Education Technology


The Logarithmic Derivative

Activity Overview

Students will determine the derivative of the function y = ln(x) and work with the derivative of both y = ln(u) and y = loga(u).

Key Steps

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    Students begin the activity by finding the derivative of the natural log function at several values using the definition of a derivative. Students should begin seeing a pattern for the derivative of a natural logarithm function.

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    Next, students will explore logarithmic functions that have a base other than e.

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    Finally, students will use the Chain Rule to find the derivative of more complex exponential and logarithmic functions.