Transcript How To Read A Math Book and Understand It

How To Read A Math Book
and Understand It
By
Professor Marcia Tharp, Ph. D.
Why should I read the book?
 A key component for success in studying math is to
read the text book before you go to class or do a
computer lessons.
 By reading the book before your class or computer
lessons you can become familiar with the vocabulary
and concepts. You don’t need to understand
everything you read.
 Understanding at least a third of the material will free
your mind to understand more of the material during
class or a computer lesson.
Suggestions for Reading Ahead
1.
2.
3.
4.
Read ahead 1 or 2 sections and put a question
mark by what you don’t understand.
Make a vocabulary list of words that will most likely
appear in the lesson.
When you go to class or do the computer lesson
have your list of questions and vocabulary words
ready. Leave space on your paper for each question
or word and an answer. Pay attention!
You need to ask questions if you do not
understand the instructor or computer explanation.
Make friends with your book first.
 Look at the table of contents.
 Look at the chapter summary.
 Where are the learning objectives? Use these as a

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
check list to make sure you are learning everything
you are supposed to.
Notice how and where definitions are placed.
How are rules presented? Are they in a text box
which is easy to read?
Are there problems at the end of the chapter? Is
there an answer key in the back of the book?
Does the book have a companion book of worked out
solutions to problems?
Is there a CD that goes with the book that has
videos, practice problems and explanations?
Reading After A Lessons Is Presented
Reading a math book is not like reading a
novel. Much is said using very few words. So
you will need to read and reread and think
carefully about the symbols and words you
see. It is best to read with a pencil in hand
so you can work with some of the ideas on
your paper. What follows are a few steps to
in-depth reading and understanding what
you read.
Reading For Understanding After
The Lesson-The Process
Skimming
 Read the objectives for the chapter.
 Skim the chapter as a review so you
see how everything fits together.
 Circle new words. See if you can
figure out how they are connected to
what you learned.
Reading For Understanding After
The Lesson-The Process continued
Rereading
1. Read through a second time for details using a
highlighter. Highlight what is important. Do not
highlight more than 50% of the material.
2. Have paper and pencil ready to work through the
examples you see. Review each step and if there is
a step missing write it in the book and on your
paper. This will help you later when you review.
3. Highlight the concepts you don’t know. There will
be some you circled in pencil earlier that you won’t
need to highlight and other new ones.
4. Take notes using the two column note method
explained in our previous PowerPoint about two
column notes. In the next few slides you will see
examples of two column notes.
Example Notes For Vocabulary
1.
2.
3.
4.
List vocabulary words in the left hand column.
Define these words in the right hand column.
Put a related example or picture in the right hand column.
Put a question mark by what you don’t understand.
Word
Absolute value
Definition-Example-Picture
-The distance between a
number and 0 on a number
line.
|-3| = 3 |3|= 3
3 units 3 units
Rereading and Vocabulary
 Remember to use the two column paper to
study for tests. Fold one side of the paper
and review the meaning of the word and then
unfold it to see if you were correct.
 Add the words you don’t understand to a
math dictionary that you keep. Your list
should contain all the bold print words you
don’t understand. Ask your instructor or your
study buddy about the meaning.
 Put in the book definition and definitions in
your own words. You need to know these
prior to taking a test.
Example for Recording A Process
1.
2.
3.
Put the problem on the left hand side.
Write the explanation in words on the right hand side.
Put a question mark by anything you don’t understand.
4.
Ask your instructor about it.
Problem
2(5-2) +7
=2(3)+7
=6+7
=13
Explanation
Order of Operations
PEMDAS
1. Do the parentheses
first.
2. Do exponents.
There are none.
3. Multiply or divide.
4. Add or subtract.
5. Work from left to
right.
What if you don’t understand?
 Reread the page and the previous page
slowly.
 Look for pictures that explain a rule.
 Reread the part you don’t understand aloud.
 Look at your class notes or computer lesson
notes.
 Look at another math text book. Sometimes it
will have a better explanation.
 Figure out exactly what you don’t know and
ask your instructor, a math tutor, or your
study buddy about it as soon as possible.
Review Is The Key
 Frequent review of your notes even 5 or 10
minutes each day for several days will
increase your understanding and ability to
remember the material. This way you will
know the information before taking the test.
 Schedule review periods for notes and
homework at least two weeks before a major
test.
 Next you will need to schedule time to do the
practice problems in your book. We will leave
the topic of Completing Homework for our
next PowerPoint presentation.
References
Winning at Math 4th Edition, Paul Nolting, Ph. D.
Academic Success Press, Florida
Study Skills Workbook, Basic College
Mathematics 6th Edition, Lial, M., Salzman, S.
and Hestwood, D., Addision Wesley, Boston