The GW Community School

Mr. Gary Lindner
LindnerGT@gwcommunityschool.com

Bio:

Gary Lindner was born in DC and raised in Kensington , MD. Following high school he studied at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Stanford University (in California, in Paris, France and in Vienna, Austria), with a 2-year church mission in between, earning a BA in French Literature and a MA in Education. After 5 years teaching Math in public schools in California and Maryland , plus a private school in Switzerland , a frustrated Mr. Lindner left the classroom for his backup career because he was not really getting much time to actually teach.

After 15 years in Information Systems, Mr. Lindner returned to the classroom in September 2000 at The GW Community School to teach math, the best job in the world! He also manages the student and teacher computers, the school network, and developed the CoyoteTracks software used for recordkeeping, which he is migrating to a web-based system this fall. Mr. Lindner has a wonderful wife Jénee, three great sons (two of whom, Chris and Sam, are graduates of GWCS), and two cozy dogs. He enjoys teaching, reading, international travel, sailing, and being home with his family. Mr. Lindner is also the recognized Classic Rock Music expert at GWCS and contributes a Classic Rock Trivia Quiz to every issue of the school newspaper The Howler.

Courses Taught:

Algebra 2/Trigonometry is a one-year college-level course in which students combine the operational skills of Algebra I with the special and logical reasoning skills of Geometry to learn more about the ways patterns of numbers relate to each other numerically and visually. The overall focus of the course is the study of functions and their graphs, including polynomial, rational, exponential & logarithmic functions. Students learn to analyze a mathematical function and predict its behavior. They also learn how these function relationships exist in the natural and man-made world and how mathematical functions can model relationships in the real-world.

Students are also introduced to the study of Trigonometry, both through the trigonometric ratios discovered in the Classical Period as well as through their analysis as functions introduced during the Enlightenment. The same analytical approach applied to earlier functions is applied to the trigonometric functions, including numerical, algebraic and graphical reasoning.

The course places a heavy emphasis on the use of graphing calculators, which help students visualize the graphs of functions and analyze numerical patterns. They also are used to powerfully demonstrate the value of matrix mathematics. Students use a class set of identical calculators and the teacher uses a special display model to demonstrate their use on a large screen.

Prerequisites: Algebra I, Geometry.

Trigonometry is a one-semester course that provides students with a thorough treatment of Trigonometry through the study of trigonometric definitions, applications, graphing, and solving trigonometric equations and inequalities, with an emphasis placed on the connections between right triangle ratios, trigonometric functions, and circular functions.

Throughout the course emphasis will be placed on using trigonometry as a tool to solve real-life problems. Graphing calculators will be used to assist in teaching and learning and to enhance understanding of realistic applications through modeling. They will also aid in the investigation of trigonometric functions and their inverses, as well as provide a powerful tool for solving/verifying trigonometric equations and inequalities.

This course satisfies the Virginia Commonwealth Standards of Learning for Trigonometry and provides the foundation for students to pursue a sequence of advanced mathematical studies from Analytic Geometry to Advanced Placement Calculus.

Precalculus is a one-year college-level course that develops student's understanding of algebraic and transcendental functions, parametric and polar equations, sequences and series, and vectors. In this course students prepare for Calculus by revisiting many techniques of Mathematics previously studied. In Precalculus, the foundations of these techniques are analyzed and the relationships between the various techniques are studied. Additional focus is placed on functions, including patterns that apply to all functions. Students extend their study of trigonometry, including extensive work on analytic trigonometry and analytic geometry. Complex numbers and vectors are used to extend the study of analytic geometry beyond the Cartesian Plane. As the same patterns are repeated throughout the various areas previously studied independently, the stage is set for the unification of all mathematics achieved through Calculus. The course concludes with an introduction to limits and the two core problems of calculus, the Tangent Line Problem and the Area Problem. Extensive use is made of graphing calculators to visualize the graphs of functions studied and to study numerical patterns. The techniques learned are also applied to solving real-life applications.

This course satisfies the Virginia Commonwealth Standards of Learning for Mathematical Analysis and provides the foundation for students to pursue a sequence of Advanced Placement Calculus. Prerequisite: Algebra 2/Trigonometry.

AP Calculus BC is a one-year high school course that is comparable to calculus courses in colleges and universities. It is intended to be challenging and demanding. A higher level of commitment will be required to be successful in AP Calculus BC. It is expected that students who take the course will seek college credit, college placement, or both, from institutions of higher learning.

Calculus is the mathematics of change – velocities and accelerations. Calculus is also the mathematics of tangent lines, slopes, areas, volumes, arc lengths, curvatures, and a variety of other concepts that have enabled scientists, engineers, and economists to model real-life situations. Although Precalculus mathematics also deals with velocities, accelerations, tangent lines, and so on, there is a fundamental difference between precalculus mathematics and calculus. Precalculus mathematics is more static, whereas calculus is more dynamic. The general strategy involves reformulation of Precalculus mathematics through the use of the limit process.

The content of AP Calculus BC is generally determined by The College Board, and is designed to prepare the student to take the AP Calculus BC Exam. Most colleges and universities grant advanced placement and/or credit based of success in the course and performance on the AP Exam. This course syllabus has been approved by The College Board for use of the designation AP.

Prerequisites: Algebra 2/Trigonometry, Precalculus.

Applied Mechanics is a one- or two-semester elective course offered at The GW Community School. Through participation in a variety of student competitions involving the development of special devices such as robots or roller-coasters, students will not only learn to apply their math and science in a hands-on manner but will learn to work together as a team. Leadership and communications skills along with hands-on building and tinkering and team competition make this both a fun course and a valuable one. Students will travel to compete in various competitions.

Hours Available For Extra Help:

Mornings from 7:30 am to 8:25 am
After school promptly at 3:35PM.
(After school by previous arrangement.)

Mr. Lindner's Class Pages

GW Community School ~ 9001 Braddock Road, Suite 111 ~ Springfield , VA 22151
Tel (703) 978-7208 ~ Fax (703) 978-7226

***School is open during the summer - usually from 10am - 3pm but call ahead to make sure!******GW Alumnus participates in solar car race - click on news item below******Graduation and Prom Photos are available on Kodak Gallery***

News and Information

Upcoming Events
Click on GWCS Calendar Link below for more details:

Ronald McDonald House every Monday
Basketball Practice & Game Schedule
Soccer Practice & Game Schedule

July 2................... SF Book Club
July 2................... Goldie's Movie Night #1
July 24................. SF Book Club
Aug 6................... Goldie's Movie Night #2
Aug 13................ Star Party
Aug 25................ Fall NOVA Classes Begin
Aug 27................ Goldie's Movie Night #3
Sept 2................. First Day of School

GWCS CALENDAR

Off Site Email

SENIORS 2008