As we continue into the fall, tutoring gets busier by the week. Sometimes teachers delay posting grades and returning assignments so it can be hard to gauge your standing in classes. I try to make room for many requests I get for tutoring but it's not always possible to fit new students into my schedule. The earlier you reach out to me to schedule a session, the better. Even if you just want me to hold a particular day and time for you as a tentative session, I can do that. And we can try a tria...
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Scholarship tips
The process of applying to scholarships can be daunting. Which ones do I apply to? Which ones do I have the best shot at winning? Here is my experience. The bottom line is have patience and make sure to apply for the less competitive (lower rewards) scholarships. I won a ton of scholarships my 5th year as an undergrad--so much that I not only paid for the year's tuition but had to return extra money. Prior to that I had only been selected for one scholarship. Most of the scholarships I won ...
MoreCollege Readiness Events
Seattle Public Schools is hosting several college readiness events in the near future. FAFSA applications can be submitted as early as Oct. 1, and the following events will help those with paperwork: Oct. 1 Garfield and Northgate Library
Oct. 8, Northgate Library
October 17 Franklin High
October 20, Nathan Hale
October 20, West Seattle H.S.
October 22, Northgate Library
October 23, Central Library
October 27, Chief Sealth H.S.
November 3, Rainier Beach H.S.
Novem...
MoreTangents of circles
In the following question we are asked to find angle Y in the pictured circle. We are given angle E as 80° and told that the rays extending from point E are circumscribed to circle O (they are tangents to the circle). In order to find angle B we first must recall that angles F and G will be 90° because any radius segment will meet perpendicular to a tangent line. And if you recall that a quadrilateral has 360°, we know that angle O will be 100°. Since angle O is a central angle, it is als...
MoreInscribed angles
A common question in geometry class is finding inscribed angle. What is an inscribed angle? It's an angle formed by two chords that have a vertex at one edge of a circle and distinct endpoints at somewhere else on the circle. This is in contrast to a central angle, which has a vertex at the center of the circle, from which two legs extend to the edges of the circle. In the picture above of problem 1, we see the top circle consists of a central angle that forms an arc of 90 degrees. Below ...
MoreHow to calculate distance to horizon
Imagine you're on a boat in the ocean and in the far distance a sliver of land appears. You wonder: How can we calculate that distance between us and that piece of land. The distance depends on two things: the curvature of the earth (a known entity) and the height of your eyes from the water's surface. We can use height above the surface in feet and distance to horizon in miles. Let's use the equation: sqrt(height above surface/0.5736)= distance to the horizon. Let's look at a 100 ft tall ...
Moretrouble remember trig identities?
Check out some of these pointers if you need some memorization and derivation help before a test: http://math.stackexchange.com/a/93282
MoreFinding combinations
Probability is not the easiest subject in math...but it is incredibly useful so it can definitely be worth the time to understand it. Here's a problem you may find in precalculus: You've got 6 baseball bats of varying lengths and weights but only room for 3 of them on your road trip. How many different combinations of bats can you take with you? For the first choice you have 6 options, the second choice you have 5 options and the third choice you have 4 options. That's 6x5x4 combination...
MoreSeattle Tutoring Services Math Scholarship
A Scholarship for anyone who has struggled with math
The Seattle Tutoring Services Math Scholarship was created to recognize the struggles of students in math courses and encourage students to create a new and more successful path. As a math tutor, I realize studying math isn’t always fun. Getting stuck on homework problems, failing class, and struggling to get satisfactory standardized test scores can lead to frustration. Unfortunately, this can limit academic and professional opportunities...
MoreTI-89 vs TI-84
TI-89 vs TI-84: A buyer's guide Students typically have to purchase a graphing calculator for high school and college...So the question becomes: Which one? Texas Instruments are often the go-to for instructors. They've been around for a long time (the calculators, that is) and most instructors were trained on these devices. So let's put two of the most commonly considered calculators head to head: the TI-89 vs TI-84 Plus CE.
-Watch the comparison video
TI-89 vs ...
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