Re: mathematica tutor for NYC high school student
- To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
- Subject: [mg100651] Re: mathematica tutor for NYC high school student
- From: Mike <autodidacter at gmail.com>
- Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 05:34:55 -0400 (EDT)
- References: <h0fvja$ra0$1@smc.vnet.net> <h0i8gu$j8t$1@smc.vnet.net>
On Jun 7, 11:45 pm, "VMCM1905" <VMCM1... at gmail.com> wrote: > <hlalv... at aol.com> wrote in messagenews:h0fvja$ra0$1 at smc.vnet.net... > > Hello > > > We are wondering if you can help us with this. > > > We live in Manhattan (NYC) and are seriously considering withdrawing > > our 15 yr old son (presently in 9th grade) from the school system and > > give him homeschooling that is creative, adventurous and > > non-competing. > > 2 out of three is good. He will need some competitiveness, it will help > drive him. > The more you son learns, the more confidence he will attain. > Home schooling is good for some things, but terrible for others. > Try instead to get your child into a better school district. If money is > tight or that option is not available, the supplement his education > yourself. > Go to a nearby university and ask a professor there if he may audit a > course. Most professors will be glad to accept him if he will not cause > trouble. > > > Naturally, for Math we are thinking of Mathematica so all his high > > school > > math curriculum can be done visually but with mathematical rigor. > > Depending on the level he is at, shelve Mathematica for a while. Let him > grind the math by hand. Some explorations are augmented by mathmatica, > but only in later stages after one has learned the fundamentals. > You don't want him to be someone who has to "go to the computer" when it > comes time to integrate and simplify an expression. > > > Question: Do you know some group/program/person in NYC so we can find > > a > > Mathematica tutor for our son so he gets excited about the > > inherent beauty of Math and covers the basic knowledge he needs ? > > Your son needs to attain the exitement of math through his expereince > with people that he innitiates. Don't rely on others to "get him > exited." > The best thing you can do is expose him to math indirectly. Talk with > him about your experiences with math. Get lots of good PBS and discovery > channel programs on math and science. > > > He needs to cover Geometry, Trig, Algebra and Calculus at the high > > school level (grades 9-12). > > > It is a long shot, but I am placed in Architecture and need to look > > outside my field for guidance. So the web becomes my first stop. At > > some point I will walk over to Courant Inst and see if they can help. > > > Best regards > > > Prof. H. Lalvani, PhD > > If you are a prof at a university or college, you can have your son > audit courses. I agree totally. Homeschooling is something I wish my parents did not put me through. The social interaction would have been nice (in some cases). As for auditing classes, that is a great way to learn things! I had a chance to learn college level algebra by sitting in on a class. Calculus I and II were done with some books I found in a throw out bin on campus, but I did take calculus III by sitting in on a class at a local college. And odd as it may seem, being inspired about math may come from unexpected sources. Mine came from a combination of watching a show called Numb3rs, and reading Jurassic Park. Good luck.