How Not to be Wrong - Jordan Ellenberg (Book Read May 2020)

I have had this book for a few years.  The COVID-19 school closure period allowed me a lot of time to read and I am glad to finally finish this book.

Part I - Linearity:  
-In the opening chapters, the author introduces the concepts of limits and made connections to linear regression.  
-"Not all curves are straight lines" is a reason why we should be careful in making predictions.
-Smaller sample sizes have more variability.
-Don't misinterpret the Law of Large Number with events that should be independent.
-Don't use proportions when numbers are more meaningful.

Part II - Inference
-Pitfalls of using probability
-Lottery in Massachusetts
-Buffon's Needle Problem

Part III - Expectation
-Miss more planes
-Math theories

Part IV - Regression
-The voting system
-Lung cancer makes you smoke

Part V
-The joy of doing math

Bonita Honorary Teacher Letter 2020

Thank you Ethan, Sarah, and Jacqueline for your kind words.  Congratulations and best wishes.  (From 5/16/2020)

Bonita Graduate Photo Shoot 2020 (Part 2)

It was a great day.  Among others, I saw Sarah, Matthew, Brylie, Lexi, Robert, Allie, Sarah, and Noah.  I miss the seniors.  Again, I give our leadership credit.  Our administrators and ASB director were out in the sun from 8 am to 5 pm over a six day period helping with the process.  We are doing our best to give the graduates the best experience we could afford under the current county rules.  The students and parents expressed their gratitude.  (From 5/22/2020)

Sarah

Matthew

Brylie

Noah

Bonita Graduate Photo Shoot 2020 (Part 1)

I was happy to be asked to help out at the graduate photo shoot.  Seniors had appointments in 10-minute blocks to film their walks down the field.  Then, they had an individual photo shoot and a family photo.  Afterwards they are free to take more photos by the "20".  It was a beautiful morning and I was thrilled to see some of my students.  Also, lets give our leadership some credit.  Our administrators and ASB director were out in the sun from 8 am to 5 pm over a six day period helping with the process.  We are doing our best to give the graduates the best experience we could afford under the current county rules.  The students and parents expressed their gratitude.  (From 5/21/2020)

Camille and Aidan

Camille is Brown University bound.

THE PAWSE -- SEASON 5 -- Episode 17.5

Bonita Yearbook Unloading 2020

Without students on campus, I was asked to help Mrs. Oualline unload the yearbook shipment.  There were 100 boxes with 25 books each.  According to the boxes, they are 60 lbs each.  Additionally, there were three boxes with special editions for the seniors in the yearbook class.  With the help from Mr. Oualline and Mr. Guillen, the four of us unloaded the boxes, awaiting for students to pick these up very soon.  (From 5/21/2020)

A beautiful view of the Bonita campus outside Mrs. Redman's room.

Bonita High School Senior Awards 2020

Congratulations to the senior awards recipients.  We are so proud of all of you.  (From 5/18/2020).

AP Calculus: Jacqueline

AP Statistics: Diego and Alex

So proud of A. Zheng and N. Wong

Bonita Cap & Gown Distribution 2020

Due to city protocol, only 28 staff were allowed to help support this drive-thru event. We met at 9:40am and welcomed students and parents from 10 am to 2 pm.  As luck would have it, we experienced heavy rain over that time period.  Nonetheless I enjoyed seeing my students during this bitter sweet event.  I'm glad the homemade sign and cap withstood the conditions.  Some of the students were understandably very emotional.  I want to stay optimistic that we can still have form of formal in-person ceremony for our seniors in June.  If this really was the last time our students are on campus together, we made the best of the situation.  Be safe, be healthy, and keep learning.  

(From 5/18/2020)

Getting ready to welcome our seniors.

Student parking lot was decorated in green and white.

Celebrating our senior graduates.

Photo posters were on display throughout the lot.

Happy memories.

The Bearcat Way

Love this picture, a reflection of 2020.

Thank you to Ms. Kelly Ngo for these photos.

Pretending to direct traffic.

Photo bombed by Mr. Wes behind me.

It rained throughout the morning, but we were happy to be on D-Street!

It was great seeing students on campus!

Mr. Wes said I looked like a Batman villain.

Math Teachers Mrs. Verti and Mr. Wes

The work is done, Mr. Wes and I were soaked in rain.

A panoramic view of the lot.

The cap surprisingly held up very well after four hours in the rain.

The poster board was falling apart by the afternoon.

Poster for Seniors c/o 2020

I made a sign to celebrate the seniors.  Particularly, this is dedicated to the senior students in leadership who had made countless posters over the past four years. I plan to bring this to the cap and gown distribution day on May 18th.  (5/13/2020)

Bonita Teacher Tik Tok Dance 2020 (IGTV)

Action Week Video

Hubbs, Varnes, Ritchies, Yip, Plunkett, Baumunk, Mendoza, Tilford, Pocino, O'Grady, Redman, McLuckey, Dill, Chiu, and Karaian.

(5/16/2020)

Bonita Teacher Tik Tok Dance 2020 (Tutorial)

I don't do Tik Tok videos, but just for students' laugh, I volunteered to film a few seconds.  Thanks to Chloe (senior, varsity volleyball, ASB President) for the choreography.  (From 5/7/2020)

Bonita 2020 Over-Sized Graduation Cap

Just for fun.  After hearing that we would have an opportunity to pass out caps and gowns to seniors in the student parking lot.  I had an idea to create a huge graduation cap - A Big Grad Cap.  The black foam board, green ribbons, and basket were from the dollar store.  I had considered using a beanie or baseball cap, but the basket served as a perfect low cost option.  First, cut the form board into a square.  This board is now approximate 20 x 20 inches.  Use either a black marker or black masking tape to hide the white foam along the edges.

Instead of hand written messages, I printed using the Staples website to create a more official design.  I had to place multiple orders to get the sizing just right.  The Staples website is easy to use and provides free shipping or pick-up.

Playing with different layouts and designs, keeping it classy and simple.  Various types of letter decals can also be found at local dollar stores.

Cutting the black stock paper to fit the basket was no easy task.  It took several trace and trim takes.  I rolled the basket onto the paper and traced its path with a pencil for cutting.  It reminded me of finding volume and surface area by rotation in calculus.

I had considered using tape, velcro, and even screws and nuts with washers to secure the basket to the board.  Ultimately, plastic tie-downs was a cheap, sturdy, simple, and lightweight option.  I reinforced the top with extra masking tape.

The view from the bottom.  Cut the tie-downs near the inside "corners" so they won't scrape your head.  Now the basket is locked tightly onto the board.

The design on top.

I uncurled and stapled the green ribbons to form the tassel for the graduation cap.

Finalizing the design of the tassel.  I needed to staple the back-to-back "B's" and "20's" together as the double sided tape did not hold.

Attached the tassel to the cap with a simple clip for easy adjustment.

All done.

Not bad!  The cap withstood four hours in the rain!