What can online graphing calculators do?
Desmos and Geogebra both have highly-functioning online graphing calculators that we could use for many purposes. And the best part is... They're free! Go through this page to discover ways to utilize the online calculators and please show them to your students too!
Graphing calculator on Desmos is available on phone apps, so students could graph functions and verify their solutions easily on their phone during class. It is also free, saving students from purchasing $100 graphing calculators.
Desmos is the best for solving unknown variables; all you have to do is type in the equation and Desmos will calculate it for you! Desmos has the trig functions ready to click on, which we use several times in Geometry, so you don't have to type it out!
You could also type in a function and Desmos will graph it for you, as shown in the picture below. If you need to show your students what the function would look like, project this on the screen; no need to graph this by hand.
This video explains how to calculate simple equations and trigonometry functions. Please show how to do this to your students; this is a great way to solve HW problems if they don't have calculators around. When using trig functions, make sure it's in degree mode.
Students could solve Pythagorean Theorem by typing in the equation. Place the cursor on the graph where y=0, and that is the solution for the hypotenuse with legs of 8 and 13.
Systems of equations could be solved by simply typing in both equations on Desmos and find the intersection point of the two lines. This could be a great demonstration to show what it means to solve systems of equations.
Please feel free to play around with the Desmos calculator!