In this course, I was able to work with people that I was not familiar with at first. I was able to engage in the group activities and contribute some ideas on how to solve certain questions. Whenever it isn’t my turn to answer, I still give my full attention so that I am able to figure out how to answer that certain question.As a group, we reflected our notes into our work which enabled our group to finish almost every question. We worked well together and the people in my group managed to make every unit easier for me to understand.
Learning and using math Vocabulary
I was able to understand and use math vocabulary in this course. During a previous write up, I was able showcase my knowledge and incorporate math vocabulary in my work. When reading the workbook or going over the notes, I am able to understand the terms used. However in the workbook, I still encounter words that I don’t understand. I use my knowledge of different math vocabulary in quizes and tests as well as Photomath and the internet when I need to get more understanding of a unit. I sometimes have trouble understanding certain terms. In that case, I would typically ask for assistance from the teacher or my classmates.
Dealing with Challenges
A major struggle I encountered this semester for math is time management. In class, I manage my time efficiently and attempt to finish most my work however I come across questions that take up most my class time. At home, I attempt to do unfinished questions from that day or from previous chapters. If time at home isn’t enough, I try to dedicate at least one flex block for math each week. Math often takes me longer to understand and it also takes up much of my time so I always end up pushing it aside to do other work which causes my work to pile and it ends up doubling my work.
Advice
My advice to anyone taking Pre-Calc 11 would be to focus in class. You might not be occupied with your phone however you still need to give your full attention. Dont get distracted by other thoughts and try your best to focus. Asking quwsrions is also really important. When your stuck or ran out of options, it is better to asl help from people around you or the tescher. Lastly, when you study for a test remember to look at previous groupworks to get a feeling of what the test is like.
In the formula y= a(x-h)^2 +k , ‘a’ determines the width and direction of a parabola‘s opening. The parabola becomes more compressed than the parent function if a>1. The parabola becomes more stretched than the parent function if a<1. In my given equation, a= -2. The ‘a’ is a negative therefore it flips and opens downwards. If the ‘a’ in my equation was a positive, the parabola would open upwards. ‘h’ tells us the shift of the parabola horizontally. If ‘h’ is negative (-) it shifts to the left. Likewise, if ‘h’ is positive (+) it shifts to the right. My h= -7 therefore it shifts to the left. The vertical shift of the parabola is determined by the value of ‘k’. If ‘k’ is a negative (-) it shifts down, if ‘k’ is a positive (+) it shifts up. k= -2 in my equation therefore it shifts down. In addition, both ‘h’ and ‘k’ also tells us the vertex of a parabola. ‘h’ gives us the x value of the vertex while ‘k’ gives us the y value of the vertex.
Self- Assessment
I was able to represent the mathematical idea in words and in a graph. For this assignment, I made sure to be able to explain the significance of a, h and k using mathematical vocabulary. I made sure to incorporate words such as compressed and stretched to describe parabolas. I was able to accomplish this by referring to the notes. I remembered to show both parent function and my equation graphed to show a visual representation of both equations to give proper understanding. I properly showcased my graphs and ensured that they were the appropriately cropped and sized.
The first time I tried this problem, I made the mistake of only expanding the left side of the equation. Then, I attempted several wrong ways to solve the problem because I was uncertain of what to do with the number in front of the coefficient. I noticed that I was not getting anywhere and at last I searched for the practice key found on OneNote. I still had a hard time grasping the steps and later consulted the help of the app Photomath to further understand the question and learn the steps. The steps shown were still not enough for me to understand and eventually lunch came. It took my friend explaining rules like “what you do on one side of the equation you must do to the other” and the entirety of lunch for me to finally understand how to do it. Me and my friend did it together and in the end, I answered more questions similar to the given to better understand the topic. Next time when I encounter a difficult problem, I might try to think of the past topics we’ve talked about to check if the rules used in previous lessons can be applied to a the recent one.
