Reaching New Heights
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Algebraic Thinking Focus
Exploring the relationship between two variables prepares the student for the study of functions, which in turn provides the basis for much of the study of algebra. Students need concrete experiences in meaningful contexts to construct an understanding of the interaction between and among variables.
Lesson Objective
Students will gather two sets of data, design and plot a scattergram of the data, and interpret the meaning of individual coordinates and the overall graph.
Overview of the Lesson
Students work in pairs to measure their arm span and height and record them on a class chart. The class works together to create a scattergram to display the data. Class discussion focuses on interpreting the scattergram. The discussion is followed by using graphing calculators to plot the scattergram. Finally, students examine the graph of y = x and its relationship to the scattergram.
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