From now until fall break

Upcoming WebAssign homeworks
There is no Web Assign homework for section 2.5.  (yay!  homework holiday!)
Web Assign homework 2.6 will be due Sunday, October 1.

Web Assign homework 2.7 is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday Thursday, October 3 5.

Web Assign homework 2.8 is tentatively scheduled for Thursday Tuesday, October 5 10.

Upcoming Group homeworks
Group homeworks G-2.4 and G-2.5 are due Monday, October 2.
There is no group homework due Monday, October 9 nor Wednesday, October 11.
Group homeworks G-2.6, 2.7, and 2.8 will be due Monday, October 16.

The previous blog post gives a bunch of different ways to study for the upcoming midterm.

Preparing for the first midterm

Our first midterm will be October 13, the Friday after fall break.

How can you prepare for this?  My best advice is to practice problems.  Don't just read your notes, because I don't test you on how well you read math.  Instead, do problems from start to finish.

• You can print out blank copies of our in-class worksheets and redo the ones you need practice on.
• You can practice the "Flash cards" that I gave you (most of these are taken from the worksheets).
• You can redo the problems from the Check-ins, especially the ones you didn't get right the first time.  (These were supposed to be the "easy" problems from your web-assign homework, by the way, so if you got them wrong you should definitely make sure you can do them again and get them right).
• You can redo your Web-Assign homework problems, especially the ones you didn't get right on the first attempt.
• You can redo your group homework problems.  I wouldn't give you something that hard as a new problem on a midterm, but any past group homework problem is fair game for a midterm question, because I'm expecting you to have learned how to do that now.

The links at the right -----> include the flash cards and our in-class worksheets.

You will be allowed to bring an 8.5"x11" page of notes (you may write front and back on it; it should have your name somewhere on it).  So in your practicing problems, you can also start working on developing that page.

When you think you're ready, you can also see what a past midterm looks like.  Here's the midterm I gave last fall.   And here are the solutions to that midterm.

And of course, you should feel free to work with your classmates, and with the math tutors, and to come see me if you have questions!

canvas, more homework, more group homework

If you just got umpteen emails about un-muted assignments, I apologize for spamming your InBox.  But this means that Canvas now displays the grades I have for you in the categories of

• Extra Credits,
• Check-ins, and 
• Group homeworks.

Canvas doesn't yet talk nicely to WebAssign, so you'll have to go there for your individual homework grades.

Speaking of individual homework, 

• WebAssign 2.3 will be due Thursday the 21st  Sunday the 24th;
• WebAssign 2.4 will be due Sunday the 24th Tuesday the 26th.

You'll have three group homework problems (G-2.1, G-2.2, and G-2.3) due Monday the 25th.

Moving into Chapter 2

Web Assign H-2.1 will be due Sunday September 17.
Web Assign H-2.2 will be due Tuesday September 19.

Group homeworks G-1.5 and G-1.6 will be due Monday, September 18.
Don't forget that we have tutors, and that I put flashcards you can study from, via links over there ------>.

We'll be doing more computation in class on Monday the 18th, so feel free to bring a calculator!

Exponent and log due dates, plus credit freeze

Web Assign H-1.5 will be due Tuesday (before our Wednesday class).

Web Assign H-1.6 will be due Thursday (before our Friday class).
Web Assign H-2.1 will be probably due Sunday September 17.

Group homeworks G-1.5 and G-1.6 will be due Monday, September 18.

Some of you asked for this information, about freezing credit, so I'm including that here:

Information on how to freeze with all 3 agencies. 

https://www.freeze.equifax.com/Freeze/jsp/SFF_PersonalIDInfo.jsp

https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze/place-credit-freeze

https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html 

It will cost you approximately $10 per freeze, and you will be provided with a PIN to unfreeze your credit should you want someone to pull it (say you’re applying for an apartment lease, buying a car, and so on).  

You can also put a fraud alert on your accounts for 90 days: 

 https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0275-place-fraud-alert 

And don't forget to wash your hands more frequently than usual -- bad germs are going around!

How to succeed in Calculus

Reminder:
WebAssign H1.3 is due Thursday night, before our Friday class.  For Monday, you and your homework groups should do problems G1.1, 1.2, and 1.3 from the ends of your first three worksheets.

Here's an announcement from the Math Club President, about a helpful session that will take place on

• Wednesday, September 13,
• 4:30,
• in Stager 215

She writes:

This semester, we want to do something new and hopefully the events we host will attract more students to come and potentially benefit them with their college career. 

The first event is about how to succeed in Calculus I. I have invited four students who took calculus I recently, who have struggled at first but ended up doing pretty well, to share their wisdom on how to succeed in calculus I course. I, myself, as a past math tutor, will also talk about what were the problems the students who came to me had. Two of them also took calculus II so they will also talk about what skills/knowledge you need to acquire in order to succeed in calculus II. Hopefully, these tips will be helpful for the current calculus I students. 

This is the first time math club ever hosted such event. And I sincerely hope that many students can come.

Google Calendar workshops

By popular demand, I've scheduled three (count 'em, 3!) workshops for you and your friends to become Google Calendar Champions.

1. Wednesday, 1:30-2:15 p.m., in our usual classroom (this is right between my two sections of calculus).   No muffins at this one, alas!
2. Wednesday, 7:30-8:00 p.m. in Stager 219.    Homemade muffins provided!
3. Thursday, 7:30-8:00 p.m. in Stager 219.    Homemade muffins provided!

The main point of each of these sessions is introducing Google Calendar (how to set up your own calendar, how to check out other people's calendars, and how to schedule appointments).

If you can't make any of these three, you are still welcome to come see me and ask questions about this.  Using a group-connected calendar is an incredibly useful skill to have, and I'd be glad to help you master this.

What's due from now to 9/11

For class Wednesday, you'll do Web-Assign H-1.2 (due the night before Wednesday, actually).   For class on Wednesday, you might want to bring colored pencils!  (I'll have some if you don't have any).

The solutions to the Algebraic Diagnostic are available from a link on the right ---->.

The night before Friday's class, you'll do Web Assign H-1.3.

For Monday's class, you might have Web Assign H 1.5 . . . we'll see how far we get.  But in your new homework groups, you should prepare these homeworks:  G-1.1, G-1.2, and G-1.3.  All of these assignments are listed toward the end of your corresponding class worksheets.

Group homework G-1.5 won't be due until 9/18, but you're welcome to start working on it early.

Late-breaking news! Math tutoring starts!

The mathematics departments has a group of student tutors available to help you, and they start tonight (Sunday September 3).    They are available Sunday through Thursday, 4-10 p.m., in various locations on the second floor of Stager.

See their schedule and locations in the link on the right ---->.

What's due before and on September 4?

Web Assign homework H 1.1 will be due before Monday's class:  Sunday night 11:59 p.m.

There is NO group homework due this week; that will start next week (September 11).

The Algebraic Diagnostic is available from a link on the right --->.   I'll happily collect them Monday in class, from students who choose to do them.

(By the way, we're done with working on worksheet 1.1 in class; we won't go over questions 26-30 from that worksheet as a group.  If you have questions of your own about that last bit, just let me know and I'll help you out.)