Monday, July 09, 2007

Friday, July 06, 2007

Volunteer: Anne Wilson

Anne Wilson, a senior at Oak Mountain Classical School, joined us yesterday as a volunteer tutor for summer school. One student exclaimed today, "Finally! Someone who can help me!" It's not that competent help isn't usually available, it's just that there's not enough to go around. Thank you, Anne, for giving us more hands on deck.

Finish the Race

At 12:55pm on Friday, July 13, Summer Session will end. All Math work must be completed by that time to receive credit. Final grades will be handed out at 1:00pm. No extensions, exceptions, or excuses.

Monday, July 02, 2007

Thou Shalt Not Hate Math

OK. It's not one of the Ten Commandments but I think it still follows logically if we consider what it means to hate Math. First, let's call upon some important scriptural/historical truths* of the Christian faith:

God is truth.
Everything that comes from God is perfect, true, and good.
Everything that is perfect, true, and good comes from God.
We must love what is good and hate what is evil.

Second, let's consider a philosophical truth*:

Math is true.

If Math is true and all truth comes from God, then Math comes from God. If Math comes from God and everything that comes from God is good, Math is good. If a person hates Math and Math is good, that person hates what is good.

Why am I making a big deal of this? Well I had a conversation with a student who claimed to hate Math. While it's fine to think Math is difficult or less enjoyable than life's other pursuits, there is no defensible reason to hate Math. We must, in fact, love Math for its perfection and goodness since it comes from God, who is also perfect and good.

*We could debate these truth claims and even truth itself. If you'd like to talk about these finer points, contact me privately.

Sunday, July 01, 2007

Student Wiki

With the rise of Wikipedia and other wikis that allow users to contribute and change content, I thought the students of our school needed a place to create some original content of their own. So I started a wiki at Wetpaint (http://oukego.wetpaint.com or click the link on the right) called Restoration Academy High School. You can contribute anything (poetry, lyrics, stories, news, pictures, etc.) that you think is interesting or change what's already there. This is still very experimental so I have no idea what this will look like. I guess it's up to you and your creativity. Just be accountable for your words. To get started, sign up for an account.

Measuring Height using Trigonometry