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Circle Conjectures
Lab Summary:
This lab will deal with certain properties of circles. In particular, eight
conjectures will be covered in this lab. As each problem of the lab is completed, the
student should discover certain properties that hold for circles. These properties relate to
tangents lines, inscribed angles, and chords of circles. Upon completion if this lab, the
student should be familiar with all these concepts.
The lesson plan I have implemented involves conjectures of circles. These
conjectures are certain properties on circles that the students will discover through
working with the lab. Included in this lesson plan is:
• A statement of the objectives this lesson will cover, that is, the conjectures to be
discovered by the students. Each conjecture is defined and a diagram of each is
provided. This is the knowledge the students are to have learned after lesson is
complete. The teacher can use this to review the conjectures once the students
have completed the labs to ensure that the students have a firm grasp of the
material. This can also be used as a guide when grading the labs.
• A list of definitions needed in order to complete the lab. These definitions are
meant to be a review of material the student should have seen already. If needed,
the teacher may want to briefly go over each of these terms to ensure that the
students have a firm grasp on this material before starting the lab. The teacher
could also provide each student with a copy of the definitions to be used as a
reference when working on the lab.
• A lab in which the students will explore through Cabri the conjectures to be
covered in this lesson. The lab will help the students to discover for themselves
each conjecture that is to be covered. By completing each lab problem, the
student will learn the conjecture covered by that problem. The lab is a lesson plan
in and of itself, in that, in order to complete the lab, the student must discover
each conjecture. Therefore, it is up to the teacher to decide how much review is
needed before starting the lab, and how much explanation is needed after the lab
is completed to ensure the concepts have been grasped. Two extension questions
are also provided in order to test and challenge what the students have learned
from the lab. Evaluating their lab work will provide an evaluation of the students’
understanding of the material. Successful completion of the lab should result in
the students having a firm grasp of the material.
Key Words:
Circles, tangents, radius, inscribed, perpendicular, chords, tangent segments
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Background knowledge:
This lesson will concentrate on certain properties found in circles. The lesson is
implemented through a lab in which the student will discover each property through
experimentation using Cabri. Specifically, the conjectures covered will be:
• Inscribed Angles Conjecture II: In a circle, two inscribed angles with the
same intercepted arc are congruent.
Learning Objectives:
1. Students will discover the eight conjectures covered in background knowledge.
Materials:
Geometry software
Worksheets
Procedures:
Each of these conjectures is covered as a separate problem in the
lab that follows. The student should be able to discover these conjectures themselves by
working out the problems using Cabri. Two extension questions are given which
challenge the student to put to use certain conjectures discovered earlier in order to come
up with a solution.
Extension I requires students to use the perpendicular bisector of a chord property
in order to find the center of any given circle or arc. To do this, the student should
construct two chords in the given circle or arc and bisect each with a perpendicular line.
Where the two perpendicular lines intersect is the center of the circle.
Extension II requires students to use the method found in Extension I to, given
any arc, find the circumference of the circle the arc is a part of. To do this student should
find the center of the circle using the method discovered in Extension I. Once the center
is found, construct a radius and measure it. Use this measurement to find the
circumference of the circle.
Assessment:
Completed worksheets
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Circle Conjectures
Activity One: Tangent and Radii
Goal: Investigate the angle formed by the tangent and the radius of a circle.
a. Construct a circle A with radius AB . [use circle tool/segment tool]
b. Construct a point, C on the circle and draw a secant that runs
through B and C (see Fig. 1). [use point/line tool]
c. Measure the angle ∠ ABC that is formed.
suur
[use angle tool]
d. Now grab and move point C around the circle until the line BC is
tangent to the circle. What is the measurement of angle ∠ ABC now?
What conjecture can you make about a tangent and a radius to the point of
tangency?
Fig. 1
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Circle Conjectures
Activity Two: Tangent Segments
f. Grab and move point B around the circle. What happens to the segment
measures of DB and DC ?
What conjecture can you make about tangent segments from the same exterior
point?
Fig. 2
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Circle Conjectures
Activity Three: Central and Inscribed angles
a. Construct a circle A.
b. Construct an inscribed angle ∠ BCD.
c. Construct a central angle ∠ BAD (see Fig. 3).
d. Measure both angles and compare.
e. Construct diameter DE
f. Drag point B around the arc DBE. What happens to the angles
measures?
g. What conjecture can you say exists between central and inscribed
angles that share the same intercepted arc?
h. Does your conjecture remain if you drag point B pass point E?
Explain why.
Fig. 3
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Circle Conjectures
Activity Four: Congruent Inscribed Angles
a. Construct a circle A.
b. Construct two inscribed angles, ∠ BCD and ∠ BED, having them
share the intercepted arc BD (See Fig. 4).
c. Measure the angles and compare.
d. Drag point B around the arc CDE, what happens to the angle
measurements?
e. What conjecture can you say exists between inscribed angles that
share an intercepted arc?
f. What happens when you drag point B pass C to the arc CE?
Explain
Fig. 4
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Circle Conjectures
ActivityFive: Angles inscribed in a Semi-circle
Fig. 5
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Circle Conjectures
Activity Six: Congruent Chords
Fig. 6
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Circle Conjectures
Activity Seven: Radii that Bisect Chords
Fig. 7
Project AMP Dr. Antonio R. Quesada – Director, Project AMP
Circle Conjectures
Activity Eight: Perpendicular chords
Fig. 8
Extension 1
Use the conjectures from above to devise a method for finding the center of any
given circle or arc.
Extension 2
Given any arc, can you determine the circumference of the circle it is a part of?
(Hint: use method from Extension 1 to find center of the circle).