This assignment was submitted by Derrick Yarbrough, Advanced/ Accelerated Mathematics Teacher from Pine Grove Middle School in Lowndes County.

Pythagorean Theorem Problem Project:

How can you contextualize mathematics while students are home?

Standards for Mathematical Content

Understand and apply the Pythagorean Theorem.

• G.6 Explain a proof of the Pythagorean Theorem and its converse.
• G.7 Apply the Pythagorean Theorem to determine unknown side lengths in right triangles in real-world and mathematical problems in two and three dimensions.
• G.8 Apply the Pythagorean Theorem to find the distance between two points in a coordinate system.

Triangles are all around us in our everyday life.  The Pythagorean Theorem can be used to solve many problems concerning right triangles in the real world.  For this project, you are to take your own, or cut out of a magazine, three pictures in which the Pythagorean Theorem can be applied.  You can use the theorem to find the height of something or use its converse to show that the figure is a right triangle.

Be creative, the right triangle doesn’t have to be completely visible to use a picture, but be sure to draw it over the picture to illustrate where it should be.

You will need to completely describe the problem or situation that the picture represents, including what you are using the Pythagorean Theorem to find or prove for each of the three pictures.