Friday, 1/29/16: Lesson 10-1, Exponential Functions

This weekend's homework is p.342 (5 & 7).

Thursday, 1/29/16: Reviewing Recent Functions Homework

No formal homework is assigned for tonight.

Period 5, you didn't get the message, but I am assigning p.342 (5 & 7) from Lesson 10-1 this weekend.  Also, you didn't get the message that since we're starting Modules 10 & 11 tomorrow, you need to bring in p.331 - p.404.  Per.6 got the message and will bring in those pages tomorrow.  For your class, Per.5, I will photocopy the Lesson 10-1 pages.

For anyone who is trying to do the weekend's homework tonight, while this is not the easiest section in the book, the problems I assigned are VERY parallel to the examples in Lesson 10-1.  If you study these examples well, you should have no problems.  It depends on the problem, but you may really want to use a calculator.  (You can use a calculator for terminating fractions like 1/4, 1/2, 3/5, etc.  DON'T use a calculator for repeating fractions like 1/3, 4/9, etc.  Tough out the pencil / paper scratch work in this case.)

This Friday's after-school class is for Per.6.

Wednesday, 1/27/16: Lesson 17-7, on Comparing Linear, Quadratic, and Exponential Models

Tonight's homework is p.684 (7-16, 19).

This Friday's after school class is for Per.6.

Tuesday, 1/26/16: Lesson 17-6, Solving a System of Quadratic and Linear Functions Algebraically

Tonight's homework is p.671 (5-8), and p.675 (13-15).  Students are to solve these systems algebraically.

Monday, 1/25/16: Lesson 17-5, More on Graphing Quadratic Functions

Tonight's homework is from Lesson 17-5.  For tonight, students are to do:

• p.662 #2
• p.663 #3
• p.666 #1
• p.667 #6 & #7

Friday, 1/22/16: Lesson 17-4 Homework, Characteristics of Quadratic Functions

Today students took their quiz on the derivation of the quadratic formula, and we reviewed the homework problems assigned last night.  We've been pushing extremely hard, but we needed to pull up to review the material--particularly problems 17 & 18 on p.660.  No homework is assigned over the weekend.  Monday we will pick up with Lesson 17-5, graphing quadratic functions in standard and vertex forms.

Thursday, 1/22/16: The Connection between Quadratic Equations and Functions

Apologies for the late post.  Tonight's homework is p.659-660 (9-18).

Wednesday, 1/20/16: Lesson 17-3 The Vertex Form of Quadratic Functions

Tonight's homework is p.645 (9,10), and p.648 (1-3).  This is a challenging lesson, but the textbook examples we looked at today were well laid out.

I'm encouraging students to download a QR reader code app, and use it to scan (and immediately jump to the appropriate instructional video) the QR codes in the text.  A number of students at our school are already taking advantage of this great resource.

Tuesday, 1/19/16: Stretching, Compressing, and Reflecting Quadratic Functions

Tonight's homework is from Lesson 7-2.  It is p.637 (2,3), p.639 (4,5), and p.640 (1,2).  These six graphs, along with another entrance ticket to Friday's quiz, are due Wednesday.  Students, you may make the graphs directly into the textbook pages, but use your spiral notebooks to make the tables (t-charts).  It is okay to use a calculator with the computation.

Friday, 1/15/16: Quadratic Functions: Translations of the Parent Quadratic Function

Wishing all of you a meaningful holiday, in memory of the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King.

This weekend's homework is p.631, #9, and p.633 (#6-9).  Students also have another entrance ticket as they prepare for the next memorization quiz, the derivation of the quadratic formula, which will be Friday, 1/22.

Thursday, 1/14/16: Reviewing Quadratic Formula Homework

Tonight's homework is from the textbook pages, p.629 (2-5), on vertical shifts of the graphs of quadratic functions.

Wednesday, 1/13/16: The Quadratic Formula

Apologies for the missed post yesterday.

Tonight's homework is from a photocopy which I distributed today, with "13-4" on the top left.  Students are to solve problems 1-3, and 15-18 by using the quadratic formula.

Monday, 1/11/16: Reviewing Completing the Square Homework

No formal homework was assigned tonight, although as a preview activity tonight, students can research the "derivation of the quadratic formula," or just "quadratic formula."  We will be doing that Tuesday.

Friday, 1/8/16: Completing the Square

Tonight's homework is from a photocopy I distributed to the students yesterday.  The photocopy has "13-3" in the upper-left corner.  Students have problems 13-19 from this photocopy as this weekend's homework; they need to solve these quadratics using the completing the square method (NOT factoring/ZPP on this assignment).

Thursday, 1/7/16: Taking the Square Root Both Sides

There are four strategies for solving quadratic equations:

• Factoring / Zero Product Property
• GCF / Distributive Property
• Difference of Squares
• Perfect Square Trinomials
• Factoring by Grouping
• Diamond Trash
• Taking the square root both sides
• Completing the square
• Quadratic formula

I'm repeatedly hammering away at the five factoring strategies.  Parents, your son or daughter should be able to repeat the five factoring strategies (GCF, etc.) to you off of the top of their head.  If he or she can't, lock him or her into a room until he or she can!  Every year my students leave here knowing those strategies like the back of one's hand.

Your son or daughter won't necessarily be able to state the four ways of solving a quadratic equation yet, but should be able to do so by mid week.  I'm really hammering these four strategies (factoring, taking square root, etc.) home now.

We've been in review mode with all of the above this week, to get students' heads back into these strategies.  Today I got a chance to strengthen the second strategy for solving quadratic equations, taking the square root both sides.  Tomorrow and Monday, it will be a solid presentation of completing the square and Tuesday and Wednesday of next week it will be a solid presentation of the quadratic formula, including its derivation.  (In fact students have to know the derivation by memory, and that will be my first quiz this semester, given the week after next.)

We're between lessons and it was counterproductive for me to formally assign work tonight.  But I'll be assigning completing the square homework over the weekend.  Tonight, students can be previewing lessons 16-4 and 16-5, on pages 587 - 602.

There is an after-school class for Per.6 tomorrow, Friday, Jan. 8, until 4:00.

Wednesday, 1/6/16: Review of Factoring Strategies / Solving Quadratic Equations

Tonight's homework is from a photocopy I distributed to students yesterday, entitled "Factoring / Quadratic Review."  Students are to work problems 14-26 even to the best of their ability tonight.  We ran out of time today, but I still need the students to play with the problems tonight so that I can keep us on schedule.  We'll definitely review them tomorrow, so students should just try their best tonight.

Tuesday, 1/5/16: Review of Factoring Strategies and Solving Quadratic Equations

Tonight's homework is from a photocopy I distributed to students, "Factoring and Solving Quadratic Equations."  Students are to work problems 2 - 12, even, from this photocopy.  (We did the parallel odd-numbered problems in class today.)