California Middle School Mathematics Concepts and Skills: Course 2

IMaST Utilization Guide

Table of Contents

LAUSD IMaST Digital Video Resource Library Utilization Guide

Chapter 10: Polynomials and Factors
Futures Channel Movie	#1011 Windsails - Windsail designer Trevor Baylis develops the shape of a sail on his computer, builds it in his shop and tests it out on the waves.
Chapter Engagement	Ask students if they can think of an example of applications of algebra to sports. Elicit or present the example of the curve of a thrown football or basketball, which is parabolic. Tell students that algebra and other types of mathematics are also used in the design of sports equipment, as in Futures Channel Movie #1011 Windsails. Watch the movie. After the movie, sketch examples of a few polynomial curves on the board, with the equations written next to them. Sketch a quadratic, a cubic and a quartic. Tell students that these are all examples of polynomial functions, and that any curve can be represented by such a function (though they can get pretty complicated). Explain to students that in this chapter they are going to learn to work with polynomial functions.