Honors Geometry Homework Answers For Section 9.2
Evelio Olivo
This query is a bit late since it will go out after the 8th graders test for Honors Geometry, but maybe it will help us decide what to do if our son gets in. All the reviews for Honors Geometry at Berkeley High are at least 4 years old. Can someone give me some recent feedback? My son has always found math easy and the courses to be too slow, but he is not self-motivated (Ok, he is not motivated at all). He responds well to teachers that he likes regardless of the subject. If the Honors math at Berkeley High is geared for self-starters and uber-academics, I would steer him away. If it is an engaging, faster paced math class filled with students who also like and do well at math, then it would be for him. Math Mom
About Honors Geometry at BHS, here's our experience. My daughter is finishing 9th grade at BHS, having come from King. While finding classroom math easy so far, she is not uber-academic, nor is she self-motivated. She does like to be around the smarter, more engaged students. Even though she always got highest marks, and very high STAR results, she did not score well enough on the special assessment to automatically get into Honors Geometry. However, both she and her 8th grade teacher pushed administration and landed a spot in Mr. Palin's Honors Geometry class. Just in case the material would become too difficult, we took a proactive strategy to set up one hour of tutoring per week after school. This works well. Mr. Palin has a unique teaching style that my daughter had never encountered before. Mr Palin does not teach to the book, but assigned homework from it. Mr. Palin prefers to teach problem solving in a more theoretical way. The tutor answers questions about the book and homework when my daughter couldn't figure it out on her own. Palin's tests sound like they are a combination of his theoretical teaching and elements from the book. It appears that a student rarely feels they do well on the tests. Nevertheless, my daughter is keeping an A grade, growing in her confidence with math, enjoys it as a subject, is learning to become more self-taught and self-motivated, appreciates (although doesn't quite understand) Mr. Palin's approach, and has peace of mind because she can rely upon the tutor's support. Without resistance, she expects to continue on the Honors math track at BIHS. While we pay, there is easy access to free tutoring at BHS. Encouraging girls who do math
I've read previous posts about honors geo at BHS but I'm looking for another level of detail. Given a teacher who is famous for putting questions on tests that are harder than those in the homework and book, and who is known to be rigid, how can I help my child succeed? My child is smart, good in math, doing the homework and doing miserably on the tests. He has a tutor. We're not after the A, we're just after avoiding this overwhelmingly frustrating experience which leads to discouragement and will turn him off from future honors classes. Where can we find some harder questions that he can use to prepare for the tests? Are there other approaches? Any other advice that has helped kids in honors geo with this teacher? We believe this teacher's punitive approach is unnecessary and that high standards can be had without this cost -educators should assure that hard work in a hard class results in success. anon
We pulled our freshman son out of the honors geometry class after about a month. Our son also had tutoring (Harvey Garn), but it wasn't enough. After witnessing his difficulty with the material and getting a sense for how unhelpful the teacher was, it seemed senseless to continue. We hear that there are three teachers this year, only one of whom is really making the material work for her class.
The geometry curriculum looks irrelevant to the later ''useful'' math - algebra, trig, calculus, statistics. It seems like a tradition, and directed more at teaching ''how math is done by mathematicians'' (axioms, proofs) than at how math can serve other pursuits. So we decided to go with a less challenging class now and try again next year. Anon
This is a very timely message! My daughter just got a D on her first honors geometry test at Palo Alto High and she's really upset. Like your kid, she's smart and studies very hard, but the test included many questions that weren't in the homework or on the review sheets. She feels angry about the ''ambush'' but has also lost a lot of confidence in her math ability. She's already talking about dropping the honors class in order to avoid a bad final grade. I try to reassure her that grades don't matter at this level and it's more important to learn the material, but she just gives me that deadly teenage ''You just don't understand'' glare. Given this hypercompetitive college entrance environment that I never had to face, I'm inclined to agree with her. I also agree with you that this type of teaching seems to reward only the very few who are truly gifted in math while frustrating and turning off a lot of smart kids who could benefit from a system that was rigorous but not ''tricky''. I'll also add that it's a shock to see that her textbook is 21 years old. It's truly shameful how we've underfunded public education in this country. Anon
My son and I are torn about whether he should take Honors Geometry as an incoming 9th grader at Berkeley High this fall. He has passed the test for it. I've been told that the test is very difficult to pass and that he should take Honors in order to be challenged by geometry. The problem is that every one he knows who has taken it has had Mr. Henri, who has a reputation for being excessively and ridiculously hard. The only students who get to take the other, more reasonable, teacher are the accelerated 8th graders who come in from middle school and take it 0 period. We hear stories of kids studying for hours every day only to barely pass and then getting turned off to math and not taking any other honors or AP math classes in high school. One person we know who is now a senior in college, majoring in astrophysics and taking lots of hard math classes, barely got a C in Mr. Henri's class after lots of hard work and is one of the ones who never took other honors math classes at BHS because of that experience.
My question: is this the norm? Are there lots of other kids out there who took this class and enjoyed it and/or managed to cope without an inordinate struggle ending with a negative outcome? Do people feel that on balance it was worth taking it, or is it better to take regular geometry and then test for later Honors/AP classes? Right now, my son doesn't know any one who has signed up for this class -- for the reasons outlined above. Thanks for any advice--we'd particularly like to hear from any one who had a positive experience.
My son just completed his freshman year having taken honors goemetry with Mr. Henri. First let me preface by saying that my son is a very good math student , somewhere between better than average and the ''elite'' level. My intuition is that Mr. Henri pushes bright kids, walking a fine line between challenge and frustration. I have met and spoken to parents of kids that felt both appreciative and traumatized. The main advice I can give is to keep the communication lines open between you and your son which is no small task given the anxieties inherent in this class with this particular teacher. Fortunately, I don't believe my son was permanently traumatized by his experience though he sweated to get a C. As a previously straight A student, the experience gave him pause to realize that there are some classes that he will have to work much harder than average in, even asking for help which he has been loathe to do in the past.I put this definfitely in the positive column. We (my husband is a public school teacher) believe that students can be challenged without alienating them. But my son was pragmatic enough to understand that his struggle, though a combination of shock AND enlightenment, was a wake- up call. He has enrolled in honors algebra 2 which even Mr. Henri professes to being a bit less challenging than honors geometry. I've been told that honors geometry (with Mr. Henri in particular) is the hardest class that some of these students will ever take at BHS. Overall I am glad that the experience occurred in 9th grade and not later. Hopefully, what he takes away from all of this is that his coasting for A's days are over. We feel it was worth it Relax and enjoy your summer and most importantly try not to telegraph your anxieties to your child. Please feel free to e-mail me. Good Luck! Heather
I'm so glad you raised this issue as I having been wanting to discuss this for some time. My son did well in his Honors Algebra class at Willard and readily passed the test to get in H. Geom. at BHS, although he could have done it based on his grade in H. Algebra alone. This is a kid who really liked math. Unfortunately, after 9 months with Mr. Henri, he no longer likes it, barely squeaked by with a C, and will probably never take another honors math class at BHS. We saw in the first week that it wasn't going to work for him (Mr. Henri is as you describe), but try as I might I could not get him out of the class. I was on the point of recommending that the form they have parents sign to request the class be signed in blood, just to give people the idea of the permanence of the thing. Oddly, I met a woman in the spring who's daughter had had a similarly negative experience at first, but they were able to get her out with no problem. I guess they knew the right people to talk to about this. And I'm afraid I can't help feeling bitterly resentful about this. I would strongly advise against your son taking this class if you have any doubts at all. The students that I know of who did well all seem to have used a certain tutor who used to teach the class himself and who knew what (perhaps exactly) was going to be on the tests. Hopefully you will get some positive responses to your query to counterbalance this negative one. Good luck on making your decision. Dianna
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