Scribe Post for 9/29/09

We started off today's class with a competition using our knowledge of transformations (translations, dilations & reflections) to formulate equations for graphs shown on the overhead. (The Kings won extra credit!) We then went over the answers from the quiz last class and talked about the unit test on Thursday.

THE TEST will cover all assigned homework and content learned in chapter 1. When you come to class that day you should have all of your homework organized as specified on the class website so you can take a full eighty minutes to complete the test. You should study by: making sure you understand the points explained in the chapter summary, doing six questions of your choice from pgs. 117-122, and reviewing all hw, notes, and quizzes.

In the last ten minutes of class Mr. O'Brien answered the questions we had on today's homework which covered inverse functions. The questions included problems 21, 23, 27, 61, and 63 on page 99. If you still have any more questions on the homework or on any part of chapter 1 you should see Mr. O'Brien or email him. Good luck on the test!

--The scribe for next class will be Andy--

Scribe Post for 9/25/09

We started the class by going over some problems that we'd forgotten from the last time. Then we spent thirty minutes on the test. After that we went over some problems from the homework for this class. Some people weren't clear on the (fog) and (gof) problems, but we went over them. Then we took notes on inverses until the end of class.

Scribe for the next class is Sean.

Scribe Post for 9/23/09

We spent the first 10 minutes or so going over the GeoGebra homework packet from last class. After that we discussed translation, reflection, and dilation. After this, we discussed problems from the homework: p. 70 (53, 55, 56) We took a break from going over homework, so Mr. O'Brien could pass back our quizzes. We quickly went over the answers. Mr. O'Brien also answered why calculators see -4² as being -16 -- and that to fix that we should enter the problem as (-4)² to get the answer of 16. Then, we went over p. 79 (25d, 31bd, 47, 55, 56, 53), and GeoGebra (20-22). In the last five minutes or so of class, we filled out a brief survey from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

Scribe Post for 9/21/09

We took the test for the first thirty minutes. People had questions on p.71/31, p.71/53, 55, 56, p.79/65, p.79/31b and d. People also had question on 53-60 on how to write the new equation. The concepts of these problems are what most people seemed to need instruction on. Also as I said on my other post, I don't understand how to put the equation into words. Some people had trouble finishing the classwork in class. People also had trouble figuring out the parabola equations.

Homework for 9/21/09

Hey Mr. O'Brien. Can we go over 79/25d, 31d, and 61 in class? Thanks!

- Molly

Tuesday's class

In the beginning of the class we took out all of our homework that we have completed so far this year. Which was three assignments. Then, we took out our graphing calculators, and while going over problems Mr. O'Brien taught us how to use the calculators in more detail. We got our first quiz handed back to us and then went over it. We were given a chance to ask questions about problems that didn't understand. While going over all of these we were all shown how to get the answers by using the graphing calculator. People had trouble with problem 35 on page 49; problem 33, 57, and 59 on page 61; problem 71 and 103 on page 119. All these problems were gone over
in class. Then, after all of this we went onto the symmetry sight off the class website, and downloaded the page. We then learned about symmetry proofs. And the ten problems on these pages was our homework.

Collin will be the next scribe.

How to find a line of best fit on TI-84 Plus

Someone asked how to find a line of best fit on the graphing calculator, so I'm putting it on here... This is how I do it on my TI-84 Plus, but it's probably similar for everything else.

Linear Equation
To find the line of best fit for a linear equation, pretend we had the points: (-2, 5) (1, 11) (3,15)
Go to STAT > Edit... Under L1, enter all the x-coordinates. Under L2, enter all the y-coordinates. Then hit STAT > CALC > LinReg. Hit ENTER. You'll see something like this:

LinReg
y=ax+b
a=2
b=9
This means y=2x+9.

Quadratic Equation
Say you have a quadratic with these points: (-2, 3) (0,-5) (2, 11) (3, 28)
Go to STAT > Edit... Under L1, enter all the x-coordinates. Under L2, enter all the y-coordinates. Then hit STAT > CALC > QuadReg. Hit 2nd>1 (L1), then enter a comma, and then 2nd>2 (L2). Then hit ENTER. It will give you something like this:

QuadReg
y=ax²+bx+c
a=3
b=2
c=-5

This means that the equation is y=3x²+2x-5

Cubic Equation
For a cubic equation, enter the points. Pretend they're (-2, -8) (-1, -6) (0, -6) (1,4) (2, 36)
Go to STAT > Edit... Then enter all the x-coordinates under L1 and the y-coordinates under L2. Then hit STAT > CALC > CubicReg. Type 2nd>1 (L1), comma, then 2nd>2 (L2). Hit ENTER. You'll see something like this:

CubicReg
y=ax³+bx²+cx+d
a=2
b=5
c=3
d=-6

This means it's y=2x³+5x²+3x-6.

Good luck :)

Homework for 9/15

Could we go over problems p.49/89 and p.63/47. I got an answer, but I would like to review them. Also I could use a quick review on graphing calcs. Tyler from my W-2 class gave me a good overview on how to use them on the homework problems, but I don't know how to use them for other types of problems.
Thank you,
Henry W-2

Friday September 11th's class

Some students were struggling using these calculators. They could not find the “abs” or figure out how to graph these equations. Seeing that the focus of todays class was using these graphing calculators, we need further instruction on how to use the different utilities on these calculators. Some forgot how to graph palaboras, solve quadratics, and use domain and range. Solving quadratics to find the domain of equations was another struggle we had. Few kids can remember the equations such as point slope, distance formula, midpoint formula, and others. When in front of us we can use them, however remembering why they work (as you explained in class) is different. We should go over the definitions of intervals (relative minimum/relative maximums) and odd/even functions. Other than those things the class did not have many questions. None of these stuck out as a great problem other than using the calculators.

The Scribe List

This is The Scribe List. Every possible scribe in our class is listed here. This list will be updated every class. If you see someone's name crossed off on this list then you CANNOT choose them as the scribe for the next class.

This post can be quickly accessed from the [Links] list over there on the right hand sidebar. Check here before you choose a scribe for tomorrow's class when it is your turn to do so.

IMPORTANT: Make sure you label all your Scribe Posts properly (Your Name, Unit Title, Scribe Post) or they will not be counted.

Extra Credit: Tyler

Cycle 3

Nathan Katharine Collin Sean Henry Miles Amber Marcel

Tyler Daniel Kyle Petra Sophie Andy Molly

Katharine, Functions, Scribe Post

Mr. O'Brian,
Overall the class believed that the homework went well and was a fair amount of problems. Some sections that the class had trouble with was pg. 49 (65, 75-78) The class seemed to not clearly understand domain. More importantly the class did not know how to find the domain easily, we were wondering if there was a equation to help solve the problem. On problems, 75-78, the class also wondered if there was a equation to find the solution, instead of simply guess and check. One of our class questions for the quiz next class is if we are able to have a note card to write the formulas on?
Hope your feeling better,
Katharine

Note: Tyler will be the next class scribe

Superfluous technology use

We have spent far too much class time subscribing to your blog.

Welcome

Welcome to our class blog. This will be our space to discuss mathematics. There are a few basic guidelines to posting online. First, read this post from another blog about personal branding and the internet. Remember the blogging is a very public activity and your writing may be read by anyone on the internet- for as long as it exists. So, please be sure to use your first name only, and do not use a photo of yourself. If you like, you may use an image of something to represent you but that is not you (an avatar).

After each class, the scribe will post a synopsis of the day's events (Scribe Post). A student at another school described the role of a scribe as this:

A scribe post is basically like you are teaching the class again, but this time in your words in a way that other people can understand it. You can also recap other important things that we talk about in class (like Pi Day) so that if someone was away in our class, they would know what they missed. Also don't forget that when you scribe, you get the power to choose the next scribe.

You will also use this blog to post your revision questions before a unit test revision (Revision), and you may make a posting to share at any time (On My Mind).

Your contributions to the class blog consist of a quiz grade (rubric on the class website). To ensure that you receive credit for your contributions, please ensure that any post you make has exactly three labels:

1. Your first name.
2. The unit of study, e.g. Functions
3. The type of post: either Scribe Post, Reflection, or On My Mind.

Below are some guidelines for student bloggers that another teacher, Bud Hunt, came up with:

Students using blogs are expected to treat blogspaces as classroom spaces. Speech that is inappropriate for class is not appropriate for our blog. While we encourage you to engage in debate and conversation with other bloggers, we also expect that you will conduct yourself in a manner reflective of a representative of this school.

Never EVER EVER give out or record personal information on our blog. Our blog exists as a public space on the Internet. Don’t share anything that you don’t want the world to know. For your safety, be careful what you say, too. Don’t give out your phone number or home address. This is particularly important to remember if you have a personal online journal or blog elsewhere.

Again, your blog is a public space. And if you put it on the Internet, odds are really good that it will stay on the Internet. Always. That means ten years from now when you are looking for a job, it might be possible for an employer to discover some really hateful and immature things you said when you were younger and more prone to foolish things. Be sure that anything you write you are proud of. It can come back to haunt you if you don’t.

Never link to something you haven’t read. While it isn’t your job to police the Internet, when you link to something, you should make sure it is something that you really want to be associated with. If a link contains material that might be creepy or make some people uncomfortable, you should probably try a different source.

To kick us off, add a brief comment to this post- thoughts or additions to the above discussion of privacy and blogging.

Note: This blogging model is courtesy of Darren Kuropatwa.