Reflection

As we started this new unit on quadratics, I understood, for the most part, everything. I know how to factor expressions using the diamond, completing the square, and solving equations by factoring. I comprehend how to find the vertex and the domain and range of quadratic functions. I do not, however, understand this new idea of  "Express ______ of a shape as a function of its _____." I realize that we must find a common variable between them and plug that in to the equation to find it. However, I don't know why some of the answers work for different problems. For instance, on the Applied Functions packet, numbers 1-5 I can understand. It is the problems after that that I do not understand. I believe that my issue may be that it is just worded differently than what I am used to.

6th blog post

I think the unit we are in now is a little bit easier than the last. What I do have some trouble with is figuring out what the independent and dependent variables are. I feel like it's supposed to be a pretty simple thing but for some reason I just can't really figure it out. 

reflective day

I had a reality check the other day. I thought the quiz was easy and aced it. Turns out I didn't. I don't know why but now it's gotten to me. And I haven't been focused. I have never bombed a math test. I've always gotten 100s or high 90s. And to fail a quiz. I don't know what happened. Now I got worried about that And stopped paying attention in class. Now I'm kinda confused In class. But I'm not sure what to do about it. I've never asked for help. And I probably won't. I just had a bad day. Its it's really getting to me. Hopefuly I can get myself back together again. What you are teaching isn't hard. I wrap my mind around it really easily. So I don't understand my quiz. I just need to take it a little slower or something. I'll try to figure it out.

Week 6

I didn't really understand completing the square on the homework until Mr. Jackson went through one of the problems.

Blog Post

Something we learned that I thought was cool is writing formulas to find various solutions while given certain values such as writing a formula to find the area of a circle when given the circumference.  A lot these formulas are variations of what I like to use to make calculator programs. I look forward to learning more shortcuts to finding these formulas because they are very efficient and will be useful in other classes.

My muddiest point this week would probably be the applied functions and completion of the square.  Getting that quiz back was rough too.  All in all, this past week was very confusing.

Blog post

I started off the week understanding the new material pretty well, but as the week went on I became a little more confused about what we were supposed to be doing and the purpose of it all. I guess I just get even more confused when people are asking questions because I understood it and then people are talking about different ways they did the work and it confuses me. I like one set way on how to solve  or simplify stuff and with everyone trying to explain different ways it confuses me. Hopefully I don't confuse the different ways and just stick with the one I am comfortable with. I think that I need time to process everything that we have learned because it can get pretty confusing sometimes!
Marissa Pease

Week 7?

At the beginning of the week I really didn't get completing the square so I started practicing at home and now I get it.

Week 6

When I received my quiz back I was very happy with the grade I earned, but with that said if it would've been a closed note quiz I would've struggled a lot more. Right now, with completing the square and putting the function into vertex form, I am very dependent on my notes. I need to keep looking over the notes every night so I can do the problems without them.

week 6 blog post

I'm still waiting for my moment of clarity in this class. I'm seriously so stuck that I don't know why I even bother going to math anymore. I don't blame anybody except for whatever's making me draw such a huge blank. I tried getting help once and it worked for like five minutes, then it was back to everything looking like ancient Egyptian. All I want is to pass. I don't even care how low the grade is, I just want to pass.

The muddiest point

The muddiest point for me was the guessing and checking thing. I don't understand when to use it and I don't fully understand the square thingy. Im pretty good at completing the square. sometimes I make a few silly mistakes but I understand what I do wrong and I fix it. But the guessing and checking thing I just have no idea what im doing wrong or how to fix it/

Week 6

This week went super well except for the making new equations with the independent and dependent variables, the applied functions worksheet. I have a really hard time knowing the original equations that we are supposed to start from and knowing which variable is dependent or independent. Once I figure out that, I can solve without a problem and go from that to finding a vertex or whatever need be, but the actual starting of the problem is what gets me. I have a really hard time starting. I get confused and mix up the two (independent and dependent) because I read the question wrong or over analyze the problem or something. I cannot find a way to differentiate the two. 

I miss friday and I'm kinda freaking out because I'm afraid I'm going to end up pulling my hair out in frustration. I hate missing school and I hate missing math class. I really hope what we did friday was not anything super new.

Stickyness

I'm having a tough time with some if the problems on the homework this weekend, I feel as if don't know what to do

Reflection on a Day

When we got our quizzes back, I was hoping that I would've done a better job on it than I had on our previous test.  After Mr. Jackson  handed me the quiz, I flipped the paper over and a big smile spread across my face. I did a really great job on the quiz.  I think I performed well on the quiz because I remember how to do certain problems from classes that I had taken before.  But I still need to practice problems on my own because I remember that I needed to look back at my notes a lot throughout the duration of the quiz.  Many things happen during each problem and it's hard to remember how to do each step.

so

So this completing the square thing is still complicated to me. I think putting the problems into more real life situations, like the farmer trying to find how much fencing he needs, will help me to better understand how all of the "completing the square" works. I'm hoping that I can find someone to help me understand this class outside of school and get a better grade. It's possible.

Another post

Man I hate this class.
Seeing as how I can't do anything right in this class, I have doubts of ever coming back out of a failing grade.  People think it can be so simple to come out of something like that.  My parents think I can go to class, wave a magic pencil, and pull my grade up.  Ha.  Ha.  That's real cute.

Post

the combining equations we have been doing in class I find interesting. At first I thought it was hard, but after mr Jackson spend the day going over I understand it now. Overall, this week in class has been easier than in weeks past.

Blog post week 6

Today we received our quizzes back. I had thought I did very well but then I got it back and realized I actually made a lot of silly errors that I can easily correct for the future. Today we also worked with the applied functions and I think I am understanding them well. Shay and I were able to work through a few together until we both got the hang of it. 

Week 6 - Reflection on Tuesday, Oct. 7

I really liked how the class was structured yesterday (October 7th). I liked how we had time to try to work through and solve problems ourselves and work with the people at our table to do so. Normally, we go through problems with Mr. Jackson on the board, which is helpful, but I think it was also nice to have time to work with my peers on the math problems. The people I work with explain things to me in a different way than Mr. Jackson does to help me further understand how to find the solutions. I also think that it's helpful to have this independent work time because Mr. Jackson can come around and help with individual questions if there are any.

Also, at one point Alex came to the board and she explained to the class how she solved one of the problems we were working on. I thought that it was really helpful to see her do this, and I think we should do more of that sort of "peer-teaches-class" sort of thing. I think that it would not only allow the students to gain a better understanding of concepts and ideas through different explanations, I think that it would also benefit the "student teacher" because it will solidify the content in their mind.

I thought that these things were a big help when it came to understanding the concepts and I liked how they were implemented that day. I gained a better understanding of completing the square because of the way the class was set up that day and I'd like to see more student collaboration work time and student teaching if possible.

Moment of clarity

I had a family friend that is in college come and tutor me on "complete the square and factoring". I understand it 6000x better now. She taught me methods that are much more clear. I feel much more confident with these problems. I wish I would have known this before the quiz yesterday. 

Light bulb

I got some help outside of class from my college aged cousin and she helped a lot! I now fully I understand completing the sqaure and finding the vertex and range! I'm so happy that I finally truly understand completing the square! Ahh I'm so excited! 

6th post: Understanding

So I'm feeling pretty confident about the quiz. I understand how to factor using the square and diamond method and I understand how to complete the square and solve! Before I understood how, I couldn't quite get why we did certain things when solving, but I really tried hard to pay attention and listen carefully and I get it now. But then again I was feeling confident about the extra credit and I wasn't even close. Since I first posted this I didn't know my quiz score. We got out quizzes back and I'm so proud of myself because I did really well and I'm so happy.

I thought I got all the information that was on the test. Even after I thought I did really well but I found out that I did terrible. I normally never struggle with math and I deffinetly have never done so bad on a test before. I don't know why I did so poorly burg thought I understood everything!

5th post

I understand the content of this week a lot more then the last unit. I am still a little confused on a couple of the concepts in this new unit. Last unit did not go well at all but this unit I will do better.

5th Post

I finally understand things. I understand how to complete the square and I didn't really get that before. I'm so happy that things are starting to make sense.

Blog Post 5

This past test was an eye opener for not only me but for everyone else too. I believe that if we want to make sure we have better grades, we need to make sure we pay attention in class

Blog Post 5

So this week went relatively quickly. The material we have learned so far isnt that challenging except for when it comes to extreme factoring. My first test in this class was just fine better than I expected and I could complain. Overall another solid week.

Good Week

This weeks material was much more easily digested than that of the last unit. The new class pace made things easier to grasp. I particularly enjoyed the step by step directions in the info packet. I am confident going into tomorrow that I understand last weeks material.

everything is a muddy point

So... this entire class is a muddy point to me and I want to cry of confusion. I feel like the "completing the square" thing is a lot of work for nothing... the other method of just trying numbers seems better and much less confusing. I'm trying to understand to the best of my ability, but I don't learn quick enough to be able to say I fully understand what's going on all the time. Or any time. But before the "completing the square" thing came up, I felt fairly comfortable in what we were practicing.