Math is, quite obviously, not the favorite subject of many high school students. It is the subject that students need the most tutoring in, it is the subject that kids have moaned and groaned about since the early days of finger-counting and basic arithmetic.

When high school hits, it gets much worse. After delving into the bamboozling world of integrals and derivatives, life seems to get so much harder. At least, it would if we were not adequately prepared. Admittedly, AP Calculus BC was a daunting class. There are so many capital letters in the name. Pre-calculus was already traumatizing enough. Math is hard. Many students came in fully ready to be lost in a swirling sea of curvy math symbols and confusing formulas.

However, for those in Mr. Miller’s class, this is not necessarily the case. While jumping headfirst into advanced math is inevitably going to be difficult and confusing, Mr. Miller manages to explain the topics thoroughly and in a way that allows for the people in his classes to gain a good understanding. He makes an extremely difficult subject seem almost easy at times.

His classes somehow combine a decent amount of enjoyment with education, which is something that many math classes (and classes in general) aspire to do, but never quite achieve success in. Students in his class are simultaneously entertained by his sense of humor and also by some brilliant glimpse of understanding at the subject matter. Not to mention, some are quite thrilled by his Death Star jelly bean dispenser.

When we have a tough time feeling excited about mathematics, Mr. Miller jumps in with clips from The Martian, and tells us exactly how what we are learning will apply to real-life (and the fact that proving some mathematical concepts will earn us fantastic monetary rewards). That is, what I assume is the really great part of teaching: letting your students know that what they are learning about is important and that it will help them in being the people that they want to be: astronauts, famous scientists, mathematicians.

Mr. Miller does the essential parts of the job well, and he adds on his personal flair in a way that makes his class a pleasure to be a part of. In spite of the largely negative reputation of mathematics as a whole, he somehow manages to make the subject bearable to learn about and even fun at times, no matter how impossible that might seem.

-Kayli Mak, 11, Pow Wow, Staff Writer