Content Exploration: Geometer's Sketchpad

I reviewed Geometer's Sketchpad bacause it can be used in any seconday math course. This tool is not only designed for geometery; it includes linear and polar graphing that are used in algebra, calculus, and trigonometry.

Geometer's Sketchpad is such as great tool because it creates so many visual guides for learning; which include graphing, geometric figures, and a tool to make you creations animated. More specifically, students and teachers can construct parrallel lines, angle bisectors, and line segments; transform figures around a graph by reflecting, rotatating, stretching, and shrinking; and show how to measure angles, area, arc lengths, and diameters.

Geometer's Sketchpad is a good resource and efficient if you know what you are doing. It is important that both the students and the teachers know how to use all its resources.

Atomic Learning, the company that sells Geometer's Sketchpad, has created several video tutorials that show step by step how to use the tools appropriately. The videos are easy to follow and show how to manipulate the features of the sketchpad.

Geometer's Sketchpad isn't just a good resource for teachers to enhance and effect their classroom by showing them to their students. The tool can also be explored by students so that they can see how each function and lesson works. Through trial and error and exploration of the tool the student can learn at their own pace and process. For example, a teacher can have her students use the Geometer's Sketchpad to explore how tranformations work. They can create their own function and use the tools and animation features to present it to the class. Geometer's Sketchpad Resource Center also has over 101 Projects online that you can download, and the site includes 16 free examples that can be used by teachers to give as projects in their classrooms.

Quia Shared Activites

The website featured: http://quia.com/shared/





Created by Quia Corportation, this section of their site includes assessments and review activities for any course; from mathematics to martial arts. Simliar to Classtools.net, Quia Shared Activties has several activities for material review and learning, including puzzles, crosswords, hangman, etc..

This sharing center provide these activities and assessments which have been provided by teachers who use them in their classroom. For specific chapters or concepts, it provides a list of textbooks or resources to specify your search. Each search result includes the author, a description, feedback, and a copy of the activity or answer key (when necessary).

This resource is very helpful for teachers looking for review activities or assessments. It includes feedback and materials that other teachers have used in their classroom that were successuful enough to post on the site.

Martindale's Calculators On-Line Center

The website featured: http://www.martindalecenter.com/Calculators2.html

Created by Jim Martindale, this website has over 23, 785 different calculator applications. Each application is specific to a course or concept. The site contains every possible course, high school and college with applications specific to material from that course (pre algebra, algebra I and II, precalculus, geometry, calculus, etc.).

What is most interesting to me, although not necessarily useful, are some of the more unique calculator applications. For example, one is Egyptian Number Conversion, in which an Egyptian number calculator can configure Egyptian standard to English, or vice versa. There are also different measuring systems created by Egyptians, and provides historical means of mathematics used by Egyptians (ex. Triangular Calculations, used for Pyramid construction).

I recommend this site to any mathematics teacher, especially secondary education, who wants to incorporate specific calculator functions into their lessons.