8th Grade Honors Geometry

We will take a break from traditional Euclidean geometry to venture into coordinate geometry, where algebra and geometry meet.

During chapter 5, we will work with quadrilaterals, especially parallelograms. We will examine various ways of proving that a quadrilateral is a parallelogram.

There is a lot to remember in geometry. Every class brings new definitions and theorems and examples of how to use them to solve problems. Taking notes is an important strategy to manage all that knowledge. But it's important to strike the right balance between taking notes and being an active participant in class.

My suggestion is that you focus on participating during class. Ask questions, answer questions, make mistakes and find out why. This is the key to really understanding all those definitions and theorems, as opposed to knowing the words but not knowing what they mean. You may find it helpful to copy down some of the examples. But many of the examples are in your textbook.

I also suggest making note consolidation part of your daily homework ritual. Go over the lessons and whatever notes you did take. Look over the lessons and examples in your textbook. Use this information to write up some good, organized, succinct notes. Decide what you might want on your single page of notes for the test.

This approach will allow you to participate in class, really get involved in the concepts, and have the information you need written down. And along the way, you will build the notes you need for the test, and a good set of notes you can refer to as you deepen your understanding of geometry.
 

During chapter 4, we will study congruent triangles. We will find out some different ways to know that two triangles are congruent, and we will use those postulates to prove some theorems.

During chapters 1-3, we will begin our study of Geometry with the basic building blocks of all things geometric: points, lines, segments, and rays. We will work with angles and perpendicular lines, and prove some theorems about parallel lines.