[NFB-Science] Fwd: [Tech-VI] Cultivating Math Skills on the Monarch with KeyMath
David Andrews
dandrews920 at comcast.net
Fri Aug 30 11:20:51 UTC 2024
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>American Printing House - Thursday, August 29, 2024 at 11:00â¯AM
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>Cultivating Math Skills on the Monarch with KeyMath
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>Adapting math lessons for students who are blind
>or have low vision takes patience and
>creativity. Teachers of the Visually Impaired
>(TVIs) construct graphs out of braille graph
>paper and Wikki Stix to represent the X and Y
>axis or help students make graphs digitally on a
>calculator. They use the deviceâs audio tones
>to listen to the shape of a graph. Today, for
>the first time ever, students can access a
>tactile graphing calculator on the
><https://www.aph.org/meet-monarch/>Monarch,
>APHâs new 10-line by 32-cell refreshable
>braille display that renders braille and tactile graphics on the same surface.
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>Created through a partnership with
><https://www.desmos.com/>Desmos, the KeyMath
>application has similar functions to a graphing
>calculator for sighted users. Students who are
>blind and low vision can use the app to perform
>basic scientific calculations and graph
>problems, such as finding the slope of a line
>and solving exponential equations. In an
>instant, the same graphs that teachers and
>students spent minutes making by hand appear,
>putting the student on an even playing field
>with their peers. A push of a few buttons can
>change the original equation, and students can
>view an entirely new graph and compare it to the previous one.
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>To open KeyMath, power on the Monarch and select
>the application from the main menu. The Monarch
>will say, âExpressions list. Press Space with
>N to enter a new expression.â After following
>this direction, the display will read,
>âKeyMath expression, Nemeth.â Below that is
>a text box where students can type in their
>equation using Nemeth numbers and symbols. To
>graph the slope of a line, for example, write,
>ây = -2x+5â and press Enter. If the equation
>can be graphed, the display will say, âgeâ
>for âgraphed equationâ followed by the
>equation. If it cannot be graphed, the letters
>âerâ for âerrorâ will appear. When this
>happens, press Enter to go back to the text box
>and edit the equation so it can be graphed. In
>this example, the equation is graphable.
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>Students may press enter with G to make the
>graph, which is shown on the next screen. The
>line for this equation appears in the upper and
>lower right quadrants of the graph. To hear the
>points on the line, make sure speech is turned
>on by pressing Backspace and Enter with S. Place
>a finger on any part of the line and double tap
>the action button located above the space bar.
>The Monarch will announce the coordinates. To
>maneuver through the rest of the graph, use the
>zoom in and out buttons or the cross-shaped
>directional pad, or d-pads. When done, press the
>triangle button on the front-facing edge of the
>Monarch to go back to the expression list.
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>Another helpful feature of the KeyMath app is
>the symbol selector. This tool allows students
>to scroll through a list of numbers and symbols,
>press enter on one, and add it to the current
>problem. While in the text box for typing an
>expression, press Backspace with dots 3 and 5 to
>access the symbol selector. Different categories
>include numbers, comparison symbols, Greek
>symbols, punctuation, fractions, operations,
>measurement symbols, limit symbols, integrals
>symbols, sets symbols, shapes symbols, roots,
>superscripts, subscripts, formatting symbols, and misc (miscellaneous) signs.
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>Whether a student is just learning to graph in
>algebra class or taking more advanced math,
>KeyMath is an invaluable supplement to any
>classroom. âThe Monarch works marvelously with
>calculus and presents limits, derivatives, and
>integrals in real-time with the graphing
>feature,â said Matthew Brown, a TVI at Armwood
>High School in Tampa, Florida. âWe use it in
>tandem with a DESMOS on the iPad, for test
>security, so that the student may learn how to
>navigate the software for testing (as Monarch is
>not currently approved for testing), but also
>have the graphs displayed in real-time. The
>student states that it is helpful to understand
>the graphs as they are displayed and is hopeful
>that the development team for Monarch will
>possibly integrate the use of numbers on the graph itself.â
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>The Monarch will be publicly available in
>September and eligible for purchase with Federal
>Quota funds. Stay tuned to the website, APH
>News, and your email inbox for more information on this upcoming device.
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><https://www.aph.org/cultivating-math-skills-on-the-monarch-with-keymath/>https://www.aph.org/cultivating-math-skills-on-the-monarch-with-keymath/
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