Lesson Plan
Illustrative Mathematics

Two Wheels and a Belt

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
Geometry gets an engineering treatment in an exercise involving a belt wrapped around two wheels of different dimensions. Along with the wheels, this belt problem connects concepts of right triangles, tangent lines, arc length, and...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Similar Triangles in Circle-Secant (or Circle-Secant-Tangent) Diagrams

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
First angle measures, now segment lengths. High schoolers first measure segments formed by secants that intersect interior to a circle, secants that intersect exterior to a circle, and a secant and a tangent that intersect exterior to a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Segments Formed by Intersectiong Chords, Secants, and Tangents

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Learners investigate the properties of segments formed which chords, secants, and tangents, intersect. The dynamic nature of Cabri Jr. allows students to form and verify conjectures regarding segment relationships.
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Tangent Segments

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
What's so special about tangents? Learners first explore how if a circle is tangent to both rays of an angle, then its center is on the angle bisector. They then complete a set of exercises designed to explore further properties and...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Special Triangles and the Unit Circle

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Calculate exact trigonometric values using the angles of special right triangles. Beginning with a review of the unit circle and trigonometric functions, class members use their knowledge of special right triangles to find the value...
Lesson Plan
Texas Instruments

Drawing a Line Tangent to a Circle

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Explore lines tangent to a circle. In this math lesson, students manipulate circles and lines on a TI calculator. They draw a circle  and analyze perpendicular lines intersecting the circle in only one place. This activity works...
Lesson Plan
Alabama Learning Exchange

Unit Circle: Special Angles—Just Know One

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
It's all about the patterns! Young scholars learn that the unit circle repeats itself in all four quadrants. Using these patterns, they evaluate the sine, cosine, and tangent of special angles.
Worksheet
Mt. San Antonio Collage

Circles

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Don't circle around the topic, but get right to the center with tons of practice regarding circles in geometry. The note-incorporated activity provides guided practice through many topics such as central angles, inscribed polygons...
Instructional Video14:27
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Flipped Math

Tangents to Circles

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Touch a circle once. Individuals watch a video and learn two theorems related to tangents and circles. The pupils then apply the theorems to find missing angle measures and lengths in figures. At the end, they practice their skills on...
Unit Plan
Mathematics Vision Project

Circles: A Geometric Perspective

For Teachers 10th - 12th Standards
Circles are the foundation of many geometric concepts and extensions - a point that is thoroughly driven home in this extensive unit. Fundamental properties of circles are investigated (including sector area, angle measure, and...
Assessment8:43
Mathed Up!

Area and Circumference of Circles

For Students 8th - 10th Standards
Don't go around and around, help your class determine amounts around and in a circle with a video that connects circumference to the perimeter or the distance around an object. The resource includes 14 questions dealing with circles and...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Recognizing Equations of Circles

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
What does completing the square have to do with circles? Math pupils use completing the square and other algebraic techniques to rewrite equations of circles in center-radius form. They then analyze equations of the form x^2 + y^2 + Ax +...
Activity
101 Questions

Circle-Square

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
How do the area and perimeters of circles and squares compare? A clever video illustrates the change in the area of a circle and square while their total perimeter stays the same. The task is for learners to predict the point where the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Circles and Angles

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Students identify tangents, chords and secants. In this geometry activity, students graph circles and identify angles created by secant lines, tangent lines and chords.
Activity
Illustrative Mathematics

Tangent to a Circle From a Point

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
Learners see application of construction techniques in a short but sophisticated problem. Combining the properties of inscribed triangles with tangent lines and radii makes a nice bridge between units, a way of using...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Equations for Tangent Lines to Circles

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Don't go off on a tangent while writing equations of tangent lines! Scholars determine the equations for tangent lines to circles. They attempt both concrete and abstract examples, such as a tangent line to the unit circle through...
Assessment
Inside Mathematics

Circles in Triangles

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Challenge the class with inscribed circles in triangles. The assessment task requests class members use their knowledge of circles and right triangles to prove two triangles are congruent. They go on to utilize their knowledge of...
Assessment
Concord Consortium

Bicycle Chain

For Students 10th - 12th Standards
Model a bicycle chain with circles and tangent lines. Given the dimensions of the sprocket wheels, young scholars calculate the length of the chain that surrounds them. A second task has learners write a function for the length of a...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Secant Lines; Secant Lines That Meet Inside a Circle

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Young mathematicians identify different cases of intersecting secant lines. They then investigate the case where secant lines meet inside a circle.
Lesson Plan
Illustrative Mathematics

The Lighthouse Problem

For Teachers 9th - 11th Standards
Long considered the symbol of safe harbor and steadfast waiting, the lighthouse gets a mathematical treatment. The straightforward question of distance to the horizon is carefully presented, followed by a look into the...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Arc and Angles Formed by Secants and Tangents

For Students 9th - 11th
In this calculus worksheet, students solve problems by finding the line of tangency and measure of the arcs and angles form by a secant line. There are 9 questions.
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Graphing the Tangent Function

For Students 10th - 12th Standards
Help learners discover the unique characteristics of the tangent function. Working in teams, pupils create tables of values for different intervals of the tangent function. Through teamwork, they discover the periodicity, frequency, and...
Assessment
EngageNY

Algebra II Module 2: Mid-Module Assessment

For Students 10th - 12th Standards
Time for classes to show what they've learned. Use several tasks to assess understanding of the trigonometric functions, unit circle, radians, and basic trigonometric identities.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Positive and Negative Angles and Arcs

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
To better understand that the intersection point of two lines lies inside a circle, learners use their keen measurement skills. They discuss arcs, rays, tangent lines, and reflex angles. Then, they put their skills to work as they...