Algebra 1 Articles

Summer Tutoring

By Tracey M. | 6/18/2013 4:56 PM CST |

SUMMER OPPORTUNITIES

Now that students, teachers, parents and tutors have had a chance to catch their breath from final exams, it's time to make use of the weeks we have before school starts back. Consider all that could be accomplished in the next few weeks:

Areas of math that students NEVER REALLY GRASPED could be fully explained. This could be elementary skills like adding fractions, middle school topics like systems of equations, or high school areas like sequences and series.
Students could have a TREMENDOUS HEAD STARTon topics that will be covered in the first few weeks of school. Imagine...

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That Sinking Feeling - "Top Performance"

By JOHN B. | 6/11/2013 10:52 AM CST |

A wise man once told me: "You can continue to beat your head against that rock, but you will not chip the rock, your head (on the other hand) will be deformed." I guess I should have seen it coming, my being summarily fired from a tutoring job - The parent (in this case the mother) demanding extra "busy-work" for her son between sessions, the lack of discipline, on the student's part (especially his inability to do homework or speak to his subject teacher) and his continual lack of attention during sessions. The call came, "You are not coming here anymore, Billy Ben (not his real name) ONLY...

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How to maximize your mathematics tutoring experience

By Wendy T. | 6/2/2013 10:17 PM CST |

Hi math students :)

When preparing for a mathematics tutoring session, try to have the following things at hand...

Textbook (online or e-text)
Syllabus, assignment, tips/hints/suggestions, answer sheet/key
Class notes
Pencils, pens, erasers, paper (graph paper, ruler, protractor)
All necessary formulas, laws, tables, constants, etc.
Calculator that you will use on tests

Do I really need my calculator? I can do most of my work in my head.

Having your calculator is just as important as paper and a pencil in most cases. You'll be using it on your test and if you don't know how to input what you...

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Making Learning Fun: It's Best for Both the Student and Tutor

By Garrett S. | 5/18/2013 11:19 AM CST |

Over the time that I have tutored, both at Austin Community College and as an independent tutor, the best thing that I have learned is that any student that is having fun while they learn make them actually want to come back and learn more. Although people came in to the tutoring lab at Austin Community College, they were coming in to the tutoring lab reluctantly because they just didn't understand what was going on and weren't really enjoying the subject because of it. My personal goal for any person that I tutor is to not only help someone understand the concepts while they are sitting with...

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Homeschool Math Support and Accelerated Math Development for Public and Private School Students

By Patrick M. | 5/2/2013 9:29 AM CST |

I have been working with a few students who are ready to learn math much, MUCH faster than allowed by the traditional classroom model in which math is taught over 6 to 8 years. Based on this experience I believe that many students as young as 4th grade and as old as 8th grade (when starting in the program) can master math in 2 years from simple addition through the first semester of Calculus, with Arithmetic, Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2, Precalculus, Probability, Statistics, and Trigonometry in between.

This is significantly faster than the traditional approach and is enabled by a combination...

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Intuition and Memorization

By Kevin E. | 4/22/2013 4:39 PM CST |

When someone is interested in a topic, there is a heavy intuitive knowledge associated with that interest. A good musician intuitively knows what would be enjoyable to their target audience; a good fashion designer intuitively knows what would be fashionable for the next season; a good personal trainer knows intuitively how to work a particular person with a particular body and a particular mentality to make that person more active and more healthy. In all of these fields and any field you can think of, there is a certain amount of memorization required, a certain set of rules to follow, but...

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College and Your Passions

By Brooklyn L. | 4/9/2013 7:49 PM CST |

As the school year begins to wind down, I have noticed that many of the students I help have begun the journey of signing up for next years classes or, better yet, deciding where they will start the next chapter of their life in college. I began to reminisce on my Senior year of high school and how stressful that year was for me. It was so easy to become overwhelmed by all of the choices that (seemed to be) abruptly placed in front of me: what college should I go to? What should I major in? Should I choose a college close to home? Should I rush? Should I go to a college with all of my friends...

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Math is a puzzle

By Katherine L. | 4/9/2013 5:45 PM CST |

Like any puzzle, it is difficult to find the solution without an order of operation, a guide that helps you take one step at a time.

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The IMPORTANCE of ALGEBRA!

By Keisha K. | 3/24/2013 5:40 AM CST |

To My Future and Current Students,

I can't stress enough the IMPORTANCE of ALGEBRA! Of all the mathematics I have taken in my lifetime...BELIEVE ME IT'S BEEN A LOT, ALGEBRA is the only course that is WOVEN into every single course. I was lucky enough that my first mathematics teacher in High School (Mr. Large), turned me from a B student into an A student such that I graduated High School with a 4.0 in mathematics. The one piece of advice he gave me that I will share with you is that...I NEED TO CHECK, DOUBLE CHECK AND TRIPLE CHECK ALL OF MY ANSWERS!

Algebra is a required course (prerequisite)...

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A Matter of Perspective

By Natalie B. | 3/20/2013 5:47 PM CST |

Recently I had the opportunity to meet with a parent/business owner who hires/places tutors for high end families in my area. It was a wonderful opportunity as once again I heard the mantra, "Parents just want the grades to go up." I asked what this meant, how I could measure it (quantitatively and anecdotally) and if this was indeed proof of my skills as a tutor or a momentary 'save' on a reversal of fortune. This parent does not use Wyzant. I was hard pressed to accept from this parent the reason I wasn't being contacted by high end parents for tutoring was my lack of guaranteeing grades...

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