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.