This class meets four days a week. Each meeting will start with a lecture and may conclude with the instructor working through some exercises or example problems. During these four days you should focus on (1) doing exercises to develop mechanical skills and (2) reading to understand core concepts. After these four lecture days but before next week’s meetings you should focus on solving problems, thinking more deeply about how to apply the topics from the week.
To avoid exhausting yourself with mathematics, relegate the time you spend thinking about this class to the week. Reserve a sincere break for yourself during the weekend.
Before the Week’s Class Meetings …
Briskly read about the topics for the week: you’ll get more out of the lecture if you’re already familiar with the topics, and if you’ve already begun to form questions.
After Each Lecture, Before the Next Class …
Reflect on the skills and concepts core to the day’s lesson. Do exercises (online or from the textbook) to practice those skills, and do some further reading to internalize those concepts. If any homework exercise has you stumped, discuss it with your peer group from the class, or visit the campus Tutorial Learning Center (TLC), or visit the instructor’s office hours. Note that answers to odd-numbered exercises are in the back of the textbook.
After the Week’s Meetings
Begin working on problems. Be sure to focus on any problems the instructor features, but also the problems in the online homework and textbook. Ensure that you understand what each problem is asking of you, and that you are confident you know how to solve each problem. It’s not crucial that you write up solutions to all the problems, but you should be able to. Again, if any problem has you stumped, discuss it with your peers or the TLC or your instructor.
Before Each Midterm Exam …
Read over the course summary and the Student Learning Outcomes in the syllabus to calibrate your focus towards what’s important. Then print out any past midterm exams from this course to use as practice. Considering setting a 50-minute timer and “taking” each exam.