Gary Simon

The teaching and learning of mathematics has evolved over time to reflect a shift in emphasis from skill development to deeper procedural and conceptual understanding and to an even broader emphasis on problem-solving, reasoning and proof, connections, communication, and representation. This shift is articulated in Principles and Standards for School Mathematics published by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) and Massachusetts Mathematics Curriculum Frameworks published by the Massachusetts Department of Education.

The Mathematics Department at Lexington High School has made significant progress implementing the vision of mathematics education espoused in these documents. Please take the time to explore our website at http://lhs.lexingtonma.org/Dept/Math/ as well as the individual teacher pages. The Mathematics Department offers a substantive four-year sequence of college-preparatory courses for students with varied learning styles and academic interests. Our goal is to enable every student to reach his or her potential in a supportive, academically focused environment. In every mathematics course, we want students to learn what it means to explore and discover mathematics; what it means to collect data, observe patterns, make conjectures, and generalize these findings; what it means to produce a coherent logical argument-to think deductively; what it means to create a mathematical model; what it means to represent a solution analytically, geometrically, numerically and verbally; what it means to analyze a problem and persevere until it is solved; in essence, what it means to develop the habits of mind of a mathematician and to think critically. We believe all students can reach high standards of academic achievement and come to appreciate the power and beauty of mathematics.

My intent on these webpages is to provide my students and the community with an information resource that addresses your questions and concerns on a variety of education related issues. I hope to foster a culture of positive exchange and collaboration among students, parents, and teachers. As I develop and improve this website, your feedback is appreciated. Please send any comments and suggestions to gsimon@sch.ci.lexington.ma.us.