OK MC - I know that we are talking about your son, but has anyone seen these?
http://www.amazon.com/Math-Doesnt-Su...2508229&sr=1-5
They are written by Danica McKeller (Winnie from the Wonder Years) and supposed to be really good (provided you are a 13-year-old girl).
I also have to add that I didn't like math and was actually told at one point (in third grade) by a teacher that I would never amount to much because I wasn't very good at it. (Good enough to be in the Honors class, but I struggled to keep up). Anyhow - mom sent the teacher an invite to Commencement when I got my Ph.D.
I actually wish I had taken more math in college, not because I use it every day, but because I have to have an idea of what I am seeing or what other data is presented is reasonable. Is my technical instrument working and or are these computational results reliable?
The example I have that I use all the time is - if there are 3 midterms that will constitute 60% of your grade, but you get to drop the lowest of the three, and the final is worth 40%, how do you figure out what grade you need to make on the final to get an A for the semester?
{90-[(x+y)/2]*.6}/0.4 = Final
Another way to get young MC's attention - he needs to know algebra so that when he is a big hot shot, he can tell if his accountants are telling him the truth or have an idea if his employees are skimming off the top.
ETA: LOL Thought of another one - I need algebra to know if the numbers from the RFM program are legit or if there's been a mistake.