French B SL vs. Japanese ab initio

[Solstice]

Hello!

I'm entering the IBDP next school year, and I'm having a bit of trouble finalizing my second language course. I've been taking French for 3 years now, and it's not like I dislike the language or anything-- French is actually one of my best and favourite classes, and at one point, I even considered taking it at HL, but later decided against it.

However, I also started taking introductory Japanese this past year, and I've also grown very fond of learning the language, too. I figured that if I chose Japanese ab initio, I would have an easier time with a year's worth of experience under my belt as opposed to starting it completely fresh. I'm not sure which textbook is used for ab initio, but for introductory Japanese, I've gone through the first 7 lessons of the Genki I textbook, if that helps?

So, when I first selected my IB courses, I chose French SL, but recently I decided to switch to Japanese ab initio. I don't want to discontinue French, so I was planning on taking French 11 this summer, and French 12 next summer to catch up in exchange for not taking it in IB. Would there be enough time during the summer break after year 1 of IB to dedicate myself to the summer completion class, or is summertime a busy period for IB students too?

Also, I can't take both languages because I'm already taking two sciences.

Sorry for the long post, but any answers are greatly appreciated!

[Rosalina]

For year 1, I suppose the issue might be that you might not have enough time for your EEs and IAs that are assigned over the summer. I took a course over the summer and I was repeatedly told by some that I wouldn't have time for my IB work. It worked out fine for me, but you may want to see the work load and see if you can find the time to make room for the IB work, if the same situation applies to you.

[Solstice]

1 hour ago, Rosalina said:

For year 1, I suppose the issue might be that you might not have enough time for your EEs and IAs that are assigned over the summer. I took a course over the summer and I was repeatedly told by some that I wouldn't have time for my IB work. It worked out fine for me, but you may want to see the work load and see if you can find the time to make room for the IB work, if the same situation applies to you.

I see, thank you so much for the informative response!