Printer-friendly versionStudents progress at amazingly different rates in the math arena. For that reason, careful consideration is given when placing students entering Randolph-Macon Academy Middle School for the first time. It is not unusual for a student to be tested to ensure he or she will be best served by the class placement.
Students who excel at math may be able to take more advanced math courses at the Upper School.
General Math
A foundational course is taught in the sixth grade, stressing the development of competence in the fundamental operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division with whole numbers, fractions, and decimals. This course also touches on estimation and problem solving. The goal of this course is to ready students for applications and problem solving as a means of achieving mastery of basic operations.
MathPlus
Some seventh grade students are not ready for Pre-Algebra, typically because of weaknesses in the higher order math fundamentals. MathPlus allows those students to receive an extra year of foundational instruction in such problematic areas as decimals, fractions, ratios, and coordinates, before they attempt the more abstract challenges of Pre-Algebra.
Pre-Algebra
This course, primarily for seventh graders, is designed to aid students in the transition from the fundamentals of arithmetic to the abstract concepts of algebra. The curriculum is structured to aid the students in making that important transition in thinking. Elements of the course also involve probability, an introduction to geometry, and statistics.