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Version 12 is here

One of the long awaited PAR features has finally materialised. In the PAR software you will see a Link button up alongside Terms.

When a tutor thinks it might be helpful for a student to do further questions that are similar in nature to those encountered, they can click on the Link button to access additional questions or even whole lessons. By selecting one of the options given they will be taken directly to the new questions. The related questions or lesson may be exited at any time by pressing ESCape. You are immediately returned to where you left your former lesson.

We are still in the process of cross-referencing questions so that tutors can select more examples of the same kind for students to practice.

We plan to extend this feature to everything in the PAR Revision series. e.g. Algebra Revision, Decimals Revision, Fractions Revision etc.

. . . And how could I forget . . . after everything that’s been going on lately . . . PAR English has arrived in Version 12 too.

PAR Word Skills now joined by Reasoning

PAR Word Skills which consists of a series of Vocabulary drills over 5 levels has proved popular with centres in the UK. Some have enthusiastically reported that they are finding it useful when preparing for 11+ Exams in particular. Of course, it has a much broader application as well; being designed to cover multiple levels.

More recently PAR Word Skills has been joined by Reasoning, which comes in 2 parts:
– 10 lessons that consist of various forms of Reading tests
– 50 Logic questions in a variety of forms and spread over 7 lessons.

As for all PAR resources, these are available as PDFs to enable printing paper copies if tutors wish to physically prepare students by actually carrying out a written practice exam.

Integers

Here’s something for those encountering integers.

In Mathematics you can’t get far without negatives. We all know that if you’re multiplying and you want the end result to be negative you are going to have to use a negative and a positive.
[Tip: Encourage students to regard x + 2x – 5x as x positive 2x negative 5x.]
So we teach:

+ x + = +
– x – = +          2 of the same will give a positive

+ x – = –
– x + = –          2 different will give a negative

Students generally catch on to multiplying easily but with dividing there is often an uncertainty about whether the outcome will be a negative or a positive.

It’s easy – if you show them one thing. Look above at where any negatives are used. What do you notice?

Wherever any negatives were used there was always one positive out of the 3 signs involved.
When we divide and negatives are present there will have to be a positive used also.
Consider the following:

+6 ÷ +2 = +3
-6 ÷ -2 = +3

+6 ÷ -2 = -3
-6 ÷ +2 = -3

So when a student has a negative divided by a positive and wonders what the outcome will be, they can confidently expect a second negative. In the same way, if they are dividing a negative by a negative they can be assured they should get a positive answer.

The application of this reaches beyond the integers work often seen in the middle years at school. An example of the above being helpful is when students are doing such things as solving.

In 3x = -12 you need to divide the -12 by a [positive] 3. Result: x = -4

If the equation was -3x = -12 you’d be dividing the -12 by a -3 [negative]. Result: x = 4 [positive]

You can be positive in the way you use negatives; and to good effect. Try it.

PAR Tables plan

Students begin by working on Learn Them and progress to Tables Workout. Once a student can do the Tables Workout in less than say 2 minutes they are ready to start testing out how many they can manage in 1 minute. So they try a 1 minute Tables Challenge. Any student who can score about 15 is probably ready for doing Tables Challenge.

Learn Them is for help to learn them.
Workouts is a practice tool.
Tables Challenge is a testing, evaluative tool (not a teaching tool).

Help your students get familiar with their tables by doing Fact Families, listed under Tables. Number Bonds is the addition facts counterpart.