I’m taking Honors Precalculus this school year and I’m pretty scared. I’m just wondering which topics are mostly covered in the class, and how hard it is? Also really need tips on how to succeed and do well in the class, so if anyone who has taken the class has any tips or suggestions, that would be great! Thank you!
General rule of thumb is that whatever your grade was in Alg II/Trig is more or less what your PreCalc grade is going to be.
I myself had this rule (which my kid thought was bunk) to always do the hardest homework problems first, and to do all the problems (sometimes teachers will assign only odd numbers or even-numbered problems). Other than that, no other suggestions out of the ordinary. It’s only a hard class if you don’t ask for help.
How hard this is will largely depend upon how you do in math in general.
If you are strong in math this will be not all that hard.
If you are not quite as strong at math then you would do well to try to keep ahead, seek out help early where you need it, and try to do your homework when it is assigned rather than just before its due. Also, you want to understand the concepts. Definitely do not just try to memorize the formulae.
Some students do well with a tutor. A good tutor should help you understand the concepts. I have seen good tutors who are teachers, and good tutors who are just kids in the same class.
“Precalc” is an incredibly vague term. Each school pretty much decides what to cover-- there doesn’t seem to be any real agreement.
In my experience, the Precalc course I teach is far easier than Algebra II & Trig. it doesn’t move as quickly-- the problems are longer but there are far fewer topics to cover. There are fewer formulas to memorize, and we encourage our kids to make full use of the TI84’s ability to save formulas. The material doesn’t build the way it does in Algebra II & Trig-- the material you cover in October won’t necessarily haunt you for the rest of the year.
But that’s my school. Your school syllabus may very well be different.
As to suggestions:
- Know how to use your calculator, including details like knowing whether you’re in-- or want to be in-- radians or degrees.
- If you use a traditional textbook (as opposed to an ebook), know that at this level, the answers to the odd numbered questions are usually found in the back of the book. (That's why so many teachers assign the even numbers as homework.) So if you need review, do the odds and compare your answers. They won't show the work, but you'll have a decent idea of whether or not you're basically on target.
- Consider forming a study group with other kids in the class.
- Sometimes, you simply need a different word choice to get that "AHA!" moment, so don't hesitate to go to a different teacher if you need extra help. And the fact that the other teacher isn't currently teaching Precalc does NOT always mean that they're rusty on the material! I've taught everything from Math 7 to Intro to Calculus; what I'm teaching from year to year is a function of where we need teachers, not my ability or comfort level.
Check this for tips: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/high-school-life/2026961-what-to-do-when-you-arent-doing-well-in-a-hs-class-p1.html
Pre-calc is useless
I’m sorry I’ve been saying this in every thread but its true. The only concepts that transfer over to calculus AB and BC is partial fraction decomposition and trig identities which are rarely even tested. I self studied Pre-calc and skipped to AB and got a 5 with some extra studying.
For me and my friends, we believe that precalc is hard for no reason and is not really a prep to Calculus…
Amazingly enough, not every kid in every school ks a kid just like you.
I’ve taught Precalc many, many times. And for a lot of kids, it was exactly the right math course to take as a senior. That’s why high school administrators continue to offer it.
The OP asked a legitimate question about his fears for taking Precalc. Your response was designed to make him feel stupid for even taking the course, much less worrying about it. It’s what’s known as a “humble brag”-- intended to look as though you’re helping, when in reality you’re simply using the opportunity to tell the world just how smart you are.
If you’re going to post the same garbage advice, I guess I need to cut and paste my same response.
I would recommend the OP following the school’s math track as opposed to taking advice from HS students (or college students or adults for that matter) who are neither familiar with the curriculum at your school or your own ability. Just because some other kid did it does not mean it’s appropriate for you. It’s called pre-calc for a reason. Additionally, at many schools, the last couple of months of pre-calc is actually a start on the Calc AB topics. So skipping (assuming the school would even allow it) could put you a few months behind your classmates.
Actually, while that may (or may not) have been the intent, the respondent’s poor use of English makes the humblebrag (if that’s what it was) fall short, and, for me, invalidates the advice.
Let me revise my answer, when I say Pre-calc is unnecessary, I mean most of the concepts that you learn in a pre-calc course can be simply learnt in Calculus. yes, it depends on your skills and motivation. Also I used the wrong word I guess, what i mean by skipping is really self-studying.
Anyway, OP… if you do choose to return to this thread:
If you do hit some snags along the way, feel free to ask me for help. You can post a question, or PM me and I’ll be happy to help you-- or anyone else-- out.