September 2010 Archives

Now that we've learned a bit about Quadratic Functions, it's time to dig a little deeper. Today's free Algebra 1 video is on Characteristics of Quadratic Functions. For example, did you know that when graphing quadratics, the graph, known as a parabola, might cross the x-axis as often as twice or maybe not at all? Also, all parabolas have an axis of symmetry, or a line that splits them into two halves with the lowest or highest point on this axis being the vertex. The vertex is also the turning point on a parabola, where it goes from up to down or down to up. In today's video, Professor Burger will demonstrate how you can find the axis of symmetry and the vertex of any Quadratic Function. Today's video has a total of 5 lectures, so make sure you click the forward button to the left of the time stamp to move to the next lecture and see them all.

A quadratic function is any function that can be written in the form y = ax² + bx + c, where a, b, and c are real numbers and a ≠ 0. It is a really important function to understand, as you'll see it over and over in math and beyond. In fact, it's so important that today's free Algebra 1 video has a total of 5 lectures on it! Professor Burger covers everything from what makes the quadratic function a quadratic to what the graphs of quadratics look like. Big hint: they're parabolas! I absolutely love graphing equations and today's video has several lectures covering just that. By the time you finish with all the lectures, you'll be able to just look at an equation and tell a lot about what the graph will look like.

Don't forget to click the forward button directly to the left of the timestamp in order to move to the next lecture. You won't want to miss a minute!

Also, if you aren't already, you should follow us on Twitter. Not only do I share educational links and articles, but I also love to chat with our students, parents and all the fun folks online. So log on and say hello!

We've been working with polynomials this week and now it's time to test your knowledge. Since it's been awhile since we posted a worksheet, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to share a free 8th grade math worksheet on Operations with Polynomials. This can be a difficult subject matter for many students, so this worksheet can be a very useful review.  You get 6 pages worth of questions that cover everything from adding and subtracting polynomials to multiplying polynomials by monomials and multiplying binomials.  All of our online courses come with worksheets that cover each topic in a subchapter and then one like this that covers an entire subchapter. This way, every student gets plenty of review throughout their courses.

As many of you may know, our incredible math professor, Edward Burger, is nominated for The Ultimate Game Changer in Education by the Huffington Post. We've heard from many of our students about what a major influence he's been on their studies and we want the world to know just how great he is. With the end of the month approaching, voting will soon be wrapping up and it's a really close competition. Please take the time to go vote for Professor Burger for the Ultimate Game Changer in Education.

Earlier we looked at adding polynomials. In today's free 8th grade math video, we are studying the opposite, subtracting polynomials. When we want to subtract polynomials, all we have to remember is to add the opposite. What's the opposite of a polynomial? Well, we just put a negative sign in front. Not too bad, right? But did you know there are two different ways to subtract polynomials? Professor Burger will teach you both the vertical and horizontal methods of subtracting polynomials over the 4 lectures included in today's video. He even has a real-life example of how this concept could be used in big business. So there is a reason to learn your math!

Make sure you click the forward button directly to the left of the time stamp to move to the next lecture on the video. You won't want to miss a minute!

In today's free 8th grade math video, we are diving into the world of polynomials with Professor Edward Burger. In case you forgot, a polynomial is a mathematical expression involving a sum of powers in one or more variables multiplied by coefficients. Today's video is on the subject of adding polynomials. We can add polynomials together by simply taking two polynomials and combining the like terms. The secret is to use the associative property and the commutative property to rearrange things so you can combine like terms.

Sounds complicated, right? But it's not nearly as bad as it sounds. We've got a total of 3 lectures for you today that will demonstrate how to add polynomials. You'll also have the opportunity to run through a few examples to give you a solid understanding of today's subject. Just don't forget to click on the forward button directly to the left of the time stamp to move to the next lecture on the video. Watch them all and you'll be adding polynomials like a pro!

Don't forget to "like" us on Facebook! We share tons of fun educational links and have areas to discuss homeschooling, schooling, and anything else with other Thinkwell fans. We love to hear from our students and parents!

Intercepts, the points where a line crosses either the x-axis or the y-axis, are really helpful in saying where a line is on a graph. With just those two points, you can completely determine the line. In today's free 8th grade math video, you'll learn how to do just that and more!

Ever heard of slope-intercept form? It's a popular way of expressing the formula for a straight line. It always is: y=mx+b where m represents the slope of the line, and the b represents the y-intercept. So using a little bit of algebra you can easily solve and express lines in slope-intercept form.

Over 4 lectures, Professor Burger gives you a thorough explanation of both intercepts and slope-intercept form. Work through a couple of real world examples and graph your way to understanding today's concept. We think you'll love learning from a video instead of a giant textbook!

We've known for a long time that Thinkwell mathematics author, Edward Burger, was a game changer in the world of math education. His passionate approach to teaching and learning mathematics has changed the lives of students far and wide. Now, it seems, the rest of the world is catching up to what we've known for all these years!

Professor Burger has been nomiated as 'The Ultimate Game Changer in Education' by the Huffington Post. HuffPost's Game Changers series celebrates the innovators, visionaries, and leaders who, whether working in the spotlight or under the radar, are changing how we look at the world and the way we live in it.

If Professor Burger has changed your game when it comes to learning math, please go and vote for him today by clicking here.

We feel certain that the more people embrace Professor Burger's unique approach to learning math---an approach that champions reasoning over memorization, thinking it through rather than giving up, and celebrating mistakes---the better equipped we'll all be to celebrate the beauty and fun of mathematics.

We're studying more graphs in today's free 8th grade math video on Slope of a Line. Professor Edward Burger will teach you that a slope of a line is the ratio of rise to run for any two points. Rise is the difference in the y-values of two points on a line. Run is the difference in the x-values of two points on a line. The easy way to remember slope is rise over run.

First you'll learn how to find the slope of a line and use slope to understand and draw graphs. Then, learn about the constant rate of change and its implication on the slope of a line. Finally, Professor Burger will also demonstrate a physics application of slope so you can practice this concept and acquire a stronger understanding. Don't forget to click on the forward button to the left of the time stamp to move to the next lecture. With a whopping 4 lectures, you won't want to miss a second!

By taking the time to graph an equation, you can easily determine whether the equation is linear or not. Why? A linear equation is basically an equation whose solutions fall on a line on the coordinate plane. If you graph an equation and it does not line up in a straight line, it is not a linear equation. Today's video not only covers graphing linear equations, but also rates of change and slopes. A rate of change is a ratio that compares the amount of change in a dependent variable to the amount of change in an independent variable. In today's lectures, you'll practice determining whether the rate of change is constant or variable for a data set. This can be helpful as each term in a linear equation is either a constant or the product of a constant and a single variable.

Today's free 8th grade math video covers Graphing Linear Equations. Don't forget to click the forward button directly to the left of the time stamp to move to the next lecture in the video. Watch all three lectures with Professor Edward Burger and get a solid foundation on the subject.

An inequality is a statement that compares two expressions using one of the following signs: <, >, ≤,  ≥, or ≠. They allow us to compare any two quantities. If you have heard someone use the words "greater than" or "less than" they were expressing an inequality. We use them often in our day-to-day lives. Go shopping and you might find yourself comparing two items: "This bottle of shampoo is larger than this other bottle."

In today's free 8th grade math video, Introduction to Inequalities, Professor Burger demonstrates several inequalities to show you how fun they are once you learn the basics. He even demonstrates how to actually graph an inequality. This is important stuff because you will come back to it over and over as you move forward in your math learning. Over the course of three lectures, you'll get a solid introduction and understand how we even use inequalities in our everyday language. Don't forget to click on the forward button to the left of the time stamp to move to the next lecture and view the entire lesson!

Also, in case you've wondered if Thinkwell is the right curriculum for you, check out our Thinkwell Review page! You'll see several videos our students have made to show how much they love our classes and us. We're super-flattered and excited by how great the videos are!

We are very excited to announce the launch our brand new Biology iPhone app: Video Biology. With this app, you will have access to over 65 hours of Thinkwell's award-winning video lectures anytime, any place. It also includes tons of useful features like the ability to search for a particular video and a library to store your favorite lectures.

With Thinkwell's Video Biology app you can:

• • Watch over 2 hours of select Biology videos for FREE from the "Free Lessons" area
• • Search for a particular video to help you prepare for that upcoming test
• • Add your favorite videos to your Library for fast access anytime.

Did we forget to mention all of these videos are taught by none other than Professor George Wolfe?

60-second previews to all the videos are free. Access to the full library of video content can be purchased via a 30, 60, 90, or 120 day subscription.

Thinkwell's Video Biology app is available for free through the App Store on iTunes:
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/video-biology/id377011725?mt=8

Solving equations that involve multiplication and division can be a bit tricky. The key is to remember to keep the delicate balance of the equation. To keep everything in check, whatever you do to one side you have to do to the other. So, if we multiply the left side by a number, you must also multiply the right side by the same number. And if you are unsure if you've done it right, you can always check the answer by plugging the solution into the original equation and seeing if the equation holds. It's important to check your work to make certain there is not a mistake. If you do find a mistake, check to see what you did wrong so you'll do it correctly next time.

Today we're jumping into 8th grade math with today's free math video.  Edward Burger will help you understand Multiplication and Division Equations as he explains the concept in 3 lectures. You'll learn exactly how to solve one-step equations by using multiplication or division. Click on the forward button directly to the left of the time stamp to move to the next lecture on the video.
 

When you are suddenly presented with a string of math involving multiple actions, what do you do? For example if you see the problem 25 minus 21 divided by 3 what do you do first? Do you divide or subtract first? Thankfully, there exists a mathematical convention that solves this issue.  Order of Operations is a rule that tells you precisely what order to perform the math you might find within a mathematical expression.

Do you remember PEMDAS? Or maybe you recognize "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally", the mnemonic created to help you remember PEMDAS.  PEMDAS stands for: Parentheses, Exponentiation, Multiplication, Division, Addition and Subtraction.  Learning the order is one thing, but actually using it can be much more difficult.

Today's free 7th grade math video is on Order of Operations. Learn and practice this concept with Professor Edward Burger. In 3 lectures, he covers each step and several examples to get you calculating complicated mathematical expressions with ease. This is an important rule to understand and you will need to use it with more difficult math concepts. Don't forget to click the forward button to move to the next lecture so you don't miss a minute!

Have a great Labor Day weekend everyone!

When dealing with really large numbers, it is often easiest to express them as a power. A power has two fundamental pieces: the base and the exponent. The exponent tells us how many times we will have to factor the base. So if you have a base of 3 with the exponent of 5, it's the same thing as 3 times 3 times 3 times 3 times 3. You can see how this is a big number expressed in a compact way as a power.

Today's free 7th grade math video is on Exponents. Watch three lectures with Edward Burger and you'll have a solid understanding of this concept. Exponents are incredibly important; you will encounter them frequently as you progress in your math learning. So, make certain you click on the forward button at the end of each lecture to move to the next one and watch the entire video.