College Algebra

Algebra Art by Ryan M.

Activities

Looking for activities and assignments?

The following is a list of the activities we developed for our algebra course. Most of the activities can be completed in a 50-minute class period and many include instructions for using graphing calculators or using algebraic procedures.

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Downloadable Activities

Activity	Topics	Preview	Download
Where are you From?	Cartesian coordinates, cartesian distance, conversion
The Life of a Meal (3 versions)	Functions, graphing, qualitative meaning of graphs, increasing/decreasing
Stick Figures	Patterns, sequences, arithmetic growth, recursive and closed form of sequences
Some Common Functions in College Algebra	12 basic algebraic functions, including rational functions, polynomials, exponentials, logarithms, radicals, absolute value
Analyzing Super Bowl Data	Introduction to regression, modeling data, interpolation and extrapolation
I’d Like Some M&Ms, Sunny Side Up	Modeling data, exponential growth, curves of best fit
Analyzing Box Office Data	Modeling data, regression, curves of best fit, interpolation and extrapolation
The Graph Matching Challenge	Transformations of functions, common functions, graphing
End Behavior Examples	End behavior of functions, arrow notation, horizontal asymptotes
Features of Graphs (4 versions)	Qualitative features of graphs, advanced transformations of functions
Function Composition Activity	Composition of functions, function evaluation, combining functions with arithmetic
Whoopie’s Psychic Code	Algebraic inverses, decryption
A Guide to the Rules of Exponents	Properties of exponents, simplifying integral, negative, and rational exponents
Logarithm Scales	Logarithmic growth, inverse relationship of exponentials and logs
The Logs from Planet Ork	Properties of logarithms, inverse relationship of exponentials and logs. [Written by Robert Powers]
A Sequence of Money	Compound Interest, exponential growth, solving exponential equations
Estimating Time of Death (2 versions)	Newton's law of cooling, modeling data, solving exponential equations
Factored Polynomials	Features of factored polynomials, zeros, building equations
Having Fun Dividing Functions	Polynomial division, rational functions, slant asymptotes
Algebra Art	College algebra content incorporated artwork, writing about mathematics.
Cutting a Rug	Ellipse, focal points, geometric construction.
Cutting and Pasting Functions	Piecewise functions, function evaluation, graphing