Pythargoras

Was Pythagoras at IMiddle?

Pythagoras was a Greek philosopher and mathematician who lived around 500BC. Of the many contributions he made to the field of mathematics, he is most famous for his discovery of the relationship between the legs of a right triangle and its hypotenuse. This famous theorem, known as the Pythagorean Theorem, has been used for centuries to not only find the missing side lengths of a right triangles but also to determine whether a given triangle is indeed a right triangle.

Many know it as a² + b² = c²

In this project, we want to show that Pythagoras was here at IMiddle.

Instructions:

1) Find a partner to work with. This project will be done in groups of two.

2) Take your laptop and a ruler and walk around Innovation Middle School. Use the camera on your laptop to take pictures of what you think might be right triangles.

3) Measure in inches all three sides of the triangle and write them down. BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR MEASUREMENTS -- be as accurate as possible!

3) Once you have three examples, go back to Mrs. Garcia's class and work with your partner to verify that the triangles you found are indeed right triangles using the Pythagorean Theorem. *Remember: Your measurements may not be exact, so it is okay if your answers are a little bit off*. If not, see if you can go back out and find three examples of right triangles.

4) Use a program on your computer to prove to your class that Pythagoras was indeed at IMiddle. Create some sort of visual presentation (whether it be a movie, a powerpoint, a poster, etc) that shows your findings and examples of how Pythagoras was here at IMiddle.

Questions to answer:

-What is the Pythagorean Theorem?

-How did you check that your triangle is a right triangle?

-How did you determine which of your sides is the hypotenuse?