Pythagorean Theorem Exploration
- Author:
- mcalpiho
Use the colored shapes on the right to fill the two gray squares showing that in a right triangle with sides a, b, and c (with c being the hypotenuse) a^2+b^2=c^2.
The objects are colored coded to show which are the same size. For example, the blue squares are congruent, the orange squares are congruent, etc. Use the point called "MOVE" to move the dark red square shape. You can also use the vertices of the gray squares to move them if need be.
1. Do you think it will ALWAYS be possible to completely fill the two gray squares with the colored shapes?
2. What size are the purple triangles in relationship to the green triangle?
3. How does this activity help illustrate that a^2+b^2=c^2?