Award-Winning Test Prep & Academic Tutoring in Mount Ephraim, NJ

During today's session, the student and I spent nearly all of our time working on confidence intervals using proportions. We began by reviewing the differences between samples and populations, statistics and parameters, and the different notations found within each. I think just doing this review helped her grasp a lot of the things that were confusing her. After that, we reviewed a quiz she had just taken about estimation using confidence intervals. We went through the very purpose of confidence intervals, how they work, how they are constructed, what they mean, and how they are interpreted. The concept is: in order to estimate an unknown parameter, we take a sample, find a point estimate, and then construct a range of values within which we believe the parameter falls, given a certain level of confidence. I used a few examples from everyday speech to illustrate exactly what a confidence is and how it is interpreted. After working through the concept extensively, we reviewed the quiz in detail. I think this really helped because after our discussion, the student was not only able to see where she slipped up on the quiz, but also able to complete the problems she got wrong. I gave her a few practice problems to do, and she was able to complete them with very few issues. Finally, I introduced the differences between using proportions and means in confidence intervals and why using means is a little more complicated. I hope that this helps her as she begins working on means in the following week. I also emailed her a few readings from a different textbook that I think explains these units in slightly clearer, more conceptual ways. Hopefully this will prove helpful to her as she moves forward. Overall I think we made a great deal of progress and that today was a very good session.

We worked on simple interest and compound interest. We discussed interest and how the two interest differ. I explained the interest formula. The student then was able to apply it to solving word problems on the topic. She shows great confidence in distinguishing the two interest and appropriately applying the formula.

We covered angle identities, geometric notation, postulates vs theorems, and types of proofs. Our next session, we will start on triangles.

Today, the student and I began by working with circles. We covered using the formula for a circle to find its center and/or radius, as well as the other way around. We then worked with tangents and angles involving circles. Next, we did more with triangles and trigonometry. He is making a lot of progress. His grades have come up significantly in the last couple months. He seemed excited to understand trigonometry so easily. He still needs to memorize and get more comfortable with using circles and the equation for a circle. His attitude remains positive. He is very bright, he just needs something to spark his interest to help motivate him.

Student 1: Concepts: Continued with reading comprehension and vocabulary for "Charlotte's Web." Wins: The student has been making great progress since we moved the session from the library to his home. Student 2: Concepts: Short /a/ vowel sounds. Attitude: Very excited to learn, has a lot of fun in our sessions.

The student and I focused on History this evening, studying notes on FDR and the New Deal. She seemed interested in the subject matter. We also wrapped up an Algebra packet on factoring; she has improved tremendously there.