This applet allows a user to build your own polygon and transform it in the Cartesian coordinate system. The user can experiment with reflections across any line, revolving around any line (which yields a 3-D image), rotations about any point, and translations in any direction.
Type of Material:
Simulation
Recommended Uses:
In class, individual, or team usages.
Technical Requirements:
Works on any browser with JavaScript enabled
Identify Major Learning Goals:
To learn about how polygons can be rotated and translated.
Target Student Population:
Students in a geometry, pre-calculus, linear algebra, or abstract algebra class.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
None.
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
This site is a hands on interactive tool that allows students to explore various actions on a polygon. Students can choose the vertices and reflect, translate or rotate the polygon. They can choose how it is transformed and visualize the transformation from any perspective. There are individual tabs for the student, instructor, the activity, and a Help tab.
Concerns:
It would be helpful to have an explanation or at least a link to an explanation of the mathematics behind each of the transformations that the activity allows.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
This site can be used to supplement a lesson on transformations. There is a detailed instructor tab that includes where it fits in the math curriculum, standards it addresses, and some textbooks it aligns to. There is also a student tab that shows what the app can do.
Concerns:
While this tool is great for exploration, it would be helpful if it contained instructions about how an instructor might embed it into an assignment or learning activity. Also, some exploration questions about the mathematics behind what it does would further enhance its potential effectiveness as a learning tool.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
The Help tab that is included clearly explains each of the features if the activity. Even without the help tab, most students will easily be able to get started on the activity and use all of its features. It is organized in such a way that the main visual is front and center and the settings and help tools surround it.
Concerns:
None.
Creative Commons:
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