When I was in high school, I juuuuust squeaked by my math requirements.

[conuly]

I got a solid 66 on Math Regents 2 and 3, which basically covered trig and geometry, and I have no idea how I did it. Literally, none.

I want to remedy that. I prefer to read and don't like videos, so Kahn Academy is right out. Does anybody have any good print or online written materials that can help me basically redo my high school math experience and understand what the hell I should have understood the first time around? I don't care if it is new or interesting, I just want good, solid material that is clearly written.

Comments

[siderea]

I have no resources, sorry. But I would suggest that if you had trouble in hs math, you may find it beneficial to go back to jr high math. Maybe. Geometry less so. But trig depends on good algebraic skills.

BTW, I have a hazy and possibly erroneous impression that all the best math instruction is by video these days, because it really is superior to learning it from a book. You may want to give Khan Academy a try despite your issues with video.

[conuly]

It's possible I'm missing some earlier concepts, but given my 100% on my first math regents and my solid 99+ scores before that, I don't know. To be honest, I put the blame partially on the school system, and this is why I'm not totally gung-ho about "flipped" classrooms. Several of my math teachers at Stuy more or less taught that way, which meant that if you didn't understand it at ALL during homework, you were still lost during the review. I had executive function problems keeping me from even starting my homework, and I had more or less absorbed the utterly stupid and ridiculous idea that having to work at a subject or ask for help meant you were stupid in it (and god knows I didn't want to be stupid in a subject, better to just fail it than to be stupid), and that method was the absolute worst thing for me.

You know, I'm astonishingly happy about the recent cheating scandal. The more various classes of Stuy come up and say "yes, it was widespread cheating when I was there as well", the better I feel. I can say "I wasn't just too lazy to do the work and not actually smart enough to coast, I was simply too honest to cheat like, apparently, EVERYBODY ELSE." I know of course that not everybody cheated and few of them cheated in every subject, but I still love being able to say that.

[siderea]

It's possible I'm missing some earlier concepts, but given my 100% on my first math regents and my solid 99+ scores before that, I don't know.

Maybe not, then. But that said, I have a vague intention of making a second run at differential equations, and I plan on going back over jr high algebra first, myself, and working my way back up, even though fewer As have come so easily for me as 8th grade algebra, and I made it (sort of :) through first year calculus.

To be honest, I put the blame partially on the school system, and this is why I'm not totally gung-ho about "flipped" classrooms. Several of my math teachers at Stuy more or less taught that way, which meant that if you didn't understand it at ALL during homework, you were still lost during the review.

I'm now confused about your objection. If you want the lecturer to explain it in the classroom, why wouldn't video be perfect for you? Is there some other problem with video for you?

You know, I'm astonishingly happy about the recent cheating scandal. The more various classes of Stuy come up and say "yes, it was widespread cheating when I was there as well", the better I feel. I can say "I wasn't just too lazy to do the work and not actually smart enough to coast, I was simply too honest to cheat like, apparently, EVERYBODY ELSE." I know of course that not everybody cheated and few of them cheated in every subject, but I still love being able to say that.

I know EXACTLY what you mean. My undergrad school had a similar scandal. But of course, the flip side was, "But, but, but... why didn't anybody invite me to one of these homework-sharing parties? I thought people liked me...?" The boost to my intellectual ego comes with a tax on my social confidence.

[conuly]

I can't follow videos very well because I can't ask questions in the meantime. Books are better than videos because at least I can see the print, and it goes at the speed of my reading instead of the speed of my listening. But for tougher concepts, in person is the very best. Does that make sense? (Following videos pervades all aspects of my life, btw. It's one reason that I always have the captioning on when watching TV, and mostly watch TV on demand or on the Internet now, because I can pause and rewind to catch parts I missed. And why I read so very much more than I watch.) Also, at that age, it was extremely difficult for me to manage things like homework. I just couldn't organize myself well enough, and even a small amount of work was hugely daunting. I could get stuck just trying to find a pencil. The reading itself would not have been a problem, it was the getting started on the work, not losing the book, writing legibly, moving on if I got stuck aspects that kept me from doing it. But I don't think I'm alone in this, and I suspect that other kids with the same problem I had get the same "diagnosis" - lazy, doesn't want to work. I mean, I *didnt* want to work, but that wasn't the problem.

"I know EXACTLY what you mean. My undergrad school had a similar scandal. But of course, the flip side was, "But, but, but... why didn't anybody invite me to one of these homework-sharing parties? I thought people liked me...?" The boost to my intellectual ego comes with a tax on my social confidence."

Yeah, well, I was kinda a social outcast throughout most of my schooling. I don't mention that part.

[crystalpyramid]

I'm with you on not liking videos, and even with videos, learning math works better if you have a body of problems to work on. And some worked examples to study. And having a physical textbook to browse through, with sidebars and nifty things.

I might have some ideas, but I need to think of how to get a better sense of what your level actually is, so I know what's appropriate. And maybe unpack the 10+ boxes of books in the basement and look through them. I've heard good things about Mathematics, A Human Endeavor, but I don't actually own a copy, so I'm not sure how much good it is for acquiring and practicing skills.

[crystalpyramid]

Most of what I'm seeing online at the right level is either extended upward from the lower grades (http://www.coolmath.com, has very colorful explanations and straightforward practice problems), or downward from higher ed (http://www.sosmath.com, has multiple-choice self-tests and explanations). The self-tests might be good for identifying areas to focus on.

Drexel Math Forum (http://mathforum.org/students/high) has a ton of stuff, which may be worth exploring or may lead to a single useful resource. I don't know yet if that leads anywhere with an appropriately linear structure so you could work through it and learn sequentially. It's constantly maintained, but the overall structure is very Web 1.0, which is clunky.

This publisher produces the coolest Geometry textbook I've seen at any of the schools I've interviewed at. (Didn't get the job though.) If you click on the books, they have links to "condensed lessons" and practice problems, which might be enough? Except that I'm not sure how you check your answers. http://math.kendallhunt.com

Barron's EZ Calculus is generally recommended by other physics teachers as a great self-study tool for kids learning calculus on their own. It has a weird story, good explanations, and lots of sample problems. I don't know if the Calculus book is an exception, or if they have books like that on other levels as well.

As a precocious teenager, I thought the old UCSMP textbooks worked really great for teaching myself stuff. I'm not sure how well they would work for someone who wasn't me, though. (I think they also had some BASIC programming examples, which even back then we skipped.) My experience with the NYS Regents books five years ago was that they were much less good; I'm sure they've redone them again since then.

I have kind of a hoard of math textbooks in my basement right now, although that's probably not useful. And could probably also ask our actual math department if they have ideas. (I bet they have their own hoards of textbooks. Textbooks just kind of accumulate in offices and classrooms.)

[conuly]

Well the math regents have changed at least twice since my time. We did all our work from Barron's anyway.

[crystalpyramid]

Yeah, I've used the normal Barron's as a review book, so I guess it's different. But EZ Calculus is this book Calculus the Easy Way that Barron's apparently bought and rebranded, sort of a Phantom-Tollbooth-like storyline with a magical kingdom and math problems.

[adrian_turtle]

I don't think it works as an only textbook, but you might find a Schaum's Outline helpful. They're basically collections of worked problems framed with short, clear, explanations. Each chapter has a few pages introducing a type of problem, defining terms and describing how to approach it. Then solved problems of the same type, with the answers worked through in detail. Then a bunch of practice problems for you to work through yourself (with a list of answers to check if you did it right.)

They're really helpful for students who learn better from guided practice than from being told how to do something. I especially recommend reading the solved problems with a card over the solution, so you can start working the problem yourself and only consult the book solution if/when you get stuck.

[elenbarathi.livejournal.com]

John Saxon, Math Warrior (http://saxonmathwarrior.com/) would be the place to start. I'd advise starting from the very beginning, the grade-school curriculum, and go through the whole thing, because you are probably missing some fundamental concepts that you don't even realize you never grokked, and doing the whole program will correct that. Good luck; enjoy!