Graphing Sines and Cosines

1. Graphing Sines and Cosines By Dan Penner

2. My name is Daniel Penner. I teach at Enterprise High School in Redding California. My lesson is for a Trig-Pre-calculus class. This class is predominantly a junior and senior level class. In my lesson the students will start to become familiar with the basic shape and properties of sine and cosine waves.

3. Graphing Sines and Cosines • Students spent some time viewing applets getting familiar with the patterns of these basic trigonometry graphs.

4. Graphing Sines and Cosines Expectations • In taking this class I was hoping to learn how to quickly create lessons that students can access from home. Specifically this would be a tool for me to become more engaging in my instruction, but also more organized. As a significant byproduct students that miss class would be able to catch up more easily.

5. Graphing Sines and Cosines Outcomes I actually learned a great deal in this class. The type of page we designed was actually quite easy. • How to create links • How to set targets • How to find many interesting gifs. • How much of a time vacuum this process is.

6. Graphing Sines and Cosines successes • Overall I felt that the project was successful. Many students seem naturally drawn to anything that utilizes technology, so using the Internet as an instructional tool helps to make learning more engaging. I think that in the future to make this lesson work better I need to have students working in a lab environment and I also need to have many more lessons in a similar format so that they are used to this style of teaching.

7. Graphing Sines and Cosines success • Students experienced math in a new format. • Students learned that the Internet is a valuable tool for learning mathematics. • Students could use site to help study for their exam.

8. Graphing Sines and Cosines failure • Students needed better computer access. • It took a fair bit of time.

9. Graphing Sines and Cosines Data The chart reflects each students growth in their understanding of the topics covered. Most students showed marked improvement. (Granted most had no previous experience with this topic.)

10. Students did not have sufficient individual access to computers. The lesson took a significant amount of time. I had to link to other sites. I would like my site to be self sufficient. I plan to cover this lesson in the future in a lab. I will be more patient. Sometimes good things take time. I plan to learn how to impart Java applets into web pages. Graphing Sines and Cosines Revisions