Scientific or graphing calculator?

Scientific or graphing calculator? What students should purchase?

As they grow older and get older, the list of school supplies may get shorter, but it's not always cheaper.

One item that can cause sticker shock to parents of middle and high school students is an specialized calculator. Most schools prefer students to possess their own hand-held scientific calculator. For the most advanced mathematics classes, such as AP Calculus A graphing calculator may be required.

What's the difference? A scientific calculator is able to perform functions that go beyond subtraction, addition multiplication and division. Scientific calculators typically have special buttons for parentheses, trigonometric calculations, exponents reverses, and pi in addition to many other things.

A graphing calculator does even more. It'll come with a larger screen, allowing you to type in a function, then see a graph of it.

The Best to Buy's Geek Squad agent Derek Meister says scientific calculatorscan run anywhere between $10 and $60. The graphing calculators usually cost more, usually between $100 and $150.Should back to school students buy science or graphing calculators? (KOMO News)

However, Best Buy says you might not need to purchase one. Best Buy suggests making contact with your school first.

Harmony Weinberg, Edmonds School District's public relations and media supervisor she tells KOMO News each individual school determines its own policies.

"For higher level classes, like AP Calculus, it is often expected that students have a handheld graphing calculator, such as TI-83, TI-84 or TI-89."

These types of calculators can be used for AP tests. Weinberg is also of the opinion that schools have a process in place where students can use calculators, like they do texts, in the event that they cannot or do not want to purchase their own.

The Edmonds school district the calculators are handled in the same way as textbooks, in terms of the possibility of damage or loss, but don't have any fees to use.

Another possibility could have a laptop from their school. Weinberg says in Edmonds "all students have access to scientific and graphing calculators through their district-issued Chromebook." The district is also encouraging teachers to use Desmos online calculators, since they are used in state tests as well.

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West Seattle family says school quarantine policies are biased towards unvaccinated children

written by Joel Moreno, KOMO News reporterSaturday 17th September 2021

https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.485.1_en.html#goog_1206168445Volume 90% Denny International Middle School.

SEATTLE - A family in West Seattle say their young son was told to stay home when they came in contact with people who had been tested positive for COVID-19, prompting his relatives to allege now that their son was targeted and treated differently by the school district's officials due to the fact that the boy has not been vaccine-free..

Last week, the 12-year-old student who attends Denny International Middle School was exposed to an individual in the class who was diagnosed with COVID-19.

The school officials told that he should stay home for two weeks because his vaccination status is not current.

The family members of the victim have learned that if he had received a vaccination, the 7th grader would not have had to miss classes as it was as long as he did not show evidence of the virus.

"My kid has no symptoms," stated Jeremy Gollyhorn, the boy's father. "He's completely healthy. What's the reason he can't just take positive COVID results and go back to school?"

Gollyhorn said his son is being placed under a different set of standards that students who've had their shots, and even should he fail a COVID-19 exam, the boy could not return to school until the quarantine period of two weeks is over.

However, those close to them who have been fully vaccinated and show no signs of illness do not have to be quarantined and are able to return to class, though they are urged to get checked three to five days later in order to ensure.

Gollyhorn declared it to be absurd and makes no sense.

"Vaccinated people can still spread COVID too so what's the difference there?" said Dr. A. said.

A spokesperson for the school said Seattle Public Schools is following the health guidelines of public schools set through the federal government.

Gollyhorn has said that the policy deprives people of their choices. Gollyhorn also stated that his family isn't convinced by the vaccines and such situations can only motivate him to resist.

As of Seattle Public Schools started the school year on Sept. 1, the district has confirmed 117 positive cases of COVID-19 while Denny International Middle School has confirmed four cases of COVID-19 in this time.

It's not known how many staff as well as students have been advised to be in quarantine due to exposures. However, absences from school are considered excused.