Activity Overview
Students will have the opportunity to see the impact of the slope parameter m on a graph of a line in slope-intercept form by using a slider or by changing the values of the parameter. They will have the same opportunity to manipulate b. Questions follow to determine the degree to which the students have mastered what they have experienced.
Before the Activity
Students should have familiarity with moving from page to page in an NSpire document and in dragging items across the screen with Nspire.
During the Activity
Teachers should be sure to highlight the bold faced concepts of increasing, decreasing, and constant behavior of lines.
After the Activity
Teacher can display linear equations in slope intercept form and students should be able to correctly identify the parameter and describe the impact of the parameter in general terms (e.g, a line with m = 5 will be a line steeper than a line with m = 2)