What Happened to the Featured Writer?

This is a quick note of apology. Some evidence that newbies have a hard time keeping up :)! As I get more accustomed to the blogging world, I know I will get better at this. Until then...I hope you can hang in there with me.

From this point on...no promises or expectations. I will do my best to keep the fresh voices coming...and you will still get the full months worth of air time.

For the next 30 days, we will be enlightened by a college professor and author, Todd Pheifer. I think that one of the best ways to introduce a person (when not face-to-face) is by quoting them. On his profile page at Helium.com, Todd wrote, "I love the word "tenacity", because I believe anything can be accomplished if you have the vision to see it through to completion." I think that is a great mindset for any student of any level.

If there is ever a topic you would like addressed here, let me know and I will do my best to cover it in a timely manner.

Math Woes revisited and relieved

Well, once again, after giving it some time and allowing myself a clear mind, I got it.
Those Truth Tables aren't really as hard as I was making them out to be.

Can you believe that my error was an error in reading?.... Ya, go figure...haha
In the text, it explained the order of operations, and listed out a hierarchy to follow. I assumed that since the items were listed in numerical order from 1 to 4, that this was the order you utilize the connectives....My bad!!! It's actually the other way around...haha..
Go figure, that a person who would rather read a 5000 page novel than complete a 4 chapter math lesson, got hung up by misreading something...HA

SO, just like I learned in Pre-Algebra, back in 7th grade, you work the parenthesis first....of course;)
While in th (), you negate anything that has a ~ before it, then plug in the values for the junctions (the carrots...both of them), after that you move on to the conditional (single headed arrow), then the biconditionals (double headed arrow).

It helps if you use different colors, or lowercase then uppercase letters, or some other visual way to show yourself which step you are on. For me, this helped a great deal, because after filling in a column, I got lost, and had to start back at square one, looking over each step, until I figured out where I was. Not everyone will need this, but visual learners will see the benefits.

I wrote the first steps (just the basic truth values for each variable in the statement) in lowercase letters. Then I used capital letters for the second steps. I Underlined these columns so I could spot them more easily when working the next steps. Then I circled those columns so the final connective would be easier to recognize.

Another thing that was tripping me up was the order I put the Ts and Fs into the left columns. I finally ended up looking at an answer to figure it out, because I was utterly lost. Just remember, 4 T's, 4F's, then 2T's and 2Fs 2 times. Then the last column will be Ts and Fs alternating.
I hope there's never a need to have 4 variables, because then I will be searching in the dark again till I find another simple remedy:)

Well, now it's another week, with four new chapters to learn and ponder. I'm sure I'll be back with more woes and what nots. But if not, feel free to comment on this one with any new ones that come up for you!!!

Importance of Staying Fit for College Success

Here's a little more on taking care of yourself. As important as it is to get enough sleep, we as college students also need to keep ourselves active and healthy. Even distance learners, who aren't sitting in the classrooms for hours at a time, 3 or 4 days a week, still have to make it a point to get the activity we need to keep our bodies going strong.

Here's Leigh's voice on the subject:
Good health and fitness is important for everyone, but there are special considerations for the college student. Students are faced with issues such as sleep deprivation and poor diets, all of which can negatively impact good health. It's a good idea for college students to remain focused on strong fitness during their school years because it's easy to fall into bad habits... finish reading here.

As a distance learner myself, I find it it difficult to find the time each day, or week for that matter, to put into my health and wellness. I chose a distance program because my life was already busy and full of time responsibilities. I also know, however, that any added activity on a regular basis will improve your overall health. So I watched what I did for a while, then wrote down things I could do a little differently. Before long, I had a list of 10 simple ways to stay fit. I do little things, like sweeping my carpet every once in awhile instead of vacuuming, or walking to the corner store with my kids instead of hopping in the van. A little bit can go a long way, but it wont do much for knocking off already collected pounds, or reducing negative effects you're already fighting. These little things can re-energize you after a few days of sedentary, repetitive work and studying.

As always, enjoy what you are doing, and do what you are enjoying! Best wishes.

Math Woes

Anybody like Math? Any good at it?
I know a few people that could use your help...
and I am one!!

Just proof that even those who seem to have all the answers, or the right questions to ask...
even those who tend to get good grades, can pass tests with ease...
the ones who can research any topic given them, who can meet writing deadlines...
the tutors, the second-time-around students...
the ones who have been in school longer than some of us have been school-age.
We all need a little help once in a while.

I want to let my readers know, that just because I started this blog to help out fellow students, doesn't mean I have all the answers. That is why I started the Feature-A-Writer "program". This blog will serve me as well as my readers, and I think that's what life-time education is all about. I'm on a constant look out for writers with a unique voice, wisdom, or different perspective; who can add some flavor to the monotonous, bland, tired out, 30 pages on a Google search - stuff that is out there. The voices you read here are (will be) different than those you have to dig through to get to.

But you know? One person doing this all on their own is a large feat. One that I'm sure is possible, but not plausible for someone so early in the game. That means I need some help from my readers. I need questions, ideas, tips you've gathered along the way, resources available for online students, a piece of writing to add, or an online published article to refer. Please let me know about it. Drop an email or comment on a post. One way or another, let your voice be heard:).

Now back to the math.....

The class I'm taking right now is called A Survey of Mathematical Methods. Now, I've never been that good at math. I did pretty well up until high school. About that time, I became interested in early childhood education and passionate about writing. I excelled in literature, history, language, and writing. It's almost as if my numbers fell away from my alphabet...sorry, after 9 of years of everyday conversation consisting of a 20-something and a 2-6 year old, I sometimes forget which one I am...and a brick wall went up between them. Now, when I see so many letters and numbers, and added symbols and expressions, I get completely confused.

The other day, I was reading about Venn Diagrams. When I started the chapter, I was like, "OK, easy enough. I remember how to use these, I just taught Lexa about these a few months ago, and I think Allen is starting to get the concept. This oughta be a breeze. I love the text I have, because it has a bot of that history I love, and a touch of the literature that fuels my inspiration. It was interesting enough to keep my mind active. That usually helps a visual/kinesthetic learner. I can see the "lessons" more clearly when my mind is also busy enough to keep me going.

Everything went smoothly. I did the little exercises and got most of them right. I thought I'd zoom through a few pages, and head straight for the review/practice section. I tried a few...
and then checked my answers, because I knew something wasn't right. So, I went back and looked at the sections with the concept...and ended up more confused than when I started. So I tried to redo a couple, and thought I had it. SO I went on to the next few...and checked the answers again... Not only did I get a couple of the new ones wrong, but there were some of the first wrongs, still!

Needless to say that I was frustrated. To make matters worse, I was at work. That's not that big a deal, since work is my friend's house. I watch her two girls. One is 10 and the other is 1. I sit and work on my school work when the baby is napping, playing happily with her toys, or while we are eating lunch or breakfast. The 10 year old is usually working on schoolwork at the same time. Each day, I bring one of my kids with me, so they will be playing with the baby, working on their "school work", or playing with their friend. That means that half of my study time is shared with my tutor/teacher time. So, when I'm frustrated with my work, I have to let it rest. After about 3 or 4 attempts at getting this stuff, over a 5 hour time period, I decided to skip this chapter and go on. If this concept wasn't in the next chapter, I could work n it later.

Sure enough! When I got to work the next day, it just hit me. I spent a couple minutes looking over the explanation section, then hit the review. I tried a couple, and checked 'em. Then I went on to do some more...checked 'em..and moved on. I'm not saying I've got it down, I still had a few errors. But it pretty much makes sense now. I somehow missed the step where you write out the list for each circle and the universal set. Once I had all of the numbers in the right sets, and had it right there to look at, the rest just fell into place.

So, today it happened gain. This time with these truth tables. If I said I was frustrated a couple days ago...I would be understating it today. I'm completely lost! Thankfully the instructor was helpful in providing a little extra guidance for the project we have to complete. Unfortunately, I must have a brick head, because it still doesn't make much sense. What makes which one true, and how do you know if it's false? And what's that sign mean now that it is on that side of the number, or outside the parenthesis? Who slipped that sign in when I wasn't looking, and why is it laughing at me? hehehe

Maybe after some rest tonight, it will just light up like a light bulb....or, one of our readers will leave some helpful advice...who knows???

Until next time....