How to Teach With Pre-Calculus Textbooks
Many high schools across the United States offer a pre-calculus class to students. Pre-calculus covers some of the basic math skills students in which students must be proficient before taking calculus. Teachers of pre-calculus can help students learn the information they need to know by teaching with a pre-calculus textbook.
Instructions
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Encourage students to read ahead. This helps them prepare for the next class and introduces them to the pre-calculus topic you will be discussing in class.
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Ask students to follow along using their book. As you discuss the lesson for the day, ask your students to open their pre-calculus textbook to the correct chapter to follow along. Although most of their attention may be directed to you and the chalkboard, they can reference the book and the problems in it as they watch you work them out.
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Show students how to solve pre-calculus problems. This is especially important if you are presenting new formulas and information that students haven't previously used in algebra or trigonometry. These problems can be worked out on an overhead projector, chalkboard or dry-erase board.
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Require students to take notes. Make students copy down the problems on the board as you are working them out, showing them step by step how to solve the equation. They can refer to these notes and their pre-calculus textbook later when doing their homework assignments.
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Answer questions from students. Not being able to find the right answer can be frustrating for students and quickly turn them off from the lesson being taught. Take time during your class to answer any questions students might have about the steps involved in obtaining an answer or how you got the answer itself.
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Review areas the class struggles with. If you assign homework or give a math test and a large percentage of the class population does poorly, you may need to revisit that specific pre-calculus topic and teach it again. Anything in pre-calculus that students don't understand can be problematic later during calculus when lessons build on fundamentals learned in pre-calculus.
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Tips & Warnings
Pre-calculus is an advanced class in many schools. If this is true for your institution, it may not be necessary to require note taking and reading ahead since some advanced students have developed good study skills.
