Calculus "light"?

[rjand6more]

So I am trying to plan for next year-ds's senior year. I want him to take a math, but he really hates math(does NOT get that from me! I do Alg 2 problems for fun! :) I was hoping to find an "easy" calculus class for him but all seem to be AP. He will likely not need higher level math for college, so that is not an issue. I would just like him to have the exposure and keep his math skills up.

 

He has had:

7th:TT Alg 1

8th:TT Alg 2

9th: Lial's Intermed. Alg

10th: TT Geometry

11th: TT Pre Calc

 

Does a lighter calculus text even exist? Hopefully instructor taught on DVD or CDROM. As much as I like math, I am a busy momma.

[AngieW in Texas]

Calculus the Easy Way is a great book and is pretty straightforward to work through. I think the story element makes it more relatable.

http://www.amazon.com/Calculus-Easy-Way-Douglas-Downing/dp/0812091418

 

You could always have him work through a hippocampus calculus course.

http://hippocampus.org/HippoCampus/Calculus%20&%20Advanced%20Math;jsessionid=B1A68790C10F1804FCF67CCE1F005019?view=Courses

[rjand6more]

Calculus the Easy Way is a great book and is pretty straightforward to work through. I think the story element makes it more relatable.

http://www.amazon.co...g/dp/0812091418

 

You could always have him work through a hippocampus calculus course.

http://hippocampus.o...19?view=Courses

 

 

Thank you. I will check them out!

[Vida Winter]

I used a little book called "Quick Calculus" to help cement some concepts as I took college calculus many years ago and I still remember loving that book. It is available on amazon.

[rjand6more]

I used a little book called "Quick Calculus" to help cement some concepts as I took college calculus many years ago and I still remember loving that book. It is available on amazon.

 

 

Thank you!

 

 

 

 

Do you all think that a combo of these books could be a calculus credit? If so, what would I call it? Calculus I?

[kiana]

Honestly, what I'd be inclined to do (if you really want to do calculus) is to pick a standard applied calculus text. Lial has one, Bittinger has one, Tan has one. They're frequently called "calculus for business and social sciences" and have a heavy emphasis on applications and word problems.

 

I would have no issues giving a credit for this (it is a standard university class for business and sometimes biology majors) and would call it either Applied Calculus or Calculus for Business and Social Sciences.

[rjand6more]

Honestly, what I'd be inclined to do (if you really want to do calculus) is to pick a standard applied calculus text. Lial has one, Bittinger has one, Tan has one. They're frequently called "calculus for business and social sciences" and have a heavy emphasis on applications and word problems.

 

I would have no issues giving a credit for this (it is a standard university class for business and sometimes biology majors) and would call it either Applied Calculus or Calculus for Business and Social Sciences.

 

 

 

Good suggestions! I will look at these texts.

[mumto2]

I am not sure how helpful this will be but will post because dd has been doing Calcilus lite for the past year. For her it is a bridge to other things but this might give you some ideas.

 

Dd14 has done LOF Calculus and in enjoyed it. Good on concepts not enogh problems for AP. She did pair it with a a calculus for Dummies book because she wanted a better explanation then LoF gave at times. I am sure the other recommended books would do the same thing with a better title. We just ended up with most of the Dummies books when a bookstore closed so they are our first stop reference. Hate the name but really handy.

 

Currently working through Lial's Applications ....because our library had a copy and it interests her. Ended up buying her own for under $10. She loves the text and is learning how math is used in a real world context. Lots of practice problems with the concepts she has already learned and is moving really quickly.

 

She has been studying on her own so dh(he is a math professional) and I haven't had much envolvement other than conversations about what she is doing. Going well so... She plans to move to AP prep eventually.

[PeterPan]

We're a few years behind you, but when I asked about this a while back (similar situation, dc who's good at math, progressing nicely, but not a lover who needs the ultimate) I followed up on kiana's applied calculus suggestion. Look at this text. Calculus with Applications (9th Edition) The copy I got from the library had (I forget) to where I ended up concluding we could do *1/2* the book over the course of one year and be just about right. I liked how applied it was, pardon the cliche. Lots of word problems and common applications they'd find interesting.

 

The other direction to go is statistics. Or do 1 semester applied calc and another of statistics.

 

Just for your trivia, there are also fun books like Calculus Diaries to lead into the concepts. :)

[rjand6more]

I am not sure how helpful this will be but will post because dd has been doing Calcilus lite for the past year. For her it is a bridge to other things but this might give you some ideas.

 

Dd14 has done LOF Calculus and in enjoyed it. Good on concepts not enogh problems for AP. She did pair it with a a calculus for Dummies book because she wanted a better explanation then LoF gave at times. I am sure the other recommended books would do the same thing with a better title. We just ended up with most of the Dummies books when a bookstore closed so they are our first stop reference. Hate the name but really handy.

 

Currently working through Lial's Applications ....because our library had a copy and it interests her. Ended up buying her own for under $10. She loves the text and is learning how math is used in a real world context. Lots of practice problems with the concepts she has already learned and is moving really quickly.

 

She has been studying on her own so dh(he is a math professional) and I haven't had much envolvement other than conversations about what she is doing. Going well so... She plans to move to AP prep eventually.

 

 

 

We tried LOF Algebra and it was not a good fit for ds. Lial's worked out well. I will look at our library and check it out. Thank you!

[Dana]

Honestly, what I'd be inclined to do (if you really want to do calculus) is to pick a standard applied calculus text. Lial has one, Bittinger has one, Tan has one. They're frequently called "calculus for business and social sciences" and have a heavy emphasis on applications and word problems.

 

I would have no issues giving a credit for this (it is a standard university class for business and sometimes biology majors) and would call it either Applied Calculus or Calculus for Business and Social Sciences.

 

 

:iagree:

 

Our cc uses Larson for Business Calculus and it's a really poor text, so I'd recommend avoiding that one (Larson's traditional calc text is fine IMO, but this one is just a reworking so not as well written).

 

Check your cc for the calc they call Business Calc or similar. Trig is typically NOT a requirement (and the texts don't include trig).

 

The MyMathLab software is available for some texts (those published by Pearson... Lial is a Pearson author) for free here. You don't have the videos for the class, but the online problems may be very useful.

[rjand6more]

We're a few years behind you, but when I asked about this a while back (similar situation, dc who's good at math, progressing nicely, but not a lover who needs the ultimate) I followed up on kiana's applied calculus suggestion. Look at this text. Calculus with Applications (9th Edition) The copy I got from the library had (I forget) to where I ended up concluding we could do *1/2* the book over the course of one year and be just about right. I liked how applied it was, pardon the cliche. Lots of word problems and common applications they'd find interesting.

 

The other direction to go is statistics. Or do 1 semester applied calc and another of statistics.

 

Just for your trivia, there are also fun books like Calculus Diaries to lead into the concepts. :)

 

 

 

Saw the Calculus Diaries book at Amazon. Looks fun! Ds would hate it.hehe

 

Half Calculus/Half Statistics sounds really great! Would you count 1/2 credit stats and 1/2 for Applied Calculus or some combo for 1 credit.

 

I will look at that text.. Thank you!

[rjand6more]

:iagree:

 

Our cc uses Larson for Business Calculus and it's a really poor text, so I'd recommend avoiding that one (Larson's traditional calc text is fine IMO, but this one is just a reworking so not as well written).

 

Check your cc for the calc they call Business Calc or similar. Trig is typically NOT a requirement (and the texts don't include trig).

 

The MyMathLab software is available for some texts (those published by Pearson... Lial is a Pearson author) for free here. You don't have the videos for the class, but the online problems may be very useful.

 

Good to know the review of the Larson book. I can mark that one off. :)

 

I have just peeked at the MYMathLab. I will look more closely. Thank you!!

[kiana]

We use Bittinger, and I quite like it. It's also through Pearson so you can get MyMathLab if you want.

 

For a 3-credit course we do chapters R and 1-4. For a high school course I would try very hard to add chapter 5, applications of integration (which includes two sections on probability). I'd still skip chapter 6 which is a basic intro to multivariable calculus.