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Spinning Around: Using Sketchpad and a Ferris wheel to motivate an entire trigonometry unit Kevin Thompson, Ph.D. University High School Normal, Il 61790-7100 [email protected] Typical textbook sequencing Have we got mathematics sequencing backwards? This is not just a neat project rather a philosophical shift Motivation If students are not initially engaged with their preconceptions of reality, they may learn a particular item for a test but then revert back to their own preconceptions afterwards (Donovan & Bransford , 2005) Motivation Students’ understanding of concepts is then relegated to exist only in the mathematics classroom and lack any connection to their lived in world (Boaler, 2000a; Kirshner & Whitson, 1997; Lave, 1992). Background Classes meet for 55 minutes daily Was done in a precalculus class—also appropriate for Algebra 2 type course Students already had SOME familiarity with Sketchpad The Problem Day 1 Animate Point Show Axes Drag Timeline Directions resize Tips and Suggestions •For the Teacher •For the Student •For Sketchpad Student Outcomes Graph of Height and Angle Video link Angle and Arc Length Sample Creations Culminating Sketch Day 3 What connections were made? Right Triangles and Circles Coterminal angles Multiple solutions to trigonometric equations Meaningful connections within the unit circle—why do some patterns repeat? The behavior of trigonometric graphs (Amplitude, Period…) How to construct graphs Student Quotes The backbone of Trig… Additional Sketches Additional resources •Video detail of the sketches Thanks for Attending!