Module: Part A- Similarity, Congruence, and Proofs

Lesson: Geometry Reasoning: Using Inductive Reasoning to Make Conjectures

Directions: Complete the guided notes below as you read the lesson in blackboard. You can add additional
notes or diagrams, if needed.
Lesson

A ___________________________ is a statement that is based on observations made using inductive reasoning. It is

thought to be true, but has not yet been proven.

_________________________________________________ is the process of observing patterns and using the patterns

to make a generalization.

A ____________________________ is an example which shows a conjecture to be false. You need only one
______________________________ to prove that a conjecture is not true.

In mathematics, it is very important to describe and analyze patterns. This helps us to make predictions which we may
use other methods to prove and leads us to the theorems that we will be studying within this course. There are two
steps to doing this:

1.

2.

If you are being asked to come up with a ____________, look for instances in which your conjecture is _____________.
It takes only one instance to show that it is ______________, this is called a __________________________. If you do
not find any ______________________________, your conjecture still may not be true. It is not always possible to
consider every possible situation.

Examples

1. Make a conjecture about the product of any two odd integers.

2. Make a conjecture about prime numbers.

 3. Describe how to sketch the next figure in the pattern. Then, sketch the next figure.

4. Describe the pattern in the numbers 2, 8, 32, 128, … and write the next three numbers in the pattern.

5. Marvin made this conjecture, “If the product of two numbers is even, then the two numbers must be even.”
Show that Marvin’s conjecture is false by providing a counterexample.

Self-Check: Complete the self-check problems in your Math Notebook. These problems are located at the end of
the lesson in blackboard.