Training Course 3 Geometry and Trigonometry

Table of Content

Lessons

1. Square Roots of whole numbers that are Perfect Squares

2. Square Roots Table
3. Pythagorean Theorem
4. Using Pythagorean Formula to Find Unknowns in Right-Angled Triangles I
5. Using Pythagorean Formula to Find Unknowns in Right-Angled Triangles II
6. Word Problems using Pythagorean Formula
7. Trigonometric Ratios (Trig Ratios)
8. Trigonometric Tables (Trig Tables)
9. Problems with Tangent Ratios and Trig Tables I
10. Problems with Tangent Ratios and Trig Tables II
11. Problems with Sine, Cosine and Tangent Ratios and Trig Tables
12. Trig Ratio values and angles on Scientific Calculator
13. Applications with Tangent Ratios I
14. Applications with Tangent Ratios II
Activities

1. What’s My Ratio? Group Activity

2. Parking Lot Design using Trig Ratios
3. Construct a clinometer and use clinometer to find the height of a tree or building
4. Who Uses Trig Research Assignment

1
Lesson 1: Square Roots of whole numbers that are Perfect Squares

Definition: A square root of a perfect square is one of two equal factors whose product is the given
whole number. Its symbol is is the reverse of squaring.

Example 1: Find

Solution: 25 is a perfect square since 25 = , then = 5. What is the other equal factor?

Note: The square root of 25 can also be – 5 because (-5)(-5) = 25. We usually use the positive or
principal square root of numbers unless we are asked to use both. In this unit we will use principal
square roots only.

Example 2: Find .

Solution: 196 is a perfect square since 196 = , then = 14.

Exercise

Find the square root of each of the following:

1. 4 11. 400
2. 16 12. 255
3. 1 13. 0
4. 81 14. 189
5. 9 15. 169
6. 144 16. 256
7. 49 17. 3600
8. 64 18. 36
9. 121 19. 226
10. 100 20. 99

2
Lesson 2: Square Roots Table

In finding square roots of numbers that are not perfect squares, it is often necessary to find the
approximate value of a square root. You may use a calculator, computer software, or a square root table.
A table of squares and square roots (from 1 to 100) is provided below:

Exercise

1. Find the square root of the following numbers, correct to 2 decimal place:
(a) 65 (e) 77
(b) 86 (f) 8
(c) 12 (g) 64
(d) 17 (h) 34

2. Find the square root of the following numbers, correct to 2 decimal place:
(a) 34 (e) 22
(b) 25 (f) 7
(c) 8 (g) 13
(d) 95 (h) 47

3
Lesson 3 Pythagorean Theorem

Pythagorean Theorem is one of the earliest known theorems to ancient civilizations. It was named after
Pythagoras, a Greek mathematician and philosopher. The theorem bears his name even though the
Babylonians knew this relationship some 1000 years earlier. The Chinese also knew about the theorem
many years before Pythagoras.

Pythagoras lived in the sixth or fifth century B.C. This theorem was named after Pythagoras because he
was the first to prove it. He probably used a proof similar to the following in proving this theorem. You
will have a chance to prove the theorem now.

Pythagorean Theorem =
"The square on the hypotenuse of a right triangle is equal to the sum of the squares on the two legs."

What is hypotenuse of a right triangle? The side that is opposite the right angle.

Proof
Area of the first square =

The area of the second square =

Since the two squares are equal, therefore

Subtracting from both sides,

we get = (Pythagorean Theorem)

4
 Lesson 4 Using Pythagorean Formula to Find Unknowns in Right-Angled Triangles I

Pythagorean Theorem = is one of

the most important and widely used formulas in
Mathematics and Science.

"The square on the hypotenuse of a right

triangle is equal to the sum of the squares on the
two legs."

Hypotenuse (hy·pot·e·nuse) is the side that is

opposite the right angl

Example 1: Find c, using the table of squares and square roots above.

+ c
8
=
= 64 + 36
= 100 6
c = = 10

Example 2: Find x
10
+ 6
=
= 100 + 36
= 136 c
c = = 11.66 to 2 decimal places

Example 3: Find x 3

+
6 x
=
= 49 + 36
= 85
10
x = = 9.22 to 2 decimal places

Exercise: Find the unknowns below:

5 h h 7

12 24

9 7 y a 15
4

5
x 7 11
 Lesson 5 Using Pythagorean Formula to Find Unknowns in Right-Angled Triangles II

You can use the Pythagorean Theorem to find the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle if you know
the length of the triangle’s other two sides, called the legs. What if you are given the length of the
hypotenuse and one of the legs. For example:

+ where c = hypotenuse
If we want to find a, we isolate on one side
+

To find the length one of the legs, instead of adding the squares of the two legs, we subtract:

“Square of the hypotenuse – Square of one leg’s length = Square of the unknown leg’s length” or

Example 1: In the triangle, c = 12, b = 8, a = ?

12
8
=
= 144 64
= 80 a
a = = 8.9 to 1 decimal place.

Example 2: Find x

x 6
=
= 100 36
= 64 10
c = =8

Exercise: Find the unknowns below:

x 13 a 26 25 7

12 a
24
3

y 7 8 a 15
4

12 x 11

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Lesson 6 Word Problems using Pythagorean Formula

Example 1 The owners of a house want to convert a stairway leading from the ground to their back porch
into a ramp. The porch is 3 feet off the ground, and due to building regulations the ramp must start 12 feet
away from the base of the porch. How long will the ramp be, round the answer to the nearest tenth?

Solution:
Step 1: To solve a problem like this one, it often makes sense to draw a simple diagram showing where
the legs and hypotenuse of the triangle lie.

From the diagram, we will to find the hypotenuse,

+
=
= 9 + 144
= 153
c = = 12.4 round the answer to the nearest tenth,

Answer: The length of the ramp will be 12.4 feet.

Example 2: A sailboat has a large sail in the shape of a right triangle. The longest edge of the sail
measures 17 yards, and the bottom edge of the sail is 8 yards. How tall is the sail?

Solution: Draw an image to help you visualize the problem. In a right triangle, the hypotenuse will
always be the longest side, so here it must be 17 yards. The bottom edge of the triangle is 8 yards.

Solution: We will find one of the side

=
= 289 64
= 225
a = = 15

Answer: The height of the sail is 15 yard.

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Exercise

1. The length of one of the legs in a right triangle is 4 cm. If the hypotenuse is 12 cm long, what is
the length of the other leg?

2. The length of one of the legs in a right triangle is 7 cm. If the hypotenuse is x + 1 cm long, what
is the length of the other leg?

3. The diagonal crossbar of an old wooden gate has rusted. The gate is rectangular, 3 m by 4 m.
How long is the crossbar (diagonal)?

4. Find the length of the diagonal of a square whose side length is 10 cm.

5. A ladder 8 m long leans against a vertical wall and has it foot 3 m from the base of the wall. How
far up the wall will the ladder reach, answer to 2 decimal places?

6. A carpenter wants to build a handicap ramp over a set of steps that is 12 feet long and 5 feet high.
How long will the ramp be?

7. Digicel is anchoring wires to the top of their 1200 ft high communication towers. The cable for
the support wire comes in a roll that is 3900 ft long. The company requires you to use the entire
roll. The cable can only be cut twice to ensure its strength. All cables need to be equal. How long
will each cable be and how far from the base of the tower do they need to be anchored?

8. You are planning to put a new digital flat TV on a wall that is 12 ft long and 9 ft high. The digital
TV has a diagonal of 72 inches. The length of the TV is twice the width of the TV. How much of
the wall will still need to be decorated around the TV?

9. Ministry of Public Infrastructure in Guyana wishes to rebuild the D'Urban Park in Georgetown
downtown. A scale drawing of the Park was drawn. The scale was 3 inches equal 3/10 miles.
One side of the city blocks was 4 inches in the drawing. One member of the city planners said,
"Their needs to be a short cut through the park from the corners." How long in miles will the
short cut be? Round answers to the nearest tenth of a mile.

8
Lesson 7 Trigonometric Ratios (Trig Ratios)

Trigonometry comes from the Greek word ‘trigonon” meaning triangle, and “metrikos” meaning measure.
Trigonometry deals with the measurement of triangles. It is used in surveying, navigation, electronics,
business and astronomy. In this unit we will study right triangles (ones with ) only.

The sides of a right triangle are labelled and the trigonometric ratios are listed below.

Hypotenuse is opposite the right angle. Opposite side is opposite the given angle (theta).

Adjacent side is right next to the given angle .

The three trigonometric ratios are sine (sin cosine (cos and tangent (tan

Example 1 Find the three trig ratios for angles A and B below:

For angle A, H = 17, O = 8, A = 15

sin A = , cos A = , tan A =

For angle B, H = 17, O = 15, A = 8

sin B = , cos B = , tan B =

Exercise: Find the three trig ratios for angles A and B in each triangle below:

9
Lesson 8 Trigonometric Tables (Trig Tables)

Before calculators, trigonometric tables were essential for navigation, mathematics, science and
engineering. Trig tables will help us to find the values of the three trig ratios (sin, cos, and tan) for various
angles and vice-versa. These values are very important to solve trigonometrical problems. A trig table for
sine, cosine, and tangent (from 1 to 90 degrees) is provided below, you may use a scientific calculator
instead of using the table.

Exercise: Use the Trig table to find the values of sin , cos and tan for each the following angles:

(a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (g) (h) (i) (j)
What pattern can you observe as the angles go up/down for each one of the three trig ratios?

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 Lesson 9 Problems with Tangent Ratios and Trig Tables I

We can use the trig table for tangent ratios to find unknown angles in any right-angled triangles.

Solution for ABC on the left: To find ∠A, we can use tangent ratio, tan A = = = 0.75,

On the trig table, under tangent, locate a number that is closest to 0.75, which is 0.7536,

Find the corresponding degree on the Left side which is . Therefore ∠A = (nearest degree)

Since we now know two of the angles in ABC and there are in any triangle,

∠B = 180 – ∠C – ∠A = 180 – 90 – 37 =

Solution for ABC on the right: To find ∠A, we can use tangent ratio, tan A = = = 0.2917,

On the trig table, under tangent, locate a number that is closest to 0.2917 which is 0.2867,

Find the corresponding degree on the Left side which is . Therefore ∠A = (nearest degree)

Since we now know two of the angles in ABC and there are in any triangle,

∠B = 180 – ∠C – ∠A = 180 – 90 – 16 =

Definition: Since we found all the sides and angles in the triangle, we have solved the triangle.

Exercise: Find the unknown angles below, label all the angles as A, B, C or
other letters first:

5 h h 7

12 24

9 7 y a 15
4

x 7 11
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Lesson 10 Problems with Tangent Ratios and Trig Tables II

We can use the trig table for tangent ratios to find unknown sides in any right-angled triangles.

Example 1

.4663 = , multiply both sides by 15

15 x .4663 = x

x = 6.99

To find AC which is the hypotenuse, we use

Solution: To find x, we can use tangent ratio, Pythagorean formula

tan C = = = 225 + 48.9 = 273.92

tan = , tan =.4663 from Trig Table AC = = 15.55

Example 2 tan B =

tan = , tan =.4663 from Trig Table

.4663 =

AB = = 17.16 to 2 decimal places

Solution: Find ∠B first since we know 2 angles We now use Pythagoras formula to find BC or a
∠B = 180 – ∠C – ∠A = 180 – 50 – 90 = = = 64 + 294.4626 = 358.4626
To find AB, we can use tangent ratio,
a= = 18.9 to 1 decimal place

Exercise: Find the unknown sides and angles below, or solve the triangles:

x
30 mm

37°
B 40 mm C

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Lesson 11 Problems with Sine, Cosine and Tangent Ratios and Trig Tables

1. “Looking” from the given angle, label the opposite side, adjacent side, and
hypotenuse.
2. Write the trig ratio (sin, cos, tan) that contains the given information and the
unknown you want to find using SOHCAHTOTOA.
3. Substitute the given information, and solve for the unknown.

Example 1 Solve for the missing side labelled x. Example 2: Find ∠A

A

51.5 mm
25 mm

B 45 mm C
Solution: Given ∠B =
H = 38 Solution: ∠A = ?
A=x H = 51.5
We use CAH, cos O = 45
x = 38 x cos We use SOH, sin = 0.8738
= 38 x 0.6691 A=
= 25.4

Exercise: Find the unknown side or angle below:

13
Lesson 12 Trig Ratio values and angles on Scientific Calculator

Instead of using trig tables, we can use scientific calculators to find the trig ratio values and angles. Be
sure you calculator is in “Degrees” or DEG mode. Practice using the instructions below.

For sine values and angles, use sin and

keys instead of tan and

For cosine values and angles, use cos and

keys instead of tan and

Steps: For ∠A, OPP = 8, ADJ =12

Steps: For = 51, ADJ = 57, OPP = z
On calculator, press (8/12)
To find z on calculator, press 57 x tan 51
If you have a scientific calculator, solve the unknowns below with the calculator.

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Lesson 13 Applications with Tangent Ratios I

Tangent ratio is the most widely used trig ratio in real life situations. When we want to measure the height
of an “inaccessible” object like a tree, pole, building, or cliff, we can utilize tangent ratios.

Example 1 The owners of a house want to build a ramp from porch to the ground. The porch is 3 feet off
the ground, the ramp must start 12 feet away from the base of the porch. We found the length of the ramp
using Pythagoras formula in a previous section. What is the angle between the ramp and the ground?

Solution: It is easier to draw a simple diagram showing where the legs and hypotenuse of the triangle lie.

Solution: Let be the angle between the ramp and the ground

tan = = = 0.25

=14 or use calculator (O/A) = (3/12)

Example 2 A ladder is leaning against a building and makes an angle of 62 with level ground. If the
distance from the foot of the ladder to the building is 4 feet, find, to the nearest foot, how far up the
building the ladder will reach.

Solution:
tan 62 = tan 62 =

Opp = 4 x tan 62 = 4 x 1.8807 = 7.5002 = 8 feet (nearest foot) or use calculator O = A x tan
Exercise

1. Digicel Company must run a telephone line between two poles at opposite ends of a lake as
shown below. The length and width of the pond is 75 feet and 30 feet respectively. What is the
distance between the two poles, to the nearest foot?

2. A ramp has an angle of inclination of 20. It has a vertical height of 1.8 m. What is the length, L
metres, of the ramp?
3. Draw and label a diagram of the path of an airplane climbing at an angle of 11 with the ground.
Find, to the nearest foot, the ground distance the airplane has traveled when it has attained an
altitude of 400 feet.
4. In order to safely land, the angle that a plane approaches the runway should be no more than 10.
A plane is approaching Norman Manley airport to land. It is at an altitude of 850 m. It is a
horizontal distance of 5 km from the start of the runway. Is it safe for the plane to land?

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Lesson 14 Applications with Tangent Ratios II

Angle of Elevation line of sight

The Angle of Elevation is the angle

from the horizontal to your line of
horizontal sight. (i.e. you are looking upwards
at the object)
Angle of Depression
horizontal
The Angle of Depression is the
angle from the horizontal to the
line of sight. (i.e. you are looking
downwards at the object)

line of sight

Example 1 If your distance from the foot of the tower is 20 m and the angle of elevation is 40, find the
height of the tower to 1 decimal place.

Solution: Let h = height of tower, angle of elevation is on the ground looking up

tan 40 = =

h = 20 x tan 40 = 20 x .8391 = 16.782 = 16.8 m to 1 decimal place

Answer: Height of tower is 16.8 m
Example 2 The angle of depression from the top of the Castle to boat is 25. If the boat is 50 m from
the base of the bluffs, how high are the bluffs (to the nearest meter)?

Solution: Let h represent the height of the Castle in meters. The angle of
depression depression is on the top of the Castle.

tan 25 = =

h= = = 107.22 = 107 m (to the nearest meter)

Exercise
1. A helicopter is hovering above a road at an
altitude of 24 m. At a certain time, the distance
between the helicopter and a car on the road is
45.0 m. Calculate the angle of elevation of the
helicopter from the car?

16
2. A hill drops 10 m for every 125 m. Calculate the angle of depression.

3. A ship on the ocean surface detects a sunken ship on the ocean floor at an angle of depression of
50. The distance between the ship on the surface and the sunken ship on the ocean floor is 200
metres. If the ocean floor is level in this area, how far above the ocean floor, to the nearest metre,
is the ship on the surface?

4. Two students want to determine the heights of two buildings. They

stand on the roof of the shorter building (Point B). The students use
a clinometer to measure the angle of elevation of the top of the taller
building. The angle is 44 o . From the same position, the students
measure the angle of depression of the base of the taller building.
The angle is 53 o . The students then measure the horizontal distance
between the two buildings. The distance is 18.0 m. The students
drew this diagram. How tall is each building? Show the steps of
your solution. Use diagram on right.

5. From the top of a building 21.0 m tall, the angle of elevation of the top of a taller building is 46.A
The angle of depression of the base of
the taller building is 51. What is the height of the taller building?
Use diagram on right.
B 46 C

51

21.0
m

E 17.0 m D

6. A person observes that from point A, the angle of elevation to the top of a cliff at D is 30.
Another person at point B, notes that the angle of elevation to the top of the cliff is 45. If the
height of the cliff is 80.0 m, find the distance between A and B. Show the steps of your solution.
Use diagram above.

7. Mickel wishes to find the length of a pole, CD, that is on the roof of a building. The angles of
elevation of C and D are 40 and 28, respectively. The distance AB is 40.0 m. Find the length of
the pole. Show the steps of your solution. Use diagram below.
C

8. From the Parking Lot at the Mabura Hill in Upper Demerara-

Berbice Region in Guyana, the angle to the top of the hill is
D
about 25°. From the base of the hill the angle of elevation to the
top of the hill is 55°. The horizontal distance between these two bui lding

sight points is 740m. How high is Marbura Hill? A B

40.0 m

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Activity 1 What’s My Ratio? Group Activity (To be completed after Section 6)

Each group of four is given a set of four triangles cut from the template. Measure two angles that are not
right angles and three sides of each triangle. The side that is opposite the right angle is called the
hypotenuse. For each of the two angles that is not right angle, there is an opposite side to the angle and
an adjacent side. Measure the three sides. Calculate the three ratios to 2 decimal places. Complete the
chart with your measurements and calculations. Each student can do one triangle on the chart and the
group can work on the second page together.

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1. If you have a fifth triangle that is similar to your four triangles that you were given, what would your
hypothesis be about the following ratios? Explain.

opposite adjacent opposite

  
hypotenuse hypotenuse adjacent
Explanation: Explanation: Explanation:

2. Identify a relationship between the ratios in the chart for:

opposite adjacent
and
hypotenuse hypotenuse

opposite adjacent
3. Identify a relationship if you divide the ratio for by
hypotenuse hypotenuse
and compare the quotient with the ratio for for one of the angles.

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20
21
Activity 2 Parking Lot Design using Trig Ratios (Work in groups of three, to be completed after
Section 12)

From grocery stores to shopping malls, congested parking lots can be a nightmare. Most parking lots in Jamaica uses
parking layout. Professor Percy at Salford University in U.S. suggested parking lot planners to place the bays at
, which cuts down the turning circle required and therefore needs a smaller access lane. Which is the best angle to
use? Which is the best dimension for each parking bay? We can use trig ratios to solve these problem, free up more
parking space and reduce the delays.
In groups of three, you will redesign a parking lot for your school, using trig functions, to provide more parking spaces
and cut down the turning circle. Marks are given for the following:
1. Research on the length and width of most cars used in Jamaica, or the mode of each. (10%)
2. Survey of motorists (teachers, administrators, parents and visitors) who use the parking lot, e.g. angle
preferred, space between lanes and cars, turning circle, and dimensions of their cars, etc. (10%)
3. Scale diagram similar to the diagram above for your design, remember it’s for your school. (20%)
4. Calculations using trig ratios to determine dimensions in your scale diagram. (40%)
5. Your conclusions to be presented to the class and staff meeting at your school. (20%)
Your goal is to make it much easier for motorists to manoeuvre their car into the parking space at your school while
simultaneously allowing more cars to fit into a car park.

22
Activity 3 Construct a clinometer and use clinometer to find the height of a tree or building (To be
completed after Section 13)

A clinometer is used to find the angle of elevation of an object. Work in pairs to construct a clinometer first.

H2

d
h1

1. Carefully cut around the edge of the protractor and glue the protractor onto a piece of cardboard.
2. Take a 20 cm piece of string, and tie a washer or paperclip to one end. The other end should be taped to the
flat edge of the protractor so that the end touches the vertical line in the center, and the string can swing freely.
This can best be done by taping the string to the back of the protractor and wrapping it around the bottom.
3. Glue a straw to the flat edge of the clinometer. The finished product should look like figure 1 below

Figure 1

4. You can now use your clinometer. Work in pairs to find an angle of elevation, look through the straw to line
up the top of an object, e.g. ceiling edge in the classroom. The string hanging down will then be touching the
angle of elevation. Note: The angle you measure will always be less than 90º.
5. Work in pairs to solve this problem: Darla is standing 15 m from the base of a tree and using a clinometer she
measures the angle of elevation to be 37. If her eyes are 1.65 m above ground level, find the height of the
building. (See diagram above)

6. Work in pairs and go outside, follow the same steps as No. 5, use a measuring tape/ruler and clinometer to
collect similar data, and return to the classroom to calculate the height of the school or a tree or flag pole.

You must hand in: 1. a table of data, 2. Results showing ALL calculations, 3. a list of sources of error

23
Activity 4 Who Uses Trig Research Assignment (Individual Presentation at the end of Unit)

Topic: Choose a career of interest to you that uses trigonometry.

Suggestions:
Aerospace Archaeology Astronomy
Building Carpentry Chemistry
Engineering Geography Manufacturing
Navigation Architecture Optics
Physics Sports Surveying
Process: Decide how you will learn more about the use of trigonometry in your chosen career.
Suggestions:
Internet research textbook research Interview
job shadow industry visit
Product (See Presentation and Assessment Rubric): Select the way you will share what you learn.
Suggestions:
skit newspaper story brochure Poster
Written report photo essay verbal presentation Powerpoint presentation

Personal Selection Chart must be submitted to teacher for approval before research
Your name:
Due date:
Process
Content Product
(you may choose more than one)

Teacher’s comments and

suggestions for each

Requirement
Your final submission must include the following:
the career/activity investigated, types of education/training required
a brief description of your process
description of the career/activity
a description of how trigonometry is used by the chosen professional in their work. What types of problems do
they need trigonometry for? Include one example of a problem that could be solved using trigonometry from
the field of work you are researching.
A list of resources that you used must be included, e.g. articles, books, websites, magazines, etc…

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The Research - Where do you get information?
The internet is a great place to start. You can do a search using the title at the top of the page. This will give you an
idea of different professions and then you can investigate the specific one you pick. If you know someone or can find
someone who actually is in one of those professions, interview them!! The library is also a great place to start and to
get help on research, so are your guidance counsellor.

The Presentation
The presentation should provide a quick snapshot of your research. Include visuals (pictures, graphics, etc…) related
to the profession, education needed (e.g. university/college/workplace) and courses in high school and how
trigonometry is used in the profession selected (e.g. what kinds of problems in the profession will need trigonometry to
solve?). The presentation can be a poster, newspaper article created by you, a brochure that you have created, a skit, a
Powerpoint presentation, etc.

Types of presentation (one of these)

1. Powerpoint presentation, it should include 12-14 slides and make use of different transitions.
2. Brochure should be 4 or 6 sided and has 2 graphics.
3. Skit should be 5 minutes and could involve 3 people maximum.
4. Write a newspaper story it should 350-400 words, one graphic, proper newspaper format, and includes one
interview quote.
5. Verbal presentation would be 2-3 minutes and have interaction (questions/answers) with the audience.
6. A visual poster would be bristle board size.

Evaluation Rubric
Category Level 0 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4
Knowledge/ No Shows a limited Shows some Shows an Shows a high
Understanding evidence understanding of understanding of understanding of degree of
50% the concepts the concepts the concepts understanding of
the concepts
Application No Shows a limited Shows some Shows a Shows more than
30% evidence connection connection connection one connection
between between between between
trigonometry and trigonometry and trigonometry and trigonometry and
profession. profession. profession. profession.
Presentation No The presentation The presentation The presentation The presentation
20% evidence is uninteresting or techniques used techniques used is highly
confusing. are somewhat are effective in imaginative and
effective in conveying main effective in
conveying main ideas and they are conveying ideas to
ideas and they are imaginative. the audience.
a bit imaginative.
A Word on Plagiarism

Copying and pasting something from the internet is plagiarism. You are submitting someone else's work as your own. If I
suspect that your voice is not coming through when I read the paper, I will question you on your sources.

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