Calculus for Everyone

Calculus for Everyone is a classical approach to mathematics that allows any high school student who has completed a first-year algebra course to learn Calculus. Working through Dr. Mitch Stokes’ Calculus for Everyone, we begin with the problem of change and walk through the major concepts in a typical Calculus I course by examining the history of its development. Class will consist of a combination of lectures, exercises, quizzes, and exams emphasizing both the history of the development of calculus and the mathematical knowledge of limits, derivatives, and integrals.

This course is ideal for students who:

• Are unsure if they would like to take a Calculus course.
• Have decided to take Calculus at some point.
• Are seeking a classical approach to Calculus.
• Want to understand the real-life applications for Calculus.
• Are curious about the origins of philosophy and mathematics.

This course meets for 32 weeks total divided into four eight-week quarters. Students will meet once a week for 2 hours. Class will consist of a 50 minute lecture, subsequent recitation, and weekly quiz. Each quarter students will be assigned weekly homework and study questions. Each quarter will end with an exam testing the material covered in that quarter with the exception of the final quarter which will end with a comprehensive final exam.

The suggested prerequisite for this course is Algebra I.

Course Objectives:

Throughout the course, students will:

1. Learn about the need for calculus and its historical development.
2. Learn the general concept of functions and its applications to real-world situations.
3. Learn to work with algebraic functions and their applications in applied problems.
4. Learn the concepts of the derivative and its underlying concepts.
5. Learn to calculate derivatives for polynomial functions using the limit definition and power rule.
6. Apply the concept of derivatives to completely analyze the graph of a function.
7. Learn about various applications of the derivative
8. Learn about anti-derivative and the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus and its applications.
9. Learn to use the concept of integration to evaluate geometric areas and solve other applied problems.

Texts:

• Calculus for Everyone: Understanding the Mathematics of Change by Mitch Stokes, Text and Exercise Solutions Required