The Pythagorean Theorem is something that every student will face one way or another. In order to comprehend more advanced mathematical processes, each student must master this process.
To do it, you can develop a spiral visual aid that will provide them a table they can use to solve problems relevant to the particular theorem.
Call it a chart, a table, a guide, or whatever you think fits the bill, in reality, it is mere visual aid to help them understand what the theorem is all about. Here are some of the steps necessary to create the spiral.
Determine the size of your spiral
Technically, the spiral you will be creating will have 2 triangular legs and its length will be dependent on the paper you choose to draw it on.
If you are using an 18 by 12 paper, you will probably go with a 5 cm length. If you are creating the spiral on a poster board with the dimension of 28 by 22, then obviously, you will need a longer leg, say 10 cm.
Determine the center of the paper
Regardless of the paper you use, the next step will involve you determining and marking the exact center of the sheet.
To do this, simple run a diagonal line from one corner to the opposite on. Do the same with the other opposite corners.
At this point, you will have a big letter “X” on your paper. Notice where the two lines intersect? Well, that is the center of the paper.
Mark that with a pen and make it large enough to see. You will use this as the anchor for your spiral. When running the diagonal lines to find the intersection, always use pencil, as you will want to erase both lines afterward. Only the point should remain.
Create your first triangle
With the point now indicated on the paper, the next step will require you to draw in the first leg. This is a straight line from the dot with a length of 5 or 10 cm based on the size of the paper as described above.
For the sake of instruction, say you used a length of 5cm. Draw the line and follow it up with line going up to form a perfect right angle.
You can do this by using a simple protractor. Complete the first triangle by drawing in the hypotenuse from the point towards the end of the line pointing up.
To determine its length, simply use the formula “side a + side b = side c”, in this case, 5cm + 5cm = 10cm. 10 cm is now the length of your hypotenuse.
Keep creating right angles and triangles to complete the spiral
Take the hypotenuse of your first triangle and use it to form another perfect right angle. Once that is done, complete the triangle by running the hypotenuse.
At this point, the hypotenuse should rise by about 25 on every added triangle. Keep at it until the spiral is completed.
Now, it is all about the finishing touches such as adding the square roots of each triangle, the formulas used, and of course the colors to make the spiral more appealing.