Those nasty negatives - always causing trouble.
1. It’s all in how you look at it. In your early math education when you were learning to add and subtract, a negative sign meant minus, subtract or take away. What you are really doing now in college is combining numbers and variables, some of them negative and some of them positive. In other words, you have to adjust your thinking and consider negative signs to belong to the number they are in front of. The negative sign is part of that number’s identity, making it a negative number. It no longer is telling you to do something like subtract.
For example, 4-2 can be understood as (+4) + (-2).
And for - 2(4x + 3), when you distribute the 2 to the 4x and the 3, make sure you are distributing (-2). In other words, (-2)(+4x) + (-2)(+3), or (-8x) + (-6). At this point, you can rid of the ( ) and the + sign because it is understood that you are combining -8x and -6, written as  -8x -6.
If you had to simplify -2(4x - 3), you would think of it as (-2)(4x) + (-2)(-3), then (-8x) + (+6) or -8x + 6.
2. The basic rules:
When multiplying, if both signs are the same (positive or negative), the result is positive. If they are different, the result is negative. (You’ve heard two negatives make a positive. This is where it applies.)
When combining two positive numbers, the result is a larger number that is positive. (4 and 2Â =Â + 6)
When combining two negative numbers, the result is a larger number that is negative. (-4 and -2 = -6)
When combining one negative number and one positive number, find the difference between the two numbers and assign that difference the sign of the larger number. (-4 and 2 = -2)
When multiplying (or dividing) both sides of an inequality by a negative number, reverse the inequality sign.
3. Do each step of your problems directly underneath the previous step, so you can bring down each member of the equation that you are not altering in that step, directly as it appears. It is very easy and common to make a copying error. This way of working problems helps you keep track of details like negative signs.
4. Visit a tutor. We’ve seen it all and we’re not grading you so there’s no need to feel self-conscious about your lack of understanding. And we’ve had a lot of practice quickly finding a student’s difficulties in case you have no idea where you are going wrong. We’re not in a hurry and we don’t care if you need lots of explanations. If we weren’t patient, we wouldn’t tutor. It’s also not too late. Many a student has taken an F (high F) at midterm time to a C for the course. Act 101 students can be tutored online evenings and weekends. Those of us who have used this find it to be super convenient and comfortable. After making an appointment, you just log into Blackboard, go to the ACT 101 shell and enter the virtual classroom through the collaborations tab within the communications tab. Math tutoring on campus is available all week and the schedule is on Keystone’s website.
5. Don’t get too discouraged or lose confidence. In math, it only takes one little misunderstanding to miss a lot of problems. You are probably better at math than you think.
6. Practice, practice, practice. Its kind of like learning to play an instrument or a sport.
I chose negative signs for this blog because I find through tutoring that people generally have some problems with them. If you have another topic/problem you would like me to address, email me at Kathy.Tuttle@keystone.edu.
Best of luck with midterms,
Kathy Tuttle
STEPS TO FILL OUT AN ONLINE TUTORING REQUEST FORM
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It is now finals week! You are almost finished! Keep in mind everything you have learned this past semester and apply it! Good luck on your finals and final projects. If you have any questions over the summer, especially about online learning, be sure to send me an email at suzanne.cercone@keystone.edu.
While the semester is coming to an end, I’m sure you still have plenty of work left to do. So, I’m here to offer a few suggestions to make sure you succeed. First, review your syllabus. Make sure you are aware of all assignments including homework, quizzes, exams, and projects. Being prepared for exams and quizzes is essential for doing well. Read the chapter, review Power Point slides, and complete practice exercises. There is also tutoring available if necessary. ACT 101 members can seek tutoring on campus or online. Non-ACT 101 members can seek tutoring on campus. Review all aspects of any paper or projects assigned. Make sure you understand all requirements to ensure not leaving anything out. When in doubt, be sure to ask your professor for clarification. You can also utilize a tutor to review your project before handing it in. As always, I wish you good luck!
Suzanne
1. Participate and contribute through Discussion Board postings. You will not only learn from your course material, but you will learn from your peers.
2. To keep current with the course make it a habit to check in daily. Sometimes you will need to make adjustments or contribute further to the postings.
3. If you are experiencing problems, please seek assistance. You should let your instructor know immediately or contact computer support.
4.The freedom of self-expression carries with it the responsibility to treat others with courtesy and respect at all times so please do not be rude to others while answering discussion forums. Also, no bad language.
5. Take every online course as seriously as you would a traditional course. Just because it is an online course does not mean it will be easy. You must put effort into it and you will do well. This also means you have to “show up” and be present.
6. You should keep up with all assignments and stay ahead on the reading. A few suggestions include printing out the course outline so you can stay current with the class, make use of the course calendar which will contain all assignment due dates, print out or keep a hard copy of the course syllabus for reference.
If you put forth a little effort, you will be very successful in your online courses!
Suzanne
ACT 101 students please be sure to check out everything offered at Patrick Hall and on the Keystone website under Student Life - Support Services. There is a lending library for text books, kitchen ammenities, a lounge, and much, much more. Also, there is online tutoring available via Blackboard for Math and Writing. To fill out a request form click the link below. Take advantage of all of the free services Keystone and ACT 101 have to offer!
http://academic.keystone.edu/OnlineTutoring/requestmath.htm
Welcome back!
I hope everyone is settled into their Spring semester classes. I just wanted to take this time to point out the useful supplements that are included with your text book. Taking time to explore and utilize such supplements will be beneficial in understanding the material covered in the text. The following is a list of supplements included in some of the current texts being used this semester:
Math 101 and 102
Chapter Test Prep Video CD - This is a CD located at the back of the text. It provides step-by-step solutions to problems from the Chapter Practice Test section at the end of each chapter.
Math 111
InterAct Math Tutorial Web site @ www.interactmath.com - This website provides practice exercises which correlate with material covered in the textbook. Exercises are accompanied by interactive solutions.
Math 205
Reference Card - This is a removable card included with new text copies and located in the front of the book. The card contains important formulas, procedure tables and distribution charts.
Take advantage of these great tools!
Suzanne
Well, finals are upon us. I hope you have all tools necessary to ensure final success. Knowing where and when the final is will be is your first step. You must also make sure you know what information the final will cover. Be sure to ask your professor what chapters, sections or areas the final will be on. You should review any power point slides, text book chapters, exercises and notes. Remember, if you need extra help, a tutor is just a click away!
Good luck!
Reading a Math text book
Here are my tips for reading and understanding a Math text book.
You must know what information is being covered and when you will be covering it.
I suggest staying at least one week ahead of the information being covered in class.
Make an overview scan of the chapter by reading the section headings to familiarize yourself with the information.
Pay special attention to the vocabulary words highlighted in bold. You may want to write the words and definitions in you notebook.
Try out the examples given in each section.
Try a few exercises at the end of the chapter/section to see if you understand the infomation before the section is covered. This way you will know what questions you need to ask in class.
If Power Point slides are available, I suggest reviewing and possibly printing them out to have accessible for class.
Gook Luck!
You should first make sure you have the correct calculator for the math course you are taking. I suggest asking your professor if the calculator you purchases or plan to purchase contains all of the keys necessary to perform all required functions. Once you have an appropriate scientific calculator you are ready to start calculating.
Remember to remain calm and don’t panic. There are a lot of buttons and functions! If you take things one step at a time, you will be fine. First, you should read over the instruction booklet which comes with the calculator. Yes, I said it! Read the instructions. Do not throw them out! They will come in handy at some point when you are trying to work through a complicated problem.
Now that you have the correct calculator and have read the instructions you are ready to calculate. Here are a few basics to get you started!
• Be careful to enter numbers and functions correctly
• Using the 2nd button takes you to the functions above a button
• Make sure you use (parenthesis) when completing problems with multiple functions
• is the square root function
• ex is used for exponential function
• x2 is used to square numbers
Good luck!