At a Glance:
| Grades: | 6, 7, 8 |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Math; STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) |
| Topic: | Math, Geometry, Triangles, Similarity, Slope |
| Lesson Length: | 45 mins - 1 hour |
Standards / Framework:
What will students learn in this activity?
Students will create a comic that uses similar triangles to explain why the slope is the same between any two distinct points on a non-vertical line in the coordinate plane.
What should students know before this activity?
Students should be able to identify characteristics of similar triangles and understand the relationship between the slope of a line and the hypotenuse of a right triangle.
How can teachers introduce this lesson?
- Ask students:
- “How do we know when two triangles are similar?”
- “What is the slope of a line and how is it like the hypotenuse of a right triangle?”
- “Why is it important to understand the relationship between similar triangles and points on a graph?”
What will students do?
- Have students discuss the relationships between similar triangles and what is necessary for triangles to be similar.
- Have students discuss how points on a non-vertical or non-horizontal line form the hypotenuse of a right triangle with legs parallel to the x-axis and y-axis.
- Have students use these principles to formulate an explanation for why the slope is the same between any two points on a non-vertical line.
- Have students create a comic that illustrates this explanation.
How can teachers wrap up the lesson?
- Have students share their comics with the class or in small groups.
- Have students discuss why it’s important to be able to communicate mathematical ideas in visual form.
- Discuss alternate ways of explaining mathematical principles.
- Emphasize that being able to clearly communicate mathematical ideas helps build communication and critical thinking skills.
How can teachers differentiate this activity?
- Allow students to use the speech-to-text feature.
- Allow students to work in pairs or groups as needed.
- Allow students to use the voiceover feature to read their comics aloud.
- Students may have varying degrees of detail based on their ability to visualize mathematical proofs.
- If necessary, provide graph paper, grides, or printouts of similar triangles to provide hands-on examples before creating the comic.
Related Resources:
Castle
Amusement Park
Geometry
