I’m what they call a “geek”. Not sure if you noticed, but I like technology. When I was in high school, I was a big fan of math. English and history and the like were definitely not my forte. In 9th grade when I was taking Geometry I even wrote (as in made up/created) a theorem. Yes, my very own theorem. I’m not sure what it was about anymore, but I think it had something to do with triangles. I really should have kept it.
When I was a sophmore in High School I purchased (or probably had my parents purchase FOR me) my first graphing calculator. It was a TI-83. It is now MANY years later, and do you know what is STILL working? My TI-83. Before there were smartphones, and netbooks we had our calculators. My friends and I even wrote several custom programs on our Texas Instruments calculators. I had one program that when I would run it, it would show me a scripture verse. We also wrote various programs that would make our homework easier, and other fun things like that (did I mention before that I am a “geek”?) I hadn’t used my calculator in a while (not a whole lot of reason to find the tangent of something for a stay at home mom), and so I dug it out of it’s drawer when I was first contacted by Texas Instruments to review the TI-Nspire. I replaced the batteries, and wouldn’t you know it, it still worked, and my programs still ran!
I was definitely excited to check out this new calculator, even though I’m not typically graphing equations anymore. My nephew is also a math genius. I wanted to share this new toy with him and help him learn a little bit more advanced math. Texas Instruments also sent me a t-shirt, that as soon as I saw I knew would be perfect for my nephew.
Now when it came down to actually using it, I started out by heading to the grocery store. My husband and I are on a super tight budget right now, and I’ve decided to only use cash when going to the grocery store. I could not, and would not go over my cash allowance for groceries. I started to enter everything into the calculator that I put into the cart. What is really great about the calculator is that it keeps the calculations on screen. So I can calculate how much per item something is, that is on sale for 4 for $5, then go back to the running tally just by looking at the previous line. The one thing that took me a while to figure out is how to make a fraction into a decimal. I would enter 4 divided by 5 and it would return 4/5. Thanks TI-Nspire… I KNOW it’s 4/5’s, can you give me something I can use?? I just had to press the squiggly equals sign in order to get my decimal. It worked out perfectly, and I had exactly enough cash to purchase my groceries.
My Sister is currently taking a chemistry class in college. I brought the calculator over to her house and she said that she mainly needs it to find the cubed root of something. It was easier for me to figure out how to do that then it was to convert the fraction into a decimal. You just press the N (root) X button and then enter your numbers! It was so easy! She borrowed the calculator until she was done with her assignment.
Some other great features of the calculator are…
TI-Nspire Graphing Calculator Features
- Like a computer in your hand. The versatile graphing calculator has many computer-like features, including a large, high-resolution screen, drop down menus and a built-in cursor which helps students explore problem solving strategies in real-time.
- Save and review work. Thanks to electronic document capabilities and built-in 20 MB of storage, students can create, save and edit their work similar to the word processing and file storage of a computer.
- 2 calculators, plus computer software, in one.Interchangeable keypads allow students to use the calculator in TI-Nspire, TI-84 Plus and TI-83 Plus modes, and included computer software brings the TI-Nspire experience to a PC or Mac.
I remember as a student having to choose between the TI-89 and the TI-83. If I remember correctly the TI-83 was more for statistics (which was my favorite math subject of all time), and the TI-89 was better for calculus. Now you don’t have to choose between the two, with the interchangeable keypads! This calculator is truly all in one! It also includes software so you can perform the same functions on the larger screen of your computer! There are even downloads for the calculator and cusomizable options. The Student Zone on the Texas Instruments site is a great resource for study help, and !
Also, this DEFINITELY wasn’t an option when I was a student, but there is now a “testing mode” function on the calculator to enable you to use it while taking the SAT, AP, ACT, IB®, PSAT/NSMQT, and Praxis™ exams, as well as many state tests.
Texas Instruments clearly makes some quality calculators, and I’m so excited to be able to give away a “Math Makeover Kit” that includes..
- A new TI-Nspire with Touchpad – this also includes the new computer software so students can bring their graphing calculator experience to a PC or Mac.
- 60 free minutes at Tutor.com.
- Several other fun items, including T-shirts, water bottles and cell phone charms.
To enter to win simply leave a comment telling me what your favorite math subject was (Geometry, Calculus, Algebra, Statistics, etc). To be in accordance with FTC guidelines there are no other methods of entry and you are limited to one entry per person. Giveaway ends September 5th at 8 PM MST. Thanks!
*Disclosure – Texas Instruments provided me with one calculator to facilitate my review and one to give away on my blog. All opinions of the device and brand are my own, and I was not told what to say about either.
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I receive compensation if you make a purchase using the links.
I loved algebra & calculus. Took 5 years of math in high school (algebra, geo, trig, pre-cal and cal).
I loved geometry…it helped that I had a teacher that made the class interesting and fun, too.
I’d have to say Algebra! Had amazing teachers that made it fun and class was so easy to catch onto! Loved it
Statistics
I really loved Algebra and Geometry
Math was always my favorite subject…any kind of math. If I had to pick my favorite type of math I’d say it’s Algebra for sure…love solving the equations! 🙂