Grades 9-12 are considered to be high school level and during those
four years students are going to learn many, many math concepts. Math
curriculums will vary from state to state but you can be assured that
they will be rigorous. Students will learn moderate to advanced levels
of Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Calculus. They will learn
how to work with confidence a Scientific Calculator and a Units Conversion
Calculator.
Much of the math that is taught in high school is cumulative, meaning
that new concepts will be built upon what has been learned in earlier
grades. In other words, it will be more advanced. Each section must
be mastered completely or the next section will not make sense. Mastery
of material from previous courses makes success in later courses more
likely, so continually review and practice concepts from prior math
classes. Students should always do their assignments early enough
so that they can get help with the things they do not understand.
Learn how to use your calculator effectively and efficiently, especially
if exams are timed and you have trouble completing tests in the allotted
time. Your instructor should be able to suggest which type of calculator
will be most beneficial for your class and then you need to learn
how to use important function keys.
Be prepared to know all of the math definitions, symbols, equations,
and problem solving steps. You will also become familiarized with
flash cards, running concept lists, flow charts, and matrices. One
of the biggest problems with math is that most people find it to be
very boring so they lack interest. Anything that you have been able
to learn easily was learned because you had an interest in it and
if you don't have an interest in math, you will find it boring as
well. If you're interested in something, it's easy to learn. If you
want to make math easy to learn, you have to find some way to make
it interesting to you. There are lots of ways to go about this. One
is to find some relation between math and something that you're already
interested in. It's a good bet that no matter what you like to do,
learning about math can let you do it more easily, and can even increase
the amount of enjoyment that you get out of it. Another possible answer
is that you've been able to learn other things easily because you've
been able to instantly form lots of connections to things that you
already know.
Not too many teachers are able to make math come alive, yes they
can teach it but it is a special gift to be able to deliver it with
life and meaning and to be able to capture at least most of your audience.
Do you recall the Ten Commandments of Math? This is when you might
want to print yourself a copy because those high school math years
can be treacherous.
The TEN COMMANDMENTS of MATHEMATICS
1. Thou shalt read thy problem...carefully.
2. Whatsoever thou doest to one side of thy equation, do ye also
to the other.
3. Thou must use thy "common sense."
4. Thou shalt ignore the teachings of false prophets to do all thy
work in thy head.
5. When thou knowest not, thou shalt look it up; and if thy search
still eludes thee, thou shalt ask thy All-Knowing Teacher.
6. Thou shalt master each step before putting thy heavy foot down
on the next.
7. Thy correct answer does not prove that thou hast worked thy problem
correctly. This argument convincest none, least of all thy Teacher.
8. Thou shalt first see that thou hast copied thy problem correctly,
before bearing false witness that the answer book lieth.
9. Thou shalt look back even unto thy youth and remember thy arithmetic.
10. Thou shalt learn, read, write, speak, and listen correctly in
the language of mathematics, and verily A's and B's shall follow thee
even unto graduation.