I did higher chemistry and had friends do regular, from what I recall of first semester, there wasn't that much difference between the two. In Chem1011 you spend time at the beginning going over some basic stuff that I think is omitted altogether from higher (stuff you would have done in high school). In terms of content, I think the only glaring difference was M.O theory, which higher did but regular didn't. It can be difficult to understand at first, but it's definitely not impossible. Other than that, the only consistent difference is that you will get more questions in labs and tutorials and the final exam (the mid-semester exam is the same for everyone).