You have heard it all your life, junior year is the toughest year at Etowah. EOCs, SATs, ACTs, advanced placement classes, and college are becoming a reality. AP classes allow students to earn credit for college classes. Some of the more popular AP classes available to juniors are AP United States history (APUSH) and AP Language (AP Lang).

“I’m not taking APUSH or AP Lang because I’m a bad writer, and that’s not good for either class,” Natalie Sciabica, sophomore, said.

APUSH involves a fair amount of writing. There are three different types of written questions: the short answer question, SAQ; the long essay question, LEQ; and the document-based question, DBQ. Although the writing can be torture, and flunking an essay can bring students to tears, all the work will feel worth it in May.

“I took the classes because I like pushing myself. They’re also fun sometimes,” Kristin Dyson, junior, said.

AP Lang is a rigor course; if reading and writing are kind of a snooze, do not take it. The class does not have much busy work;everything is based around assigned reading and writing projects each unit. Devil in the White City, the summer reading book, goes into nit-picking detail on architecture; it can be tedious.

“Taking AP Lang not only prepares you for college but also prepares you for life. This course explores how arguments shape our world and society. Our discussions, readings, and writing are real and often come directly from the current headlines,” Heather Barton, AP Lang teacher, said.

AP classes are AP for a reason, they are going to be difficult. Taking them puts a lot of responsibility and stress on your shoulders. However, the work you put into the class directly correlates to what you will get out of the class.