Education Technology


Secant Lines

Activity Overview

In this activity, students will observe the slopes of the secant and tangent line as a point on the function approaches the point of tangency.

Key Steps

  • Image

    Using the draw menu, students will have a tangent line drawn at point P(1, 1). The equation of the line will appear on the screen.

  • Image

    Students will discuss how the secant and tangent lines compare to each other.

  • Image

    Students will approximate the instantaneous rate of change using the slope of the secant line.