AP Class Reviews

Honors Chemistry taught by Connie Schwartz

by Students and Parents

Very Challenging but Educational Course!! posted by Lilianna Hug on May 26 2020 at 15:35:52

How many hours of work per day or per week did you generally put into the course?

Well, I would say I put in about 10 hours a week on this course. On the days with the optional live office hours, I would typically spend two hours on chemistry in the morning and then an additional hour attending the office hours. Those were "long" days for chemistry though - on days without office hours I usually spent an hour or two on chemistry. 

Are there any particularly favorite assignments that you found especially valuable?

If you are considering taking this course, my main advice would be to go to the live office hours. Since they are optional, during the first quarter of the year I didn't attend any of the office hours, and if I had questions I just kind of struggled through. However, at some point I decided to attend an office hour, and I found it VERY helpful. If you take this course, please go to the office hours. Even if you think you don't have any specific questions, in chemistry there is always something that could be clearer, and the office hours gives you a chance to ask questions and work through problems that you find confusing.

Did the course enhance your interest in the subject?

Definitely! I didn't expect to like chemistry (in all honesty, I'm still not quite sure I do), but this course did give me a much greater understanding and appreciation for the subject. Chemistry is so vast and complicated and fascinating, I'm so glad that I was able to take this course and be able to understand some of it. :)

What sort of student would do well in this course? Would you recommend this course to other students?

A student that enjoys math would definitely do well in this course. That being said, I don't like math at all, and (in my opinion) I did pretty well in this course. The key here is to be willing to spend a lot of time on chemistry and to go to the office hours with questions. I would definitely recommend this course to other students, because I did enjoy learning about chemistry. However, this is a very rigorous course, and it was way more challenging than I was expecting when I first started. Chemistry is math heavy and very confusing at first, so be aware of that going in. Mrs. Schwartz is an excellent teacher though, and she will help you through if you are confused. Last year, I tried to do chemistry on my own (with the same textbook I used for this course, in fact) and I basically failed. Mrs. Schwartz was super helpful and in the video lectures explained the complicated chemistry concepts in an understandable and easy way. In some cases, she used analogies that were helpful and funny - such as the "people on the bus rule" or "oreo cookies." 

I wish you all the best of luck! Chemistry is pH-antastic! :P

Excellent teacher posted by Gina E. (parent) on May 18 2020 at 20:56:04

I am very pleased with the course and with Mrs. Schwartz. The course is very well organized, the lessons are challenging and interesting. Mrs. Schwartz is an excellent teacher, very responsive, caring, and knowledgeable about the subject. She kept the parents informed at all times, was always available and always answered my son's questions thoroughly and promptly. I liked the lab kit very much and thought it added to the student's learning experience. I loved the convenience of having everything in one place, it was so much better than having the parent purchase individual supplies. My son put many hours in this course and took the time to write notes for every lesson, so definitely this class is for someone that is willing to put the time and effort to succeed. It is not an easy course and that is good because it forces the student to work hard. It is always appreciated when students get a high quality teacher as well as an organized and well-structured course especially with such a challenging and intricate subject as chemistry.

Amazing Chemistry Class posted by Peter Reasoner on May 18 2020 at 18:16:22

This Honors Chemistry class with Mrs. Schwartz helped to advance my knowledge and interest of chemistry. The prerecorded video lectures were very detailed and easy to fit into my schedule. Mrs. Schwartz was always readily available through email or twice-weekly office hours. Most questions I emailed her were responded to within a couple of hours. While interactions with other students were very limited, I felt that this was a very effective method of instruction. Some weeks I put in 2-3 hours and others were closer to 7. You do have to be an independent learner to do well in this course as there are no live classes, and while there are clear deadlines, you do have to set your own schedule (not try to complete a three week block in the final weekend). If you are this type of student, I would highly recommend this class to you.

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