None of us can know entirely what's going on here, but I see a few hints that maybe it's time to drop this class:
a) The fact that she is really having to study hard for the first time and it's a terrible shock?
You've mentioned above that your dd struggles in math and has learned how to apply herself - so it doesn't sound like this is the absolute first class she's had a tough time with, so I'd discount the "having to study hard for the first time" cause.
b) The fact that the class is inverted (with all the learning outside of class and lab and quizzes in class) and she hates it -- she hasn't been shy about telling us?
Does she feel like without a lecture she's not getting enough reinforcement from what she's reading in the book? It's possible it's jus the style of class that is the issue. OTOH, does she not enjoy labs? Not every kid in the universe is going to enjoy lab work, and to be honest, if my child didn't enjoy it, I wouldn't push that type of course until later on. Did she have any lab work in her middle school courses? How did she like it?
c) The fact that this class just really is too difficult right now, she's missing middle school chemistry, and she needs to slow down?
You didn't mention which science course the AP course is - but I'm guessing from what you've written here it's AP Chem? If the other students in the course have taken high school chemistry first and this is your dd's first year of chemistry, she may be running head on into assumptions about what background knowledge she has. That doesn't necessarily mean that going backwards and taking the prerequisite (expected) chemistry course is necessarily the right thing to do, but it's possible there are gaps that she has that are causing unnecessary struggle.
Do you have a background in whatever science course she's taking? What's your gut feeling based on your own background?
Best wishes,
polarbear
What we tell her is based on what's actually going on here.
If it's a) then we'd want her to stick with it and work through it... after all, perseverance, effort, and even failure are critical lessons that she's not had to really learn yet. We don't actually care if she comes out of the class ready for the test or even having retained most of the material. For us it's about the effort.
If it's b) we'd still want her not to give up, but might be more willing to find a different or supplemental class (online for example) with more direct instruction (lecture classes are how she learns best).
If it's c) well, it's not a race. She could just drop it or replace it with an easier offering.
It's hard because we just don't know and this is a new experience for us. [/quote]
