Explain this
Exploring Algebra With the Geometer's Sketchpad
How the publisher describes it:
“The Geometer’s Sketchpad was developed as part of a Visual Geometry Project in the US and Key Curriculum Press produces materials that help utilise the program. This book aims to use it to explore algebra.”
Review by Steve Bishop
In brief:
It does not cover all the algebra in the GCSE syllabus and inevitably concentrates on graphing. For those that have access to the Geometer’s Sketchpad this would be a useful resource - however, it would not be worth buying Sketchpad to make use of this book.
“There are some interesting approaches”
The Geometer’s Sketchpad was developed as part of a Visual Geometry Project in the US and Key Curriculum Press produces materials that help utilise the program. This book aims to use it to explore algebra. The book is a set of 47 photocopiable activities that enable the student to make use of Geometer’s Sketchpad - not included with the book. The pages are detachable from the book and come with three ring binder holes.
Included is a CD ROM, which requires Geometer’s Sketch pad to use, which has pre-made sketches for the activities.
There are five chapters:
- The fundamentals of algebra
- Slopes and lines
- Parabolas and quadratic equations
- Functions
- Transformations and vectors
The material would be suitable for most higher tier GCSE students. Though it is varied in quality and in some cases quite contrived (e.g. in the first section of adding and subtracting integers). There are some interesting approaches and I particularly liked the way in which links between geometry and algebra were made.
It does not cover all the algebra in the GCSE syllabus and inevitably concentrates on graphing. For those that have access to the Geometer’s Sketchpad this would be a useful resource - however, it would not be worth buying Sketchpad to make use of this book.
Steve Bishop • Mathematics lecturer, City of Bristol College
Paperback: 198 pages
Publisher: Key Curriculum Pr; Pap/Cdr edition (Mar 2003)
Language English
ISBN-10: 1559535342
ISBN-13: 978-1559535342
Product Dimensions: 27.7 x 21.6 x 1.5 cm
