INCENTER Worksheet

Using Geogebra:

1. Construct triangle ABC

2. In your own words, what is an angle bisector?
An angle bisector is a line that splits an angle into two congruent angles.

Construct the angle bisector through angle A, angle B, an angle C.

A POINT OF CONCURRENCY is the point where 3 or more lines intersect.

3. Use O to label your point of concurrency of the angle bisectors. This

point is called the INCENTER. Include screenshot below.

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 4. Drag a vertex of your triangle so that your triangle looks different
(i.e., transforms into either an acute, right, or obtuse triangle). Record
the location of your incenter in the chart below.

Type of Triangle Location of the Incenter (e.g., inside triangle)

Acute center of the triangle (equilateral acute triangle)
Right closer to the side of the triangle that has the right
angle
Obtuse remains close to the obtuse angle and further away
from the other two angles

Does the location of the incenter change? Why do you think this is?
The location of the incenter changes because as the angles change, the
location of their bisectors change as well. As the location of the bisectors
change, so does the location of the incenter.

5. Now, hide the angle bisector lines. Construct a perpendicular line

from your incenter, O, to side AB of your triangle. Label the point
where the line through O is perpendicular to AB as point E. Repeat
this step for sides BC and AC, and label the points F and G.
6. Measure OE, OF, and OG.
7. Drag a vertex of your triangle so that your triangle looks different
(i.e., transforms into either an acute, right, or obtuse triangle). Record
the measures of the segments after each transformation.

Type of Triangle Measures of Segment

OE OF OG
Acute 3.3 3.3 3.3
Right 3 3 3
Obtuse 1.4 1.4 1.4

How do the measures of these lines compare?

The measures of these lines differ depending on the type of triangle.
However, for each type of triangle, the measurements of OE, OF, and OG
are equivalent.

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8. We call the point of concurrency of the angle bisectors the incenter
because the incenter can be used to construct an inscribed circle. An
inscribed circle in a triangle has the sides of the triangle tangent to the
circle (intersecting at one and only one point) to the circle. You can
construct a circle with center O and radius OE to see what this looks like.

9. Summarize the properties of the incenter that you will share with your
group mates:
The incenter is the center of a circle that is inscribed within a triangle. The
sides of the triangle are tangent to the circle that is inscribed using the
incenter. Regardless of how the triangle is manipulated, this fact remains
true. The distance of the intersecting perpendicular lines that create the
incenter from the triangle’s sides to the incenter remain equivalent as well.

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 CIRCUMCENTER Worksheet

Using Geogebra:

1. Construct triangle ABC.

2. In your own words, what is a perpendicular bisector?
A perpendicular bisector is a line that intersects another line
perpendicularly and in the middle.

Construct the perpendicular bisector for all three sides of the triangle.
A POINT OF CONCURRENCY is the point where 3 or more lines intersect.

3. Use O to label your point of concurrency of the perpendicular

bisectors. This point is called the CIRCUMCENTER. Include screen
shot.

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 4. Drag a vertex of your triangle so that your triangle looks different
(i.e., transforms into either an acute, right, or obtuse triangle). Record
the location of your circumcenter in the chart below.

Type of Triangle Location of the CIRCUMCENTER (e.g., inside triangle)

Acute remains inside the triangle
Right remains on the opposing side from the right angle
Obtuse remains outside the triangle

Does the location of the circumcenter change? Why do you think this is?
The location of the circumcenter does change. As the side lengths and
angles change, the direction at which the perpendicular bisectors must go
in order to remain perpendicular must change, causing the point of
intersection to be altered.

5. Now, hide the perpendicular bisector lines. Construct a segment OA,

OB, and OC. How do these measures compare?
They are all the same length.

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 6. Drag a vertex of your triangle so that your triangle looks different
(i.e., transforms into either an acute, right, or obtuse triangle). Record
the measures of the segments after each transformation.

Type of Triangle Measures of Segment

OA OB OC
Acute 7.4 7.4 7.4
Right 8.1 8.1 8.1
Obtuse 9.2 9.2 9.2

How are the measures of OA, OB and OC related as you drag the vertex?
Regardless of how the vertex is changed, OA, OB, and OC remain equivalent.

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7. We call the point of concurrency of the perpendicular bisectors the
circumcenter because the circumcenter can be used to construct a
circumscribed circle. A circumscribed circle is a circle that has the vertices
of the triangle on the circle. You can construct a circle with center O and
radius OA to see what this looks like.

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 8. Summarize the properties of the circumcenter that you will share
with your group mates:
OA, OB, and OC are all radii of the circle that is created. All the vertices of
the triangle are equidistant from the circumcenter. The circumcenter can lie
both within or outside the triangle.

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 CENTROID Worksheet

Using Geogebra:

1. Construct triangle ABC.

2. In your own words, what is a median?
A median is a line that connects the vertex of a triangle to the midpoint of
the opposite side of the triangle.

Construct the medians of triangle ABC.

A POINT OF CONCURRENCY is the point where 3 or more lines intersect.

3. Use O to label your point of concurrency of the medians. This point is

called the CENTROID. Include screen shot.

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 4. Drag a vertex of your triangle so that your triangle looks different
(i.e., transforms into either an acute, right, or obtuse triangle). Record
the location of your centroid in the chart below.

Type of Triangle Location of the CENTROID (e.g., inside triangle)

Acute remains near the center of the triangle
Right nears the opposing side from the right angle
Obtuse nears the opposing side from the obtuse angle

Does the location of the centroid change? Why do you think this is?
The location of the centroid does change because as the measures of each
side change, the location at which the medians bisect the sides also
changes.

5. Label the midpoints of the sides of triangle ABC, and compute the
area of the six smaller triangles inside triangle ABC.

What is the relationship between the areas of the smaller triangles? Are the
triangles congruent? Justify your answer.
The triangles are not congruent because they do not have the same side
lengths. However, the areas of all the triangles are indeed equivalent.

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6. We call the point of concurrency of the medians the centroid. The
centroid can be used to balance the MASS of an object because of the way
the smaller triangles are related inside the big triangle. Therefore, the

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centroid of our triangle can be used to suspend a balanced triangle so it
balances or remains parallel to a ceiling.

7. Summarize the properties of the centroid to share with your group

mates:
The centroid of the triangle is the point of intersection of all the medians of
the triangle. It always lies within the triangle. Forming triangles out of the
medians and existing vertices of the triangle, as shown above, creates six
triangles of equivalent area.

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 ORTHOCENTER Worksheet

Using Geogebra:

1. Construct triangle ABC.

2. In your own words, what is an altitude?
An altitude of a triangle is a line segment that intersects an angle in a way
such that it also intersects the opposing side perpendicularly.

Construct the altitudes of triangle ABC.

A POINT OF CONCURRENCY is the point where 3 or more lines intersect.

3. Use O to label your point of concurrency of the altitudes. This point is

called the ORTHOCENTER. Include screen shot.

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 4. Drag a vertex of your triangle so that your triangle looks different
(i.e., transforms into either an acute, right, or obtuse triangle). Record
the location of your orthocenter in the chart below.

Type of Triangle Location of the ORTHOCENTER (e.g., inside triangle)

Acute Lies within the triangle
Right Lies on the right angle
Obtuse Lies outside the triangle, on the outside of the
obtuse angle

Does the location of the orthocenter change? Why do you think this is?
The orthocenter does change because as the side lengths change, the
location of the altitudes changes as well.

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 5. Go to https://tube.geogebra.org/m/18964

Select the four centers of a triangle (centroid, orthocenter, incenter, and

circumcenter). You can uncheck all the other things (except triangle ABC).
Also check the box next to “Euler Line”.

Drag a vertex of your triangle so that your triangle looks different (i.e.,
transforms into either an acute, right, or obtuse triangle). How are the
orthocenter, centroid, and circumcenter related in different types of
triangles?
The Euler line consistently intersects the centroid, orthocenter, and
circumcenter, occasionally also intersecting the incenter. The orthocenter
and circumcenter are on opposite sides of of the triangle when the triangle
is obtuse. Otherwise, all the points lie inside the triangle.

Is there a triangle where all four centers are the same point?
There is a triangle where all four centers are the same point, and this is
when the triangle is equilateral.

8. Summarize the properties of the orthocenter to share with your

group mates:
The orthocenter can lie both within, outside, or on a vertex of the
triangle depending on what type of triangle it is.

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