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Promethean Smart Board- Innovative & FUN!
Mr. David Raju started his year by asking his AP Calculus class, "Who loves math?" A few raised their hands in a half-hearted way. This challenged Mr. Raju to inspire his class and ignite a love for math in his 20+ 16-18 year olds. And he is making great progress!
Mr. Raju's excitement was clearly visible and infectious as he shared what he was doing. He logged on to his blog www.apcalculusbc.com and showed me how all his presentations are available for download. Many of the students review the class presentations – along with teachers from the US, England and Australia, who regularly visit his blog for reference materials. He described how each chapter is followed by a fun activity, where the students use math in a practical way, such as by creating a flexagon. Mr. Raju, like a proud parent, showed me a few examples.
Yuli Whiteman, a current student in his class, comments: "His class is exciting, I don't get bored and the demonstrations are very clear." This is in a large part due to the new technology Dr. Raju is using in his classroom. Thanks to the Friends of Woodstock School Foundation (FWS) Science Grant Fund, , established by Distinguished Alumnus, TZ Chu, '52 with a number of other contributors, many of our classrooms now have the Promethean Smart board technology. This allows teachers to pull charts, graphs and illustrations directly from their computers and onto the projected screen. The preciseness, the colour, and the interactive nature keep students engaged and create an exciting atmosphere for learning.
"So, do you now love mathematics, Yuli?" I asked as I ended my interview. "Yeah, I sure like these lessons more then something like algebra!" Watch out Yuli, by the year's end you might just find yourself enrolled in Mr. Raju's AP Algebra class for next semester.