Students will start this activity by observing an interesting property related to the graph of a tangent to y = ex. This property will allow them to readily see that the derivative of y = ex is itself. This result will be confirmed using limits. Students will then determine that the limit as h approaches 0 of (eh1)/ h equals 1 and use this fact to evaluate this derivative analytically.
Before the Activity
Download the attached PDF and look over the information on the first page. Download and distribute the attached .tns file and Student Worksheet for use during the activity.
During the Activity
Discuss the material from the activity pages and worksheet with students as needed.
After the Activity
Encourage students to summarize what they have learned from completing the activity.
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