Each student should record his/her own findings.Special Triangles: Isosceles and 30-60-90 Calculator: This calculator performs either of 2 items: 1) If you are given a 30-60-90 right triangle, the calculator will determine the missing 2 sides. Have students work in pairs to the Special Right Triangles activity sheet. Triangle, scale factor, similar triangles, sine, special right triangle, tangent, trigonometric ratio, 45-45-90 right triangle Student/Teacher Actions: What should students be doing What should teachers be doing 1.
From there, some students will want to use trig ratios: they will see a right triangle with a hypotenuse of length 10 and they have a 60-degree angle to use. The first thing students must notice here is that a line representing the height of the triangle will also be the line of symmetry that we discussed in the previous class. It also means removing any radicals in the denominator of a fraction.Class begins with a problem asking students to find the height of an equilateral triangle. Sketch a 45 45 90 triangle with equal sides with length 1.Chapter 8 Right Triangles and Trig Notes.notebook 2 DecemNov 167:12 AM Working with Radicals Simplified Radical Form This means simplifying a radical so that there are no more square roots left under the radical sign. One method that doesn’t involve any number memorization is to sketch a special right triangle and use the Pythagorean equation.
Lengths of special right triangles in simplified radical form.Other students will discover the method that I want to highlight. Solution: The hypotenuse is 2 times the length of either leg, soThe formula a2 + b2 c2 is one that most tenth grade geometry students have memorized. The hypotenuse is 2 times the length of either leg, so y 72. Solution: The legs of the triangle are congruent, so x 7. Write answers in simplest radical form.
It's a really important moment when students see that these values are exactly the same thing. By employing the Pythagorean Theorem, we'll get √75, which has exactly the same decimal value. By employing the trig ratio sin(60), we'll find the height to be 8.66. The reason I want to highlight this method is that it gives us an access point for a discussion of exact values and simplest radical form.I hope to find one volunteer to present each method. Once we know the lengths of two sides of right triangle, of course, we can use the Pythagorean Theorem.
Because it's not rounded, and that will prove useful in applications where we want to avoid rounding error.This is a problem that we will revisit in the next unit, when we inscribe a hexagon in a circle.To continue, we engage in some repeated exercises. I do make the point that √75 is a more exact value than 8.66. That's coming up in a few minutes. This example gives them some grounding, and adds to their growing body of evidence that the ratios are something real.I chose 10 for the length of the sides so we can look at the Fascinating Chart and notice a number that looks suspiciously like 8.66025403784.I don't yet worry about simplest radical form. Up to this point, many of my students have felt like the values a calculator spits out for the values of trig ratios are mysterious, inexplicable things.
They may also express these values in decimal form, and some may choose to verify their results by using sin(45) or cos(45) - which, once again, we notice have the same value. For most students, this is not too much trouble, especially as they discuss the work with their groups.My expectation here is that students will use the Pythagorean Theorem to find the length of each hypotenuse in radical form. My role is just to make sure that students can see the triangles that are formed when they draw a diagonal through a square, and to make sure that can describe these as special 45-45-90 triangles. Spotting patterns, as we'll see today, is a step in memorization.The next problem is simply to draw five squares, each with a different side length, and then find the length of the diagonal in each one. I then frame our next two tasks by saying that we're going to do a few repreated exercises now, and as we work, I'd like for everyone to look for patterns in their work. I ask students if they can see any connections between these two learning targets, and I take a minute or two to elicit the idea that when we look for patterns, we can learn more about the behavior of the trig ratios.
I want students to see the structure and pattern here, and for many of them, seeing this context rather than a random set of exercises helps them make sense of this concept.After guiding students through this example, I ask them to repeat for the radical values in their 30-60-90 triangles. They will have time to practice this skill more generally on today's Delta Math assignment.Look at the 45-45-90 radicals photo for an example of how I set up the notes for simplifying a set of radicals. That's a good thing, because it helps students to solidify the concept. Of course, there are only two possible radicands here: √2 and √3. This is a key skill in an Algebra 2 & Trig curriculum, and although it's not the primary focus of today's lesson, this is a great context for practice.
Each ratio simplifies to √(3)/2, so I ask everyone to enter this on their calculator. Taking a set of 30-60-90 ratios as our example, I write the ratios of the longer leg and the hypotenuse for each on the board, and I tell everyone to simplify each of these. With all of this mind, an explanation of why sin(30) and cos(60) are equal to 0.5 is pretty straightfoward.Now, with our radical values simplified, we can look at some of the "messier" trig ratios. I ask, "What does it means for all of these to be similar?" I'm hoping that, with the Similar Triangles Project fresh in their minds, students will remember that trig ratios allow us to see the relationship between angles and ratios of sides, both of which are properties of similar triangles. I ask students to look at their set of squares or 45-45-90 triangles (I use these terms interchangably to highlight the connection between them).
I explain that the exact value of sin(60) and cos(30) is √(3)/2, and from now on, I'd like everyone to memorize this fact. 8660254, and their initial shock that it matches one of the values in their charts.