As the year comes to a close, what classes everyone is taking next year is at the back of students’ minds. Though students have already registered for their classes next year, they still have the option at the beginning of next school year to change classes. While some students may already know exactly what they plan to take next year, some are still thinking about what they could alter. Since this is significant as the new year is rapidly coming up, students should know the best classes to take and what students who have taken the class recommend. 

While some students may despise AP classes with the amount of work they put on students and the homework they give, if you like to challenge yourself, AP Calculus AB is the class for you. Junior Lydia Walker’s favorite class, which she recommends the most, is AP Calculus AB. When going into AP Calc, you first have to take pre-calc, which is also a very difficult class for students. AP Calculus discusses limits, derivatives, and integrals, and it is divided into two courses (AP Calculus AB and AP Calculus BC). Though this class is very difficult, the positives and the benefits outweigh the negatives for Walker. Throughout the year, she has learned so much about what the class entails. Going into calculus, she expected the homework to be extreme and the work to be intense, but now, with a year of being in this class under her belt, she realized it is the opposite of this. She found out that Mrs. Dena Dauve, the AP Calculus AB teacher, is thorough what you really need to know and what information is important, leaving you with not a lot of homework to do at home.  She has also realized how important the classroom atmosphere is to her and how it makes her feel excited and ready to be there every day.

“In calc, the people in the classroom all pursue a higher level of understanding, which makes the environment feel like we’re actually pursuing a goal, instead of just being forced to sit in a classroom,” Walker said. “[Mrs. Dauve] really understands that the people in her class are also enrolled in other challenging classes, so she really tries to make sure that she’s not assigning too much. I would say the workload is pretty consistent week by week, but it’s still less than all my other classes.”

While some students’ favorite classes are those that challenge them and are very demanding, some prefer easier classes that act as a break from their challenging classes. Junior Marco Delgado is enrolled in multiple AP classes, such as AP Language and Composition and AP Government and Politics. A break between these classes with an easygoing class helps him manage his stress and feel better throughout his day. For Delgado, a class that helps him do this tremendously is net sports. Delgado loves this class because it feels like a relaxed break, and overall a great time with his friends in the class. One of his favorite things about net sports is that it’s a class where he can relax, and he does not have to sweat much. The class environment makes it like this because some days you don’t have to try as hard as others, and the games don’t require much effort. In net sports, you play all sorts of different games, such as volleyball, pickleball, and basketball. When Marco was selecting this class, he knew with all of his AP classes that he needed this class in between for a break and mind relaxation, as this class did just that for him.

“[There are] some tests you have to take. But honestly, I studied the night before, and it’s just the rules of different sports. It’s really easy,” Delgado said. “It’s a chill class, so you can disengage from sitting down all day and doing paperwork to moving around, and the class is especially fun if you get a friend in there with you. It’s easy. There’s no pressure on anything.”

Though some are coming to school with the mindset that they are going because they have to, and they are just there for the grade, some are going to build connections and memories that will last a lifetime. If there is any class that prides itself in its community and ability to bring people together, it is the band classes. Freshman Dominic Money is very involved in the band’s offerings. As Money described it, it’s the class where relationships really get built. Band is a class where students of all grade levels have been in it for many years in a row, so the friendship and bonds you create over time are one of the things people like most about the band program. During the day, you’re able to create music with the people around you, and then perform this music for friends and family to see during the school year. While some moments of school can get dull, in the band room, students, including Money, can agree that given the community and friends you are with, this is a class that is well worth your time and effort. 

“It’s one of the classes where you do something every day, but it’s not mentally taxing,” said Money. “It doesn’t stress you out as much, because it doesn’t give homework.”