Lesson 1: Converse of Pythagorean Theorem:

1. Warm UP problem, pertaining to the previous lesson, The

Original Pythagorean Theorembuilding confidence on what we
learned in the previous section
2. Since students know what a converse statement is, I ask them to
tell me what this particular theorem would most likely say or
prove.
3. After listening to students responses, I confirm by stating both
the original and the conclusion.
4. The Converse of Pythagorean Theorem has three parts: a)
when a triangle is right, b) when a triangle is acute, and c) when
a triangle is obtuse.
5. Example problems are drawn and written on the board. I ask
students to work individually or with a partner/neighbor.
6. We go over each problem, its solution, and I explain loopholes
and common mistakes.
7. Common misunderstandings:
All 3 sides are known and no solving for a missing side is
required.
All three sides must be squared.
The square of longest side must be isolated and compared
to the sum of the other two.
2
Finally, one must look at the sign (<, =, or >) facing c .

8. Once Ive finished introducing the new lesson with examples. I

split the class into 3 groups and assign 3 different more
challenging problems.
One involves the original Pythagorean theorem AND the
converse theorem.
One involves the converse of Pythagorean AND similarity
and scale factor.
One involves converse of Pythagorean AND an earlier
theorem about medians of right triangles.
Finale: Students use poster size post-it notes and draw pictures with
measurements and equations and present their solutions (step by
step) to the entire class. They find excitement in the competitive
nature of the task.
**PICTURES of this class are found among the photos on the HOME
page of the Weebly site.

Reflection: In addition to this being my most well-behaved and higher

scoring class, I believe the lesson went very well from beginning to
end. They were able to make connections, work from previous
knowledge, and illustrate that they had a solidified grasp of previous
concepts to use to solve the newer problems, pertaining to Converse of
Pythagorean Theorem. Students had a genuine desire to showcase
their knowledge and clearly explain the steps to their solution. Working
in groups made it even more dynamic!
Lesson 2: Area of Regular Polygons and Circles

Part I
1. The chapter on AREA is the last one of the year, and for the
regular geometry classes, all the formulas provided in a
formula bank on the quiz/test. They simply have to select the
correct one for each problem.
2. I warn them that the lesson on Regular Polygons is the most
complex of all because there are brand new terms/vocab that
theyve never heard of, yet they pertain to terms that they do
already know.
3. I tell them to imagine that the regular polygon is INSCRIBED
IN A CIRCLE (since the chapter right before this one is
CIRCLES). Then, they understand when I tell them that regular
polygons also have: radii, central angles, and a center point
with a total of 360 around it.
4. Before giving them the area formula, I show them that the
polygon consists of a certain number, n, of congruent
triangles.
5. I then ask how they think the area formula was derived due to
its strong relationship to triangles area.
6. Students feel empowered and expound upon their previous
geometry knowledge and collectively tell me how they think
the formula was derived.
7. After coming to a consensus and me showing them the actual
formula, they test their hypothesis. We then do example
problems.
8. I guide them through one, and next I leave them to solve
problems on their own.
9. Theyre put at ease because there is an alternative way to
solve for areas of regular polygon if they forget the new
formula: Find the area of one triangle and multiply it by n.
Part II:

10. After the above lesson, I take the last 10 mins of class to
go over area (& circumference) of circles, which is relative
review from middle school.
11. Students always ask: What is pi? I answer by drawing a
circle with its diameter stretched across. I tell them that pi is
any circles ratio of its Circumference (distance around) to its
C

diameter. d
12. I explain the difference between area vs. circumference,
and that only area is square units
13. I also make it clear that circles only have to do with one
dimension: the radius, r, which is why the entire lesson can be
taught in 10 minutes.
14. We do several example problems: a) when theyre given
the radius and b) when they are given A or C and have to
work backwards.
15. They feel confident about the lesson.

Finale: I put a diagram on the board, which consists of both

regular polygons and circles. They have to find the area of the
shaded region: Area of the circle minus the area of the regular
polygon inside. (PIC shown here.)
Reflection: Students felt accomplished by mastering, in a short
period, a concept that began feeling complex. Their confidence
in their ability and skillset increased, as we concluded with an
easier concept that they already had been introduced to and
tested on. It was a good day even though the difficulty level was
higher than usual at the beginning.