Skip To Main Content

Endorsement Stories

Stay up to date with the latest stories about academics! From student projects to student successes, see what's going on with our academic department. 
Speed Traps and Calculus

Students in AP Calculus had a chance to play cops and speeders. Students had the opportunity to use real radar guns and math to try to catch their classmates speeding along Fairview. A speed limit of 35 mph was set for the experiment, some students were drivers and others were assigned as "police" and were posted at two different locations along the route. As students drove past the posts, the "police officers" recorded their instantaneous speeds and then used the Mean Value Theorem (MVT) to attempt to prove that their classmates went over the limit of 35 mph. After the experiment, the students held a mock trial, where the "police" presented their evidence and mathematical reasoning while the drivers attempt to refute the claims. The exercise provided both a concrete introduction and application to the Mean Value Theorem (MVT). 

More Endorsement Stories

“If you can't explain it to a six-year-old, you don't understand it well enough yourself.” 

Mrs. Herscovici's Entrepreneurship class finished their unit on "Exploring Opportunities" by researching famous entrepreneurs. In small groups, students researched an entrepreneur of their choice and were made aware of how many times these entrepreneurs had to fail before their ideas became successful. In the midst of this research, we have been discussing the importance of being able to explain our learning. Essentially, “If you can't explain it to a six-year-old, you don't understand it well enough yourself.” ― Albert Einstein.

Read More about “If you can't explain it to a six-year-old, you don't understand it well enough yourself.” 
Calculus Speed Trap

If you travel 40 miles per 60 minutes, what’s your average speed per hour, or what’s your average rate of change (the change in distance over the change in time)? Are they different? Students in AP Calculus played cops and speeders last week in class. Students had the opportunity to use real radar guns and math to try and see if they could catch their classmates speeding along Fairview.

Read More about Calculus Speed Trap
Humanities Alumni Update

The Humanities program honored its first class of graduating students this past May 2023 during Valor’s commencement ceremony. We want to regularly include comments from graduates to help give a sense of how the Humanities program prepared them for the next phase of their lives. For our first alumni check-in, we asked Ben Leikam to reflect on how his time in the Humanities program prepared him for college. Here are his thoughts...

Read More about Humanities Alumni Update
STEM Night 2023

STEM Night was a great success, as students showcased their work through capstone projects, clubs, and competitions. Over 30 projects and interactive demos were highlighted during the evening. In addition, select students received awards for their innovation, creativity, and service through STEM. 

Read More about STEM Night 2023