Accelerated Math 7
It can be very frustrating for algebra students when they don't get immediate feedback on their work. This week we made a transition from frustrating to satisfying, or at least I hope so. For the last few weeks, we have been practicing and practicing the various methods of factoring. This is a difficult topic for my seventh graders because they are never quite sure if they came up with the right answer. This week we took our factoring skills and applied them to solving equations. This may not sound exciting but it does give your son or daughter a chance to discover immediately if they are getting the right answers to the homework. When you're solving equations, you can always check your work. We have a quiz this Wednesday on factoring and solving equations and perhaps a review question or two. As we get closer to the end of the year, more and more I have been reviewing material from the beginning of the year. My students know that any review is fair game for their quizzes.
Accelerated Math 8
By the end of this week, all of my accelerated math 8 students will know how to add and subtract fractions that may or may not have common denominators. You may recall that this particular topic has already been presented and mastered in the fifth grade. However, by the ninth grade we find the need to reintroduce this topic because the fractions are now algebraic. I mention the ninth grade as a reminder of the level of work I expect from my accelerated students. They are studying algebra. They are studying the topic in math which has traditionally been reserved for high school freshman. Almost daily I remind them of some of my expectations because this is a ninth grade class they're in now. I expect that all their homework is complete if not all correct. I expect they will ask questions when they don't understand something and not sit quietly in ignorance and hope no one notices. And I expect that these eighth-graders will be very successful on the ninth grade algebra exam that they are preparing to take at the end of the year.
