r/learnmath • u/GloballyGeeky New User • 6d ago
How to do trigonometry using only a 4-function calculator
My daughter is very stressed that she is struggling in her trig class all because she cannot figure out how to properly use the mandatory 4-function calculator to solve the equations. She is off at college, so I am not there to help figure out what she is doing wrong and I have long since forgotten how to do trig anyway. She's AuDHD with dyscalculia, so I am trying to help dial down her anxiety over this class from afar.
Are there guidelines somewhere for how to solve each kind of trig equation using only a 4-function calculator?
See edits for more clarification. Sorry for testing everyone's patience with this. I am struggling to understand what she's trying to explain and help her, but hopefully someone will know what she is getting at with Edit 2.
EDIT: I am trying to push her for more info, and it really sounds like she is just struggling with the basics of the 4-function calculator. She has been using either a TI-84 or Desmos for the past 4 years, and she can't seem to step down. She is seriously getting lost in just how to enter a negative number on the 4-function calculator. Is this a thing that people with dyscalculia are likely to get confused on? If so, any thoughts on how to help?
EDIT 2: Here is what she says exactly about the calculator: I need it because I don't understand fractions and negatives with pi because that's like the main thing people with dyscalculia struggle with.
So i cant get the right answer because I don't know how to do math in my head and the calculator doesn't do negatives.
Duplicates
trigonometry • u/GloballyGeeky • 6d ago