Class Title Algebra 1

For the week of:August 30 - September 1

As you have probably heard from your student, we are covering the first 3 chapters at warp speed. Most of this is review, but there are some new topics like matrices. We are solidifying concepts, and emphasizing correct use of the graphic calculator as we review this material. There will be a quiz on sections 2.4 - 2.6  on Thursday, September 2, but I am proud to report that quiz grades to date have been excellent.

PreAlgebra:

In chapter 1, we are reviewing order of operations, and computing with integers. Both students are giving me great effort so far, and are enjoying learning new "tricks" with the graphing calculator. This year, we will be using the calculator often, but we will also have parts of tests and quizzes where calculator use is not allowed. This will be clearly noted on the assignments, but if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at home - 327-3103. FYI, we are having a quiz on Tuesday August 31 on sections 1.5 - 1.8, and a test on Chapter 1 on Wednesday, September 1.

Humanities:

We have been studying the beginning of George Washington's presidency, and the beginning of our two party political system. This is as a direct result of the dissagreements between Hamilton and Jefferson on how the country was to be run. We are doing the research, and completing a Venn diagram on the similarities and differences of these 2 founding fathers. The students are attempting to label one a Democrat, and the other a Republican, but we are discussing the fact, that even though Jefferson's party is considered the father of our modern Democratic Party, some of the Federalist's beliefs are held by today's Democrats! Also, even though Abraham Lincoln founded today's Republican party, he might be a Democrat today! We are really trying to impress on the students the importance of studying all sides of an issue. This research will be the foundation for their first written report in language arts, so I have stressed the importance of putting it in a safe place! I hope you do not mind that I asked the students to ask your assistance in identifying a present day issue on which the Democrats and Republicans disagree. I did not ask for opinions on which position was correct, but only a statement on what their respective positions were on the issue.  I'll admit that sometimes that is hard to discern, but I had hoped for a little more clarity.  I took the time to respond to each paper, and I hope that you will ask your student to share this with you.  As an example, we talked about jobs today.  Both parties want to increase employment (the issue). Democrats generally want to create government jobs to improve the infrastructure and services like education, which are paid for with public funds.  Republicans generally believe that private businesses should be encouraged to expand and provide these jobs, through favorable taxation and interest rates. Again, we pointed out that there is some good and bad in both plans. Hopefully, that lets you know what I had intended for this assignment - I did not mean for it to be a lengthy one. If you have any questions, let me know.

FYI - we willl hopefully finish Unit 1 this week, with a test planned for Thursday September 2. However, their longwinded teacher is having trouble with our shortened time period, so I am not sure!