Education Technology


Slope/Triangle Area Exploration

Activity Overview

Using multiple representations afforded by the TI-Nspire and TI-Nspire CAS, students investigate the following problem (Adapted from Philips Exeter Academy, 2007).

The equation y − 5 = m (x − 2) represents a line, no matter what value m has.
(a) What are the x- and y-intercepts of this line?
(b) For what value of m does this line form a triangle of area 36 square units with the positive x- and y-axes?
(c) Describe the areas of the first-quadrant triangles.

Before the Activity

You should familiarize yourself with the associated .tns file, the activity guide, and the guided inquiry questions.

During the Activity

This document contains the Teacher Guide and Student Questions.