Calculus is such a strange mathematical creature. Some quiver at the very mention of its name, while others delight in its inherent beauty. In spite of its reputation, calculus has many practical real-world applications and is required learning for many college degrees.

Some students wait until college to study calculus, and others begin their study while still in high school. Either way, to successfully learn calculus you need a solid background in some prerequisite courses. The traditional courses leading up to calculus include algebra, geometry, and trigonometry. You can find a list of specific precalculus topics along with a good tutorial covering those concepts at Kuniyuki’s Precalculus Notes.

Students who wish to learn calculus in high school can do so through the College Board’s Advanced Placement Program. Most high schools today participate in this program. It provides high school students the opportunity to take college level courses for which they can receive college credit. A detailed description of the entire Advanced Placement Calculus program can be found at AP Central.

In simple terms, calculus is about rates of change. It provides the answers to such questions as “how much”, “how fast”, “what’s the most”, and “when is the best time.” Elementary calculus is divided into two main sections, differential calculus and integral calculus. You can find a good explanation of the concepts covered in each section at A Simple Introduction to Differentials and Integrals.

No matter what your age, if you’re learning calculus—or want to learn calculus—you can find all kinds of help online. There are sites that serve as tutorials, sites that provide drill and practice, and sites that provide answers to your questions. There are even entire calculus textbooks available online. For starters, if math just isn’t your thing but you still need to learn calculus, you might enjoy BetterExplained.com, a blog written by a former Princeton student. His article titled “A Gentle Introduction to Learning Calculus” is a refreshing discussion of calculus in everyday language.

Here are some other good online calculus resources:

Online calculus textbooks
Calculus Made Easy
Calculus, by Gilbert Strang
A list of several free online calculus textbooks

Sites That Provide Instruction
Single Variable Calculus
Calculus Java Applets
Tutorials for the Calculus Phobe
The Math Forum
S.O.S. Calculus

Sites That Provide Drill and Practice Problems
The Calculus Page Problems List
Aid for Calculus
Sample Exams
The Math Shop’s Calculus Problems

Sites That Provide Answers to Your Questions
Ask Dr. Math
Ask Mr. Calculus