Course Number: C452 / Category: Science / Credits: 2 / Recommended Grades: 11,12 / Level: AP / Length: Full Year / Description: This course is the equivalent of a full-year, college-level introductory Biology course offered to students majoring in Biology. The textbook for this course is used at many colleges and universities. Students perform laboratory work identical to that done in an introductory college Biology course. Students master the conceptual framework, factual knowledge, and analytical skills necessary to understand the rapidly changing science of Biology. Students must demonstrate that they have the necessary work ethic to succeed in a demanding academic environment before registering for this course. Prerequisites: A grade of B or above in Biology and Chemistry and a teacher recommendation. Chemistry Honors must be taken concurrently during 1st semester.

Course Number: C250 /Category: Mathematics /Credits: 2 /Recommended Grades: 11,12 /Level: AP /Length: Full Year /Description: This course is a college-level Calculus course. Course topics include functions and limits, differentiation, applications of differentiation, integration, applications of the definite integral, and techniques of integration. Graphing calculators will be used extensively throughout the class. Students are expected to take the National AP Calculus AB examination in May. Students are required to complete a summer assignment preceding the course. Prerequisites: A high level of success (a grade of B or better) in Algebra 2 Honors OR Pre-Calculus and a teacher recommendation.

Course Number: C451 / Category: Science / Credits: 2 / Recommended Grades: 11,12 / Level: AP / Length: Full Year / Description: This course is equivalent to a college level general chemistry course, and provides students with a foundation to support future advanced course work in chemistry. Through inquiry-based learning, students develop critical thinking and reasoning skills. They cultivate their understanding of chemistry and scientific practices as they explore topics such as: atomic structure, intermolecular forces and bonding, chemical reactions, kinetics, thermodynamics, and equilibrium. Students must be highly motivated to tackle this extremely rigorous course and must demonstrate that they have the necessary work ethic to succeed in a demanding academic environment before registering for this course. Prerequisites: Grades of B or above in Chemistry or Chemistry Honors and Algebra 2, and recommendations from both a mathematics and science teacher (Simultaneous enrollment in Chemistry Honors fulfills the Chemistry requirement).

Course Number: C151 /Category: English Language Arts / Credits: 2 /Recommended Grades: 11,12 /Level: AP /Length: Full Year /Description: Students in this introductory, college-level course read and carefully analyze a broad and challenging range of fiction and nonfiction prose selections, deepening their awareness of rhetoric and how language works. Through close reading and frequent writing, students develop their ability to work with language and text with a greater awareness of purpose and strategy, while strengthening their own writing skills. Course readings feature expository, analytical, personal, and argumentative texts from a variety of authors and historical contexts. The course also allows students to write in several forms?narrative, expository, argumentative, analytical?on many different subjects, from public policies to personal experiences. Ultimately, all AP English Language and Composition students will be taking the AP English Language & Composition test in May, which offers the possibility of college credit. Students are required to complete a reading assignment and project assigned by the instructor during the summer preceding the course. Grades earned on this summer assignment are part of each student’s first quarter course grade. Prerequisites: A high level of success in previous English courses and a teacher recommendation.

Course Number: C150 /Category: English Language Arts / Credits: 2 /Recommended Grades: 12 /Level: AP /Length: Full Year /Description: This course is equivalent to a college-level freshman English course. Students engage in careful reading and critical analysis of literature to deepen their understanding of how writers provide meaning and pleasure through language. Students consider the structure, style, and theme of each work, as well as elements like the use of figurative language, imagery, symbolism, and tone. Students read and analyze works by British and American writers from the 16th century through the present day. Writing assignments focus on critical analysis of literature through expository, analytical, and argumentative essays. Students develop and express their ideas in clear, coherent, and persuasive language, while also learning to write effectively under severe time constraints. Students are expected to take the AP English Literature & Composition exam in May. Students are required to complete a reading assignment and project assigned by the instructor during the summer preceding the course. Grades earned on this summer assignment are part of each student’s first quarter course grade. Prerequisites: A high level of success in previous English courses and a teacher recommendation.

Course Number: C455 / Category: Science / Credits: 2 / Recommended Grades: 11,12 / Level: AP / Length: Full Year / Description: An introductory-level but rigorous algebra- and trigonometric-based physics course designed for 11th and 12th grade students who have both the commitment and desire to engage in physics at a high level. The course is structured for those potentially interested in pursuing AP Physics C and who have a strong interest in a scientific or engineering focus in college and career. Students learn fundamental topics such as motion, force, energy, harmonic motion, and electricity, and are expected to write thoroughly about them in inquiry labs and research papers. Students also use applied math to solve for variables in several physics laws and are expected to develop and produce a project or the annual Chelsea High School Science Fair. This course is roughly equivalent to the old Physics Honors, though students will be required to take the AP Physics 1 exam at the end of the year. Prerequisites: A grade of B or above in Algebra I and Chemistry, concurrent enrollment in Algebra 2, and a teacher recommendation

Course Number: C540 /Category: Foreign Language /Credits: 2 /Recommended Grades: 12 /Level: AP /Length: Full Year /Description: This course is conducted entirely in Spanish and emphasizes: (1) enlarging vocabulary; (2) refining reading, speaking, listening, and writing skills; (3) reading literature in its original form; and (4) studying relevant art, music, and cultural/historical contexts to complement the literature. Students are expected to take the National AP Spanish Language Exam in May. They prepare for the exam by performing exercises with the same format as the AP exam, including required practice classes twice a week before or after school. Students are required to read one literary work suggested by the Foreign Language department during the summer preceding the course. Students are tested on this summer reading when school begins and their summer reading grade is included in their first quarter course grade. Prerequisites: A high level of success in previous Spanish courses and a teacher recommendation.

Course Number: C545 /Category: Foreign Language /Credits: 2 /Recommended Grades: 12 /Level: AP /Length: Full Year /Description: This course is conducted entirely in Spanish and is the equivalent of a college-level introduction to Spanish literature. Students participate in discussions about literary topics; do close readings of literary texts in their original form; and analyze various literary works (including poetry) through oral and written assignments and classroom discussions. Students are expected to take the National AP Spanish Literature Examination in May. Students are required to read one literary work suggested by the Foreign Language department during the summer preceding the course. Students are tested on this summer reading when school begins and their summer reading grade is included in their first quarter course grade. Prerequisites: A high level of success in previous Spanish language courses and a teacher recommendation.

Course Number: C279 /Category: Mathematics /Credits: 2 /Recommended Grades: 11,12 /Level: AP /Length: Full Year /Description: ‘Statistics provides tools for describing variability in data and for making informed decisions that take it into account.’ (Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks, 2011) This course is designed to give students the tools to describe variability as well as explore methods and concepts related to comparing statistics and making inferences. Students interpret categorical and quantitative data, justify their conclusions verbally, and evaluate random processes underlying statistical experiments. They study independence and conditional probability and use these principles to interpret data; use the rules of probability to compute probabilities of compound events in a uniform probability model; and use probability to make decisions. Students are expected to take the national AP Statistics examination in May. Students are required to complete a summer assignment preceding the course. Prerequisite: A grade of B or above in Algebra 2 or another higher-level mathematics course and a teacher recommendation. Non-seniors who take this course are strongly encouraged to take a second math course concurrently.

Course Number: C350 /Category: History and Social Science /Credits: 2 /Recommended Grades: 11,12 /Level: AP /Length: Full Year /Description: This course is designed for motivated students who enjoy studying history in more depth and breadth and who have demonstrated the ability to pursue historical study at a college level. Course content and structure focuses on developing the skills of a historian: assessing historical materials, weighing evidence and interpretations, and expressing conclusions with clarity and precision. Students engage in an in-depth study of the content and questions of American history through careful analysis of primary documents and critical reading of secondary materials. They are required to write frequently, and at an advanced level, about course topics and complete a series of summer readings selected by the instructor. Students are required to take the National AP U.S. History Examination in May. Prerequisites: A high level of success in U.S. History 1 and a teacher recommendation.

Course Number: C355 /Category: History and Social Science /Credits: 2 /Recommended Grades: 9,10,11 /Level: AP /Length: Full Year /Description: AP World History students investigate significant events, individuals, developments, and processes in six historical periods from approximately 8000 B.C.E. to the present. Students develop and use the same skills, practices, and methods employed by historians: analyzing primary and secondary sources; developing historical arguments; making historical comparisons; and utilizing reasoning about contextualization, causation, and continuity and change over time. The course provides five themes that students explore throughout the course in order to make connections among historical developments in different times and places: interaction between humans and the environment; development and interaction of cultures; state building, expansion, and conflict; creation, expansion, and interaction of economic systems; and development and transformation of social structures.