The first one is PREcrastination. It’s the opposite of procrastination, and it’s necessary. For some reason I still can’t learn that. Even right now I’m starting a writing assignment two days before its due date at ten o’clock at night. Trust me, it gets extremely stressful. 

     Another thing to remember is to fill out your cards. One amazing thing about this class is that you can use flashcards during the tests and quizzes, but to use them, you’ll need to have them filled out. For most of the first semester, Mr. Hansen will give them to you written out (all you need to do is cut and tape), but then he stops. ONce he stops, you’ll need to make your own, which is something else I keep putting off. But when I finally do them, my grades go up, because not only can I use pretty much a legal cheat sheet during the test, but writing it down helps me remember. And with multiple theorems and postulates, you’ll need flash cards.

     One major thing is what I’m doing right now -- a writing assignment. These count an ample amount towards your grade, and you will want to get good grades on them. Hint! Procrastination DOES NOT HELP. AT ALL. WHATSOEVER. They could be a letter like this one, or they could be to find the area of a strange figure. Whatever the problem, it helps to do it as soon as you can.

     The last important topic is to do the homework. I know this is an obvious topic, and it is said in every class, but it really matters for Geometry. This homework is great practice, and I would be so confused if it weren’t for the daily practice. Proofs tie in to this, and they’re important too. You’ll learn more about them, but they’re basically a long written out puzzle. In a proof, you know something, and you use your knowledge of that and other theorems/postulates/definitions to find out something else. Some people like them, some don’t. But it doesn’t matter which side you’re on to know that they help with quizzes, tests, and memorizing your list of postulates, theorems, and definitions.

     This is just a basic summary of the necessary skills for Geometry, but if you follow these steps, you’ll become a Geometry expert! You made the right choice in signing up, and I hope you enjoy it as much as our class does.
 

     Secondly, you should do your best in every aspect of the class.  This means that everyday, you should show up five minutes before 7:00, be prepared with the homework, be attentive during class, and look ahead for upcoming homework, tests, quizzes or writing assignments.  When Mr. Hansen gives you time for homework, take advantage of it.  Get ahead on writing assignments and ask Mr. Hansen questions.  At home before a test, you should go over the worksheets from the lessons and a selection of odd problems in the book.  This will ensure that you will be comfortable with the material. 

     Finally, if you need help ask for it.  Mr. Hansen is always available before Geometry (no earlier than 6:00,) at “Lunch Bunch” (during recess,) and after school everyday but Friday.  If you are confused or just need reinforcement, he is there.  Also, in class, if you do not understand a concept, speak up.  Mr. Hansen is there to teach and enforce.  Remember, he can teach you the material, but he can’t learn it for you!

    If you follow these guidelines throughout this coming year, I will guarantee your success in 9th grade Geometry. 
 

     One thing that I have learned while taking Geometry is that one must pack and prepare his backpack before he goes to sleep. This will help you get an extra five minutes of much-needed and much-appreciated sleep in the morning.  Also, once you wake up and get dressed, you are practically ready to walk out the door and head to Mr. Hansen’s classroom.  Also, I would highly suggest that you carpool to Geometry with someone that lives near you so that your parents will not always have to wake up early to take you to school.

     Another thing that I have learned in Geometry is that getting to class early is essential to success in all aspects of school.  Not only are you not as drowsy as your other classmates when class starts, but you also are given an extra five to thirty minutes in which you can work on homework that you didn’t do, print another assignment from Mr. Moore, or do homework that is assigned to you that night.  You can also use this time to study for any tests that you might have.  Working on homework before school makes afternoons much more enjoyable and allows you to get more sleep.  Also, the time before Geometry is a great time to ask Mr. Hansen about problems on the homework that may have confused you.  He is always willing to help you.

     You must be sure that you show up to Geometry class.  If you miss many days in a row, you will miss out on important discussions about key topics.  Also, pay attention to these discussions, for they are where you learn the most.  Always be sure to do the homework because, as Mr. Hansen says, “The fiddler who practices most plays best!”  Doing the homework will increase your skill and proficiency in Geometry.  Because Geometry is a class in which the newly learned information is based off of past lessons, you must strive to pay attention at all times.  I know that it is hard to be alert when you are so tired, but you must put effort into the class if you are serious about it.

     In conclusion, if you follow and heed this advice, you are guaranteed success in Geometry.  I wish you the best.
 

     Second most important thing is that one keeps up with his cards. For the first couple of months Mr. Hansen will provide you with the cards needed to do well on the test. Make sure that you cut them out and paste them on the cards in order to use them on the test. Towards the end of the year he will not provide you with the cards anymore. You must make them on your own. MAKE SURE that you copy down the all the important information. It saves you on many of the test. Although your cards are important you still want to try and memorize what the theorems are because you won’t have time to do so on the actual test or quiz. 

     The third most important thing is that you do your homework. If you have any questions about the homework and we have already gone over it in class, you must ask. If one doesn’t ask, he will never know that you don’t know the material. Fourthly, if one does bad on a test, and you can’t figure out why you did bad, ask. All the material that is in Geometry is constantly being reused. For example, when you learn about trigonometry, thirty-sixty-ninety triangles, or forty-five-forty-five-ninety, they always can be reused to quickly find out the side lengths or angles of a triangle. You want to make sure you have that on the hard drive because it helps you on the tests to either check you answers or in word problems. The bottom line is that you must give it your all all the time in order to succeed. 
 

     In order to be on time, you will probably have to wake up nearly an hour earlier than other students.  Sleep is necessary to focus and perform well in both school and sports, so you might have to go to bed earlier to compensate for an earlier wake-up time.  One of the most important things to do is to stay off electronics and TV during the school week.  These activities can take up much of your time that you could spend doing homework.  Cutting electronics out of the day will allow you to finish homework earlier and go to sleep at an earlier time.  The earlier you can go to sleep, the better you will perform in class.

     I cannot emphasize enough the importance of learning and memorizing the many theorems, postulates, and corollaries that are associated with Geometry.  It is vital to know what they mean and how to use them.  Mr. Hansen allows flashcards to be used on the quizzes and tests, so always have cards prepared before the day of the test.  While cards are helpful, don’t rely on them.  After a few months, your stack of cards will be too thick to go through on each quiz or test, so it is crucial that you memorize and understand the statements well enough to take a test without the cards.  When you begin to make flashcards on your own, be sure to include diagrams and examples to help you.

     As with any activity, Geometry requires practice to perform well on tests and to earn good grades.  You will need to work hard everyday to succeed.  As Mr. Hansen always says, “Be a worker, not a shirker”.  Completing homework everyday provides valuable practice, and it allows you to see what areas you are struggling with.  Doing homework means working every problem neatly and accurately, not slapping down some answers just to get credit.  Spend as much time with each homework problem as you would on a test problem.  Much of the test problems are similar to the homework problems, so doing homework helps you prepare for the test.  Many subjects can be difficult to understand, so you might need to do some extra work outside of the homework.  Answering the odd-numbered questions or the self-test questions can help.  In addition, Mr. Hansen is always available for extra help after school and during class.  Whenever you have questions about a particular topic or need help with an especially confusing problem, always ask Mr. Hansen for help.

     Geometry is a pass or fail grade, so it doesn’t factor into your grade point average.  However, you should always work as hard in Geometry as you would in any other class.  If you stick with Geometry for the entire year, I guarantee you will never regret your decision.  Good luck!
 

     Don’t expect to be a whiz in Geometry just because you are one of the best in Algebra.  The material is often very different because it involves more of learning properties, postulates (axioms in geometry), theorems, and occasionally corollaries that help you find certain measures on shapes rather than variables and solving equations.  Don’t let this be discouragement.  Geometry is not counted into your GPA, so even though you must pass to be eligible for sports, it is mainly for the learning experience (as is any other class, of course).  Now let me tell you that it is going to take a while to get used to arriving at school at 7o’clock Monday through Thursday, but as the year progresses, you will get used to it, and Friday’s will now seem like paradise when you get to sleep in. 

     Since you have to wake up so early, you have to go to bed a little bit earlier, too or just get used to having a little less sleep each night.  Setting an earlier bedtime will be challenging because the homework load does increase in eighth grade, and you will have an extra geometry assignment each night.  This means you are going to have to manage your time better, but don’t worry.  On most days there is plenty of time at the end of class to finish any math homework or get ahead for your other subjects (the same goes for Mr. Hansen’s Algebra class).  It is important that you don’t regard Geometry as the class you devote the least amount of time to just because it doesn’t count towards your GPA.  Treat it as you would any other class, and don’t procrastinate on anything!  That is the most important part of Geometry because your best work is not often achieved in the thirty minutes before your writing assignment is due. 

     Furthermore, be sure to make your cards for quizzes and tests because these can come in very handy when your memory fails you, and you can’t remember a certain definition or postulate.  Just don’t depend on them because it is a hassle to have to look through all of the cards, trying to find the right one.  If you stay on top of everything and get it done early, Geometry is going to be a great learning experience, and you won’t even have to take it in high school if you pass.  If you work hard all year, you’ll be way ahead of everyone else.
 

     Geometry is not as similar to Algebra as you may think.  In Algebra, you do computational things like simplifying and factoring.  In Geometry, however, you must use reasoning to prove ideas about figures and what they mean.  Geometry in this class focuses on knowing a basic idea, and then using to to solve a given problem.  It will be difficult to Geometry at first since you haven’t learned proving by reasons, but it will gradually get easier.  This class is helpful because it does give you credit for high school.  Also, high school will involve more conceptual problems rather than computational problems.  In the next paragraph, I will talk about the tips to stay in the game for Geometry.

     As I said before, Geometry is complex in the beginning, but there are some things to keep up with everybody.  The first tip is to look at the notecards given to you for the first five chapters.  These cards state the theorems and axioms (called postulates in Geometry) that you need to know for proofs and conceptual problems.  However, do not rely too heavily on the cards as you won’t have time to look at each individual one for a quiz or test.  The second tip is to do the homework.  This tip may seem to be easy and already known, but if you don’t do the homework, you will fall behind after a day.  In each chapter, the different sections may explain extremely different topics, so if you don’t do the homework on one section and are utterly confused, you will be even more confused in the next one.

     Some more tips are to listen to Mr. Hansen and to collaborate.  Mr. Hansen is extremely diligent in his work, and because of this, you won’t have to question his authority and wisdom.  Collaboration is important in Geometry because you will be taking two high school courses if you take Geometry.  Conversing with your friends will show that you are keeping up.  Collaboration does NOT mean someone gives you all the answers, however.

     You should feel special if you’re taking Geometry.  It is indeed a challenge to take 2 high school courses, especially when both of them are challenging.  There is a reason only half of your class (or fewer) is taking Geometry.  I hope you do well, anonymous 7th grader.  (You won’t do as well as us, though)
 

     Congratulations on being one of the few, the proud, the audacious Geometers!  You have quite a year ahead of you.  It is no secret; Geometry isn’t easy!  If you think Mr. Hansen’s high-school level algebra is difficult, get ready to hold on tightly.  There are several things you must do in order to succeed in this course.  If you do all of these things, then you will complete this course and therefore be even further ahead in mathematics at your high school than other SAA students, whatever school you end up attending. 

     Firstly, if you don’t get enough sleep, you can already forget about completing the course.  It is tough to show up at seven every day, and you cannot handle the advanced material is you aren’t awake enough to think well.  You will be covering advanced topics that can be confusing, and you need to be running at maximum brain function. 

     Secondly, you can’t be overly proud while taking any of Mr. Hansen’s courses, especially this one.  If you feel you are not grasping a subject well, you need to go talk to AlgebraGuy about it.  He will make sure you understand it as long as you take the initiative to seek his help. 

     Also, if you don’t like panicking on tests and quizzes, it would be a good idea to make and update your cards.  There are not many classes where the teacher lets you take some of the answers with you to take the test with; take advantage of it!  Make sure that your cards are well-written and clear so you do not get confused. 

     In addition, there are some tips right out of Mr. Hansen’s algebra class that are also applicable and important here.  Always do your homework; besides the negative effect on your grade, not doing the assignment also leaves you without practice on the new topic and therefore without a reliable memory of it.  Not only should you do the entire assignment every night, but you should also read the assigned pages.  In most cases, you will only truly consolidate the information if you see it several times. 

     One major problem you may have can be contained in one word: proofs.  On the surface, they do not appear to be very difficult, and are not; at least not until you have to designate both sides of them.  Don’t panic when you reach this point; just go over your cards every so often and remember that Mr. Hansen will never base a test or quiz on proofs.  He often doesn’t even use them as normal problems, in which case they only appear for the bonus.  Even if they do appear as questions on a test, you will be fine if you have kept up with your postulates and theorems. 

     Finally, if you hope to succeed in Geometry you must remember one last basic thing: pay attention in class!  The twenty-five to thirty-five minutes of instruction are what you are doing extra homework and getting to school early for.  If you do not give your undivided attention to Mr. Hansen, every other one of these steps is irrelevant; you will not succeed! 

      Hopefully these tips will help you out this year in your study of Geometry.  As long as you keep these in mind, there is only one more thing I can say: Good luck!
 

     Occasionally, Mr. Hansen gives you time during class to do homework.  Use that time wisely because it is a great way to knock out much of your homework.  Always arrive on time to Geometry because as soon as the bell rings, Mr. Hansen starts teaching.  Read the pages in the textbook that are assigned every night, so you have an understanding of the topic.  Geometry starts at 7:00 sharp, so getting up early can sometimes be a struggle.  At first, waking up that early left me in a daze, but now I am used to it.    Geometry class is only Monday through Thursday, with a break on Friday.  Because there no Geometry on Fridays, make sure to catch up on much needed sleep.  When you work on problems in your Geometry spiral, work neatly and write large so you can see what you wrote.  Mr. Hansen won’t get mad at you for taking up a lot of paper.  He actually prefers it. 

     Make sure to work hard in class and practice on your own time.  You will only get out of the class what you put in.  Don’t expect a Macy’s reward for a Walmart effort as Mr. Hansen says.  If you follow these guidelines everyday in Geometry, you will be successful.  I wish you the best of luck next year as you further your mathematical knowledge. 
 

     First of all, what is Geometry?  Geometry is the mathematics of the physical world, though you will often learn it through the abstract.  You will use lines, planes, angles, and myriad other figures to determine distances, the measurements of angles, and the areas of two- and later three-dimensional objects.  Geometry is also simpler to learn than algebra, as it is more real-world in nature.  Once you know the theorems (comparable to properties) and postulates (comparable to axioms) needed, the answer will generally “click.” 

     However, don’t think that Geometry is a walk in the park.  Homework, as in Algebra I, will generally be a daily exercise from the textbook.  It will be given in addition to Algebra homework, so plan accordingly.  Geometry meets from seven A.M. to seven forty-five on Mondays through Thursdays.  A homework assignment will be given each class day and will be checked on the next non-test class day, so you will not receive work on Friday, and, courtesy to the non-geometers in Algebra Pre-AP, Thursday’s assignment will not be graded until Geometry meets again on Monday.

     Earlier I mentioned cards.  Cards are your study tools that can be used during any test or quiz you take.  For the first few weeks, there will be card checks to make sure you are responsible (and smart) enough to make them.  Precrastinate.  Make them early so that quiz that sneaks up on you on a Monday doesn’t catch you off guard.  Until chapter five, Mr. Hansen will give you pre-made sheets that you will cut and glue onto index cards.  After that, you’re on your own.  You can put whatever you want to on your cards, but it must be written by hand.  However, cards are great, but don’t rely on them.  They’ll help you remember how to phrase a proof or help you with that one topic that gets you, but they don’t replace studying.

     Study, do your homework, and make cards.  If you do that, you will be fine.  As the X-man says, “Everyone here is smart enough.  Some people just can’t take the heat!”  When you feel crushed, and you will at times, remember that this is the beginning of a new stage in your life when your future stops relying on what your parents do and begins to rely on what you do.