Mathematics

The mission of the Mathematics Department is:

• To provide all students with the mathematical, statistical, and associated technological tools needed for success in the workforce, at college, and in the increasingly complex modern world.
• To help all students realize their full potential as mathematicians.

We believe that all students are capable of being successful math learners, that our abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work. The mathematics curriculum is grounded in the school’s mission and expectations for student learning and has been constructed around Massachusetts and National Common Core standards. Students, your job in all math classes is to ask “why?”. Why does it work this way? Why do we do that? Why does that happen? What conditions make that happen? Questions and curiosity help good math learners become great math learners.

Requirements

1.  Students are required to complete four credits of mathematics. It is strongly recommended that all students take a full-year math course during each year of high school.

2. A student who has not completed Algebra 1 successfully within the Hamilton-Wenham School District will be required to show adequate understanding of algebra concepts and algorithms prior to enrolling in a geometry course.

3.  Prerequisites must be met prior to taking a course.

The Mathematics Department strongly recommends that if possible, every student purchase a TI-84 or TI 84 plus graphing calculator. We believe that utilizing a graphing calculator increases a student’s understanding of concepts and allows a broader, deeper exploration of mathematics throughout our curriculum. The TI-84 graphing calculator offers some very useful built-in applications that are used in some of our courses. Additionally the AP Calculus and AP Statistics courses are designed by the College Board to be taught using TI graphing calculators and the AP examinations for these courses allow their use but do not allow the use of phones, tablets or iPads.

Resources

Below are links to resources that might help students and families interested in preparing/preloading for Algebra 1. Students can work through one of the programs in its entirety or select specific topics that they need to work on. Both programs offer opportunities for practice and provide video tutorials for instruction and support.

• Khan Academy: Get Ready for Algebra 1
• Mr. Morgan’s Math Help: Prep for High School Algebra

MATHEMATICS COURSE OFFERINGS

*These courses do not count toward the required 4 years of mathematics and must be taken in conjunction with another math course.