A.4.7.3 Populations of Two States

The graphs show the populations of California and Texas over time. 1. a. Estimate the average rate of change in the population in each state between 1970 and 2010. Show your reasoning. b. In this situation, what does each rate of change mean?

2. Which state’s population grew more quickly between 1900 and 2000? Show your reasoning.

How would you explain average rate of change to a classmate who is absent today? What does it tell us? How do we find it?

What does a negative average rate of change tell us?

If a function has a negative average rate of change over an interval, does it mean that the function value never increases?