Forsyth County Schools



Accelerated Math at West Forsyth High School

• The sole purpose for the accelerated math pathway is so the student can take

AP Calculus before graduating from high school.

• Students rarely receive time in class to do assignments.  There will be approximately 30 minutes of homework each night to be done outside of class time. Homework is the opportunity for students to do additional practice without teacher assistance and to self-assess their understanding before moving on to the next lesson. Completing all assignments is very important for success in the class.

• Students MUST take their own notes each day in class. Student notes will be an essential review source for all assessments.

• Students will only see approximately 2-3 examples for any particular type of skill-problem during direct teaching.

• Students do many “tasks” in this course.  These are usually multiple-page investigations of a complex and multiple-step problem. Students must read, comprehend, think, and struggle with the problem.  They must be willing to converse with peers about the problem.  They must be tenacious. The struggle is important to the understanding of higher-level problem solving.

• Appropriate work must be shown for each problem on both homework and assessments.  This does not mean show tedious calculations but instead show logical and sequential steps from one line of the problem to the next.

• Students must solve problems by setting up appropriate equations and solving for the appropriate variable.  Guess-and-check will not be an acceptable problem-solving technique.

• Students will not receive a review sheet before assessments (neither formative nor summative).  Students must study all material from the unit to be prepared.  This includes, but is not limited to, notes, tasks, and homework from the unit.

• Both formative and summative assessments will have free response questions where proper work must be shown.

• Retesting (NONE- except for extraordinary circumstances)

• Students will use both the TI-30XS MultiView scientific calculator AND the TI-84 Plus graphing calculator (or TI-NSpire graphing calculator). Students are expected to have their own to use both in class and at home. See back of this sheet for additional information.

NOTE: In May, posted on the WFHS Math Dept webpage, you will find both the optional summer practice and the course supply list for you child’s math course. Just click on your child’s math course name to locate this information.

Calculators required for the course:

NOTE: Each math teacher at WFHS has the emulator software for the following calculators installed on their computer. This software allows the teacher to demonstrate and instruct the use of each of these calculators using the interactive white board. Proficiency in the use of these calculators is expected in advanced mathematics, not as a crutch for calculations, but as a powerful tool in complex problem solving

1.) Graphing Calculator

-OR-

TI-84 Plus TI-NSpire

(not CAS version)

(These calculators run between $100 and $125. But watch for sales during

Back-to-School Day Sales. Can be found at Walmart, Staples, Best Buy, Target,

Office Depot, Office Max.)

2.) Scientific Calculator

TI-30XS MultiView*

(This calcultor costs less than $20. However, do NOT wait until right before school begins as this calculator is on many school supply lists and some stores will be out stock on this item quickly and frequently. Because of its popularity, rarely is this one on sale. So if you find it, buy it. *NOTE: Do NOT purchase the TI-34 MultiView instead as it has less features than the TI-30XS.)

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