Prealgebra [Paperback]

Richard N. Aufmann (Author), Vernon C. Barker (Author), Joanne S. Lockwood (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1997

Prealgebra, 5/e, is a consumable worktext that helps students make the transition from the concrete world of arithmetic to the symbolic world of algebra. The Aufmann team achieves this by introducing variables in Chapter 1 and integrating them throughout the text. This text's strength lies in the Aufmann Interactive Method, which enables students to work with math concepts as they're being introduced. Each set of matched-pair examples is organized around an objective and includes a worked example and a You Try It example for students. In addition, the program emphasizes AMATYC standards, with a special focus on real-sourced data. The Fifth Edition incorporates the hallmarks that make Aufmann developmental texts ideal for students and instructors: an interactive approach in an objective-based framework; a clear writing style; and an emphasis on problem solving strategies, offering guided learning for both lecture-based and self-paced courses. The authors introduce two new exercises designed to foster conceptual understanding: Interactive Exercises and Think About It exercises.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Richard Aufmann is Professor of Mathematics at Palomar College in California. He is the lead author of two best-selling developmental math series, a best-selling college algebra and trigonometry series, as well as several derivative math texts. The Aufmann name is highly recognized and respected among college mathematics faculty.

Vernon Barker has retired from Palomar College where he was Professor of Mathematics. He is a co-author on the majority of Aufmann texts, including the best-selling developmental paperback series.

Joanne Lockwood is co-author with Dick Aufmann and Vernon Barker on the hardback developmental series, Business Mathematics, Algebra with Trigonometry for College Students, and numerous software ancillaries that accompany Aufmann titles. She is also the co-author of Mathematical Excursions with Aufmann. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 590 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin College Div; 2 edition (October 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395870933
• ISBN-13: 978-0395870938
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,106,467 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very easy to understand, gives you solid foundation for Algebra 1, April 3, 2011

By 

Dan K "DPK" (NY Metro) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Prealgebra Third Edition (Paperback)

I'm actually going to review the book for you and not the experience of buying it.

What I liked about this book was the layout. There are many examples in each section, plenty of practice problems, chapter tests, and cumulative tests after each chapter. The answers to the odd problems are in the back so you can check your work. The language is also very easy to understand and helps to drive home each of the concepts.

What I really liked about this book was that each chapter has an "applications" section with word problems related to that specific chapter. This makes the math more interesting because you can see how it is used in areas like business, arts, consumerism, nutrition, history, physics, and others. There might be temptations just to do the regular problems and skip the application section but I recommend you work through them as they will help you to really understand the concepts. Word problems really make you think and you should practice as many as you can.

Also, there is sufficient space within the pages to work out most of the problems in the book. There are some advanced problems that require you to use a notebook but I like the fact that I can write in the book as it saves a lot of time.

I've seen standard math books that are very dry and boring and very light on explanation. This book has so many explanations and each step of the explanation is clearly shown. For example, one page has about two problems completely worked out. There was never a time where I asked myself "How did they do that?" The book is more colorful than standard high school math books and this makes it look less intimidating and helps with the flow and structure.

I am currently working through the McDougal-Litell Algebra Book 1 text and I feel that this prealgebra text has prepared me well.

The book has 10 chapters but you can skip the last three or four as they are not really important for prealgebra. I stopped at chapter six which is first-degree equations. The other chapters are measurement and proportion, percent, geometry, and statistics and probability. If you can completely understand first-degree equations, you are ready for algebra 1. The last four chapters are very useful and fun but you don't need them immediately for algebra 1. I will come back to them in the future. The book is not too hard but it is not too easy either. I don't think you should buy a really hard and confusing prealgebra book because you can always get a harder algebra 1 book. The point of prealgebra is to completely understand the fundamentals and this book will do just that.

Math is sequential, if you don't get prealgebra concepts, you will not magically understand algebra and certainly nothing more advanced in the future. This is a great book to learn the foundations. Math is not hard, you just have to know all the rules. This is an excellent book to begin learning the rules. I highly recommend it because it has helped me tremendously and I no longer am intimidated by math.

3.0 out of 5 stars I wait too long for it, January 31, 2012

By 

peter - See all my reviews

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This review is from: PREALG (with Review Cards and Mathematics CourseMate with eBook Printed Access Card) (Available Titles Coursemate) (Paperback)

terrible it was not deliver the day they told me ,I started my classes and I haven't receive any book

1.0 out of 5 stars don't buy, October 26, 2011

By 

brandella - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Prealgebra (Paperback)

This product is a teacher's manuel and has all of the answers. It is definitely not what I needed and was not described very well. The company I ordered from never responded to me about a return. Absolutely the worst online purchase I have ever made. I have ordered alot from Amazon in the past, but this order has made me cautious! Very Disappointed!!!!