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Calculus (M510d) 2007-2008

Course Information

Teacher:  Siva Sankrithi

E-mail:     siva dot sankrithi at lakesideschool dot org

Phone:     (206) 440-2733 (Lakeside); (206) 261-6366 (Cell)

Website:   http://www.lakesideschool.org/upperschool/departments/math/sankrithi/SivasWebPage.htm

Textbook: Calculus, Hughes-Hallett, Gleason, et al., Third Edition

                (Need to purchase as soon as you can, available at Lakeside bookstore, online, etc.)

Period:     6th Tuesday/Friday 12:35-1:20; Thursday 10:55-12:10

Location:  Allen-Gates 203

What is Calculus?

Calculus is one of the most applicable forms of mathematics, finding a wide array of uses in not only mathematics and the physical sciences, but in economics and engineering as well.  Whenever the concept of “rate of change” comes up, calculus is involved (in fact, soon we will see that this rate of change = the derivative).  For example, the rate of change of position is the instantaneous velocity (whose magnitude is speed), and the rate of change of the instantaneous velocity is acceleration.  Likewise we will learn how to go backwards from acceleration to velocity, and from velocity to position using an anti-derivative of sorts (which we will rename the integral).  While the practicality of calculus will be the prime focus of this course, calculus also has many fantastic theoretical results, some of which we will discuss in the year to come.  One way or another, irrespective of your field of interest, calculus and the problem solving techniques you will learn and master in this course can and will be able to serve you not only in your college careers but in your lives thereafter.

Course Schedule:

In this course, we will progress more or less sequentially through the textbook, however following chapter 2 we will skip to chapter 5 and then return to chapters 3 and 4 so as to give a conceptual and more intuitive understanding of the derivative and the integral (the two most fundamental concepts in calculus) before proceeding on to methods of solving them.  We will make sure to cover all you need to know for the AP Calculus AB exam as well should you desire to take it in the spring.

Materials:

For this course, you will need a TI-83/83+ calculator, some sort of note taking system (e.g. notebook or 3-ring binder), and either loose lined paper or an engineering pad (this might be more useful as we will have to do quite a few graphs in this course) to turn in homework on (assignments done electronically are perfectly acceptable as well).  Most importantly, bring a curiosity and open mind and this will make the course much more enjoyable for all of us.

Homework:

Homework in this course will be assigned daily and should be completed by the following class.  Once completed, we will have sometime at the beginning of each class to go over the homework and answer any questions that you may have.  Rather than my answering all of the questions, we will have this time of the class be more or less student run, with willing students who have a solution to the question coming up and presenting their solution.  This way, you all can get a chance to show your work to the class and we can learn a variety of different approaches to solving the same problem.  I encourage you all to take chances, make mistakes, and learn from them, for I strongly feel that the approach to solving a problem is of equal or greater importance than the final answer.  That being the case, I will consider a wrong final answer with good steps shown better than a correct answer with no work shown.  I will look over homeworks during class activities; however I will not grade the homework.  That being said, if homework is not turned in your grade will suffer.

Grading:

Your grade will be determined by your performance on Tests, Quizzes, and Projects, with the median grade traditionally being approximately a B.  Homework and Class Participation will serve as tiebreakers if you are on the cusp between two grades.

Attendance:

Attendance at every class is mandatory.  If for some reason you do miss a class, you are responsible for turning in the homework for that day (email is an acceptable means of doing so in the event that you are unable to come to campus).  If you are just going to miss 6th period for some reason, you are more than welcome to attend any of the other three sections of calculus (2nd, 5th, and 8th).

Communication:

The best means to contact me if you have any questions is via email.  You are more than welcome to stop by anytime at my desk as well for any questions.  Also, I understand that many of you have other time commitments for college visits and various club and athletic events, so all I ask is that you let me know of these well ahead of time so that I can work with you individually to get you ahead or catch you up as necessary.

Most importantly, HAVE FUN!!!!  If you think of math as a chore, it will be, but if you think of it as fun, you will surely have a great time.