Offers information on a project to improve students' understanding of derivatives. Students use the software package "Cactusplot" which allows them to calculate the slope at various points, and "Graphical Analysis III" software to graph the data and modify the graphs if necessary. (ASK)

Describes several activities and games that provide an introduction to the concept of function. Suggests that experiences should depend more on students' experiences and understanding and less on the memorization of unmotivated conventions with abstract symbols. Includes activities for a calculator as a function machine, composite functions, and…

The interconnected world of actors and movies is a familiar, rich example for graph theory. This paper gives the history of the "Kevin Bacon Game" and makes extensive use of a Web site to analyze the underlying graph. The main content is the classroom development of the weighted average to determine the best choice of "center" for the graph. The…

This paper contains sample exercises that investigate weather and air quality relationships for use in college-level introductory courses in climatology and meteorology. The exercises will provide students with an opportunity to apply meteorological principles to a specific geographic location, in an effort to better understand the significant…

Suggestions and learning activities to help secondary students learn social studies skills are contained in this document. Social studies skills make it possible for the learner to employ those intellectual processes necessary in obtaining or handling knowledge. Five selected skill development areas are discussed; each area contains a number of…

This article provides an overview of the instructional design principles underlying the effective use of graphic communication devices in geography texts. The topics covered include labelling, figure-ground relationships, signs and symbols, legends and keys, and graphic integrity. Includes graphic examples. (JDH)

Ways of solving a problem on the connection between heat loss and the ratio of surface area to volume are described. Tables and graphs are included. (MNS)

Presented is a method of interchanging the x-axis and y-axis for viewing the graph of the inverse function. Discussed are the inverse function and the usual proofs that are used for the function. (KR)

Discussed are the vital properties that an operator must have to be called a derivative and how derivatives work. Presented is an extension of the derivative that uses least squares to find the line of best fit. (KR)

Presents activities that connect mathematics to real-world situations using heating bills and costs. Includes reproducible student worksheets. (MKR)

Gives a multi-lesson project exploring multiplication arrays. Students are given opportunities to model multiplication tables with rectangular arrays, develop and extend ideas about patterns, organize and present visual patterns symbolically in tables, and represent visual patterns graphically. (MKR)

This book is the third in a three-volume set prepared to assist elementary-school teachers in the improvement of mathematics instruction. Each volume begins with a scope-and-sequence chart which assigns topics to seven levels. In later sections at least one objective is defined for each topic, and a series of activities related to objectives is…

Activities for investigating how the value of a variable in an equation affects the direction and shape of the graph are given. A computer program and three worksheets are included. (MNS)

Graphs from media sources and questions developed from them can be used in the middle school mathematics classroom. Graphs depict storage temperature on a milk carton; air pressure measurements on a package of shock absorbers; sleep-wake patterns of an infant; a dog's breathing patterns; and the angle, velocity, and radius of a leaning bicyclist…

The focus of these four activities is on gathering, using and interpreting data about bicycles as a basis for integrating mathematics. Measurement, ratios, and other relationships are explored through making graphs, finding bicycling speeds and a parent-involvement activity sheet. (CW)