportunity to take other science classes they wouldn’t have been able to otherwise, but for others it may just mean not having to double up on science classes. Either way, this opportunity enables students to broaden their horizons early on in high school, and learn the structure and style of an AP science class before selecting AP classes from the wide range available to juniors during the transition into 11th grade.
AP Biology teacher Mrs. Dimitriou believes that the new offer is amazing. She said: “I’m super excited about it because I think it provides a great opportunity for high school students here to take more APs over the whole course of high school.” Mrs. Dimitriou agrees that the sophomore and senior AP Biology classes are similar, but the most prominent challenge is the absence of a chemistry foundation for the sophomores. The first unit of the AP curriculum is on the chemistry of life. It covers topics regarding atoms, elements, and macromolecules, all subtopics that students learn in-depth about during sophomore year chemistry. Mrs. Dimitriou reveals that this lack of knowledge is the most challenging part for her: “Understanding those basic things requires a little more of me teaching concepts that take a month in the actual chemistry class.”
The students in AP Biology are also excited about this new opportunity. Hana Shinzawa ‘24 said: “I really like AP Bio, and I think the subject is really interesting.” Hana likes how you can take the AP immediately after finishing biology in freshman year, so you can easily build on the material from the prior year. Cate Lynch ‘24 agreed: “I am glad I took AP Bio this year instead of senior year because I remember some of the content from last year. I love how we dive deeper into certain topics.” The students all agree that although we began learning biology last year, the course is still challenging. “[AP Biology] has really helped us build our note-taking and study skills,” one student said. Anya Marino ‘24 remarked: “It’s a great class, but you really have to work hard.” Overall, the students and Mrs. Dimitriou are all working together to create a learning environment that benefits everyone.
Rosalie Reale ‘24 and Mary Connolly ‘24, Staff Writers
