October 2010
I question SF Giants "fans" on bandwagon jumpers
Among the usual banter of how the Giants are “all that” I hear more people complaining about bandwagon jumpers. What I find odd is how so-called hardcore Giants fans complain of people who jump to side with the Giants. I’ve got a few questions for you hardcore Giants “fans” who dislike bandwagon-ers:
1) How do you think the fan bases grow?
2) Have you ever changed...
SAT Score Reports - 10/28
For those who took the SATs: The score reports are available on October 28, 2010. That’s a Thursday. Therefore, your scores will be reported to the schools/universities you have chosen to send them to also.
GPA and drivers insurance discount
Benicia High school happened to give out 1st Quarter grades recently. This reminded me about 1 of a few things that GPA actually affects. Insurance discounts for students who are drivers. I’ve had Geico since high school and they give discounts for those who maintain a 3.0 or higher. The higher, obviously, the better the discount. In laymens terms, you gotta average and maintain a...
Observation/Interview at Benicia High School -...
I will try to give a balanced opinion about Mr. Sindel of Benicia High School. First off, why am I focusing on this teacher and not about the other teachers I’ve observed? The answer is two parts: (1) Of the three (technically four) students that I tutor or have tutored that go to Benicia High are currently or have been influenced by this teacher in a negative way, and (2) I needed to...
At Benicia Library...
…and there’s this one dude at the public computer terminal playing online poker. How would I know this? He’s giggly about winning 3 hands in a row and amassing tens-of-thousands worth of chips.
…and there are elementary kids who are playing around the grown-up section of the library. Yeap. Someone is slacking on the parenting skills. No surprise.
Gotta concentrate over...
Purple Dashboard
Well, if you’re not wearing purple today.. I guess this will do just fine?
13 positive characteristics of effective teachers:
1. Good methodology
2. Identifying the aim of a lesson
3. Dividing tasks into parts
4. Supplying or demanding summaries of a lesson
5. Tasks with a high degree of difficulty
6. Getting students to think automatically
7. Stimulating comments
8. Students actively involved in learning
9. Not making discouraging comments when students make mistakes
10. Focusing on the essential points
11....
Silly thing happened today..
.. er rather yesterday.
I went to the JFK Library to return some stuff I borrowed. Looking for parking on the City of Vallejo side, I met a squirrel. The squirrel was in the middle of the parking lot sitting on it’s hind legs. Maybe it was chillin in the shade of the tree. Who knows? The crazy part happened to be me in the car still not parked and Mr. squirrel was on the collision course...
SAT: October 9th (tomorrow)
For those who are taking SAT tomorrow, remember what to do for tonight for tomorrow (unless you have done so)
1. You’re going to have a 8 or 9am start on the SAT. Thus, have all your stuff together:
-Admission ticket
-Pencils
-Calculator
-ID/Student badge
-Snacks
2. Sleep early tonight. You may stay up in your room for an hour or so just feeling anxious. Plan to go to bed early and do...
SAT: Raw points vs Scaled points
Alright, so many people are worried about how many points they’ll earn on the SAT. Why is this? Certain colleges have minimums which are required for “consideration.” The reality is that no matter what your score is, your overall high school GPA will also be taken into consideration. Many schools post both GPA-SAT score minimums, but this is a tactic to weed out students in a...
Who looks at this stuff anyway? Lots of people...
I search for tutors on Craigslist. The ones that are within driving distance to me are people who can influence the most students around my area. This means if you choose such a person to help you at math, then it could be likely one of these job posters.
Each post I’ve been to have interesting credentials and ways of communicating: “I want your business.” Be careful out in...
Check this trippy math work!
Someone said that “Math is fake” and proceeded to show proof. The proof is flawed. If you (first person) can tell me where, I will treat you to ice cream or I don’t know yet.
[This problem is geared toward my students and former students.. not the college graduates on my friends list.] :P
This is his argument—
x = y therefore: x^2 = xy x^2-y^2 = xy-y^2 (x+y)(x-y) =...
SAT: Night before, day of, and during the test.
I just typed out a list of things a person who is taking the SAT may do the night before the test, the day of the test, and during the test. Why would I do this? Well, because I’m tutoring a person who is preparing to take the test October 9th.
Below is a copy and paste of the draft list that I made. If SAT testing pertains to you, check this out:
The night before the test
1. Don’t stay...
