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     So this is our final Math Monday blog post!  This is also our last Monday here at ECMS this school year.  Since we are winding down this year, I am going to write about how writing these posts, like this, has helped me this year.  Here we go.
     First off, I think that this has helped me to slow down and recognize my accomplishments this school year.  Not only my accomplishments, but also things that I struggled with and overcame in math.  I have also had to explain how to solve certain types of math problems, here on Math Mondays.  How has that helped me?  Well, as you know, the curriculum for all math is changing.  Not just in math, but also in every other subject.  The state of California wants to make our state's education system similar to other states.  How are they going to do that?  Well, they are going to change some ways that we are taught and tested.  
     It is said that we will no longer have multiple choice questions, and we will soon have to explain our answers and how we got them.  Basically, they want to see if we really do understand what we are learning, and the only way to find out, is to change the way we are tested.  The blog posts that we have done this year are preparing us for what we might have to see later on in our education.  Therefore, I think that they have helped to "train" us for what may come our way in our futures.

 
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     This year, my most difficult subject in math that I faced was Parabolas.  Parabolas are basically arcs on a graph.  They have a midpoint and have a lot of equations to help complete a parabola.  It must have a minimum of 5 points; that's including the vertex.  
     I think that the reason it was hard for me was because of all the different equations that you had to use.  You had one just for the vertex, one for the axis of symmetry, one for the first set of points, and one for the second set of points.  You also had a formula for the arc's width.  That formula would tell you if you had a slim or wide parabola.  There was also a formula for if the parabola would be a "smiley face" or a "sad face".  
     I overcame this struggle by asking questions in class and getting help.  I didn't quite understand the process of solving the parabolas so I asked for help.  I also just tried to find things that helped me remember the equations.  I knew all the equations, but I just didn't know what order to put them in.  Eventually, I figured it out though.