Welcome

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

10/27 - PRACTICE WEBSITE WITH FEEDBACK FOR DERIVATIVE TEST:

HTTP://WWW.BLUFFTON.EDU/HOMEPAGES/FACSTAFF/NESTERD/JAVA/DERIVS.HTML

2/22 - REGISTRATION FORM FOR 2016 MATHWEST PRACTICE AP CALCULUS EXAM POSTED UNDER "AP EXAM PREP" TAB.

11/21 - OLD CHAPTER 4 REVIEW FROM MRS. SHEA AND MR. DANIELS POSTED UNDER CHAPTER 04. ANSWERS/SOLUTIONS ARE IN THE SAME DOCUMENT.

9/13 - HERE IS A WEBSITE WITH APPLETS ON VARIOUS CALCULUS RELATED ITEMS INCLUDING MATCHING FUNCTION AND DERIVATIVE GRAPHS.

HTTP://WWW.UNIVIE.AC.AT/FUTURE.MEDIA/MOE/GALERIE/DIFF1/DIFF1.HTML

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This course provides presents the skills and concepts of differential and integral calculus normally covered in a two-semester college course. It prepares students for the BC national examination given by the College Board in early May of each year. (Educational Opportunities: Program of Studies)

TEXTBOOK/SOFTWARE:

Ostebee, Arnold and Paul Zorn, Calculus from Graphical, Numerical, and Symbolic Points of View, Copyright 1997, Harcourt College Publishing Inc, New York.

REQUIRED MATERIALS:

- Each student must have a graphing calculator. The Mathematics Department recommends a TI-83/84 or TI-Nspire. Other calculators are allowed, but the instructor may not be able to provide tech support.

- Pencil and Eraser.

- Textbook and Notebook

GRADING:

Homework: Text assignments will be given daily and discussed and presented during the first part of the following class period. All solutions (not merely answers) should be kept by assignment number and chapter section in a well organized notebook for quick/easy reference. Twice each quarter, eight assigned exercises will be randomly selected for you to copy directly from your notebook. (No Textbook viewing allowed). Each “check” will take 10 minutes and count 25 – 40 points each.

Classwork: As time permits or in my absence, graded cooperative tasks worth 10 to 20 points will be assigned for completion during the class period.

Examinations: Each quarter except 4^th, there will be four or five tests spaced approximately two weeks apart.

4^th Quarter: In preparation for the AP examination, multiple choice questions and free response questions will be given and graded. These two components, scaled and equally weighted similar to the AP format will determine your 4^th quarter grade.

Quarterly: The grade for each of the first three quarters will be calculated using the points system. Attendance and class participation may be used to determine borderline quarterly grades. The grade for the year is the 4-quarter average if you agree to write the Advanced Placement BC examination; otherwise, you must take an in-class final exam.

Students will be informed of any changes to the grading guidelines.

ATTENDANCE:

Work missed due to an absence is to be made up according to the guidelines in the student handbook. A student who misses more than 7 classes of a subject during one marking period may fail the course that quarter. At the teacher's discretion, the student may receive the lesser of a grade of 59 or the actual grade earned.

CALCULATORS:

The College Board requires the use of a calculator on the AP examination. Our daily instructional process will make extensive use of these learning tools. We expect you to purchase your own TI-84 or TI-89 or TI Nspire.

EXTRA HELP: After school extra help is nearly always available in room 223, but never on Mondays. Please let me know if you intend to come for help on a specific afternoon.

Students will be informed of any changes to the extra help hours.

COURSE AND CLASSROOM POLICIES:

- When the period bell rings, students are expected to be in the classroom with their materials on their desk ready to begin the lesson.

- The hall pass is available for use during the first and last 5 minutes of class. Students may use the pass during the lesson only for an emergency.

- Students removed from class are expected to report to the Office immediately, and they are expected to pick-up all missed class work and assignments at the end of the school day.

- Students are expected to serve teacher assigned consequences on the day of the infraction and may not use athletic practice or a club meeting as an excuse to miss a classroom consequence.

CLASS GOAL:

Our goal is a score of 3, 4, or 5 on the AP Examination for everyone in the class.

SCOPE:

This course is the study of the derivative and the integral and the relationship between these concepts and their applications. The course follows the topical outline prepared by the College Board.

This course follows the leaner and livelier method of learning through conceptual notions and questions. It makes use of modern technology in both content and pedagogy. The “sine qua non” for a useful command of calculus is a conceptual understanding that is deep and flexible enough to accommodate diverse applications. This is not the same calculus your parents took.

The key to improving conceptual understanding is combining, comparing, and moving among graphical, numerical, and algebraic representations of central concepts. This strategy is utilized throughout the course. The graphical and numerical components of calculus taught in this way can be foreboding and time-consuming without the use of technology. Therefore graphing calculators and computers will be our tools to help combine the three representations.