Algebra 1
Course Overview
Course Overview
Course Goals and Content:
When students move from arithmetic to Algebra, they are moving from the realm of the tangible to the realm of the abstract. They are making a shift from real numbers, which are constant, to variables, which are not. The work of the Algebra 1 course grounds them in this more fluid way of thinking. At the same time that their thinking is becoming more fluid, the methods and practices are relatively formal, requiring close attention, precision, and sequential thinking.
Topic Areas:
Pre-requisites:
Students shall be proficient in the skills listed in the Pre-Algebra course description.
Typical Class Session:
Review: Homework is assigned at the end of each class session. At the start of the following session the teacher provides a short review and then offers to work through problems the students may not have been able to solve. Homework is collected.
New Instruction: New content is presented with discussion, questions, and whiteboard examples. Students participate in solving additional problems at the whiteboard and at their desks.
Hands-On Activity: One of the following is typically done: math puzzles, math games, mechanical drafting problems and other math challenges. Students may work individually or in groups.
Quiz: A very short quiz provides a quick assessment of the student’s grasp of the new material.
Homework: Homework on the new material is assigned. Students are given a few minutes to begin the assignment.
Grading:
20% for classroom participation, 20% for homework completion, and 60% for quizzes.
Required Materials:
-Text: Houghton Mifflin’s Algebra – Structure and Method: Book 1, by Brown, Dolciani, Sorgenfrey and Cole.
ISBN 9780395676080
-Calculator: Texas Instruments model TI-30XS
When students move from arithmetic to Algebra, they are moving from the realm of the tangible to the realm of the abstract. They are making a shift from real numbers, which are constant, to variables, which are not. The work of the Algebra 1 course grounds them in this more fluid way of thinking. At the same time that their thinking is becoming more fluid, the methods and practices are relatively formal, requiring close attention, precision, and sequential thinking.
Topic Areas:
- Variables, substitution, evaluating expressions; writing algebraic expressions; dependent and independent variables; combining like terms.
- Equation basics; one-step addition and subtraction of equations; two-step solutions; three-step solutions; linear equations with variables on both sides.
- Graphing linear equations using slope-intercept form; standard form graphing; two-point formula graphing; average rate of change; interpreting features of linear graphs, constructing linear models for real-world relationships; linear models word problems.
- Understanding functions; functional notation; domain and range; function testing.
- Systems of equations; solving by elimination, substitution, and graphing.
- Absolute values.
Pre-requisites:
Students shall be proficient in the skills listed in the Pre-Algebra course description.
Typical Class Session:
Review: Homework is assigned at the end of each class session. At the start of the following session the teacher provides a short review and then offers to work through problems the students may not have been able to solve. Homework is collected.
New Instruction: New content is presented with discussion, questions, and whiteboard examples. Students participate in solving additional problems at the whiteboard and at their desks.
Hands-On Activity: One of the following is typically done: math puzzles, math games, mechanical drafting problems and other math challenges. Students may work individually or in groups.
Quiz: A very short quiz provides a quick assessment of the student’s grasp of the new material.
Homework: Homework on the new material is assigned. Students are given a few minutes to begin the assignment.
Grading:
20% for classroom participation, 20% for homework completion, and 60% for quizzes.
Required Materials:
-Text: Houghton Mifflin’s Algebra – Structure and Method: Book 1, by Brown, Dolciani, Sorgenfrey and Cole.
ISBN 9780395676080
-Calculator: Texas Instruments model TI-30XS