Introduction:
Formulas are not just recipes for arithmetic. They describe mathematical relationships.
The formulas C = πd and A = πr2 are two formulas where students can benefit from understanding their mathematical relationships instead of just using the formulas to do arithmetic. Too often we teach students only the arithmetic of formulas. Both of the formulas, C = πd and A = πr2, ask the question why π? Why not 3, 7 10, 22?
The following unit of instruction looks at the nature of mathematics and invites students to think mathematically and participate in the discovery of mathematics. The unit promotes the development of the students’ mathematical communication and reasoning skills.
(Continued in Why Pi?)
Copyright © 2009 Elaine Simmt