Ups+and+Downs


 * Overview**: "Ups and Downs" is an 8th grade Algebra unit that examines various types of growth patterns using graphs, tables, and equations.


 * Section A**: In this section the students examine a variety of real-life contexts involving growth. They look at trees, plants, humans, and other items to build their understanding of the vocabulary and methods of representing growth in tables and graphs.


 * Section B**: In this section the students solve problems involving situations involving cyclical events (examples: level of water in tidal areas, air conditioning cycling on and off, speed of race cars as they navigate various tracks).


 * Section C**: This section focuses on linear patterns. The students solve problems within contexts that represent linear growth. They use graphs and tables, but also begin to write direct formulas to represent the growth of these items. The rate of growth is connected to the slope of the line.


 * Section D**: Students examine various contexts (i.e. bacteria) that grow exponentially (faster and faster) over time. They use tables, graphs, and equations to represent these growth situations.


 * Section E**: Section E extends the learning from the previous section into exponential decay. The students explore situations involving value depreciation, the absorption of medicine, and radioactice decay to explore the decreasing patterns involved in these scenarios.

__Activities that support the content of this unit__: What happens if I keep [|doubling]? Explore the [|area of a circle] Don't have a [|graphing calculator]? This might help. Directions for entering lists and creating graphs in Graphing Calculator