| Grades: | 7 - 12 |
| Authors |
| Barbara Camp | brbcmp@yahoo.com |
| Courtney Cheng | cbm314@hotmail.com |
| Emeka Dan-Udekwe | e.danudekwe@rcn.com |
| Allen Cooke | acooke@bridgeport.edu |
|
| Objective: | To introduce
fractals to all students in grades 7-12. |
| Introduction: |
| Present a gasket to the students and initiate a discussion from them on what this looks like.
Then look for ideas from them on the design self-repeating forms. Ask them
to make a sketch of what they see. |
| A. Find a process for drawing the figure. |
| B. Establish an algorithm, that works each time, for the process. |
|
| Development: |
| A. Do now the transformation by hand- scaling, refllections, rotations and
transformations using paper and pencil. |
| B. Repeat the process but now changing the order of the transformations.
You may choose any alternate order you wish. |
| C. Conduct computer lab activity to take the process to many more iterations.
Try out different figures such as a square, equialteral triangle, right triangle and
isosceles and non-isosceles trapeziod. |
|
| Closure: |
| Discuss the commutative property. |
| Self-similarity, if any |
| Is there a right sequence of order of transformations? |
| Provide more examples such as the Koch Curve, Cantor Set
and naturally occurring figures (trees, coastlines, mountains etc.) |
|
| Materials: |
| Review of literature prior to lesson. |
| Geometer's Sketchpad |
| Dot paper, patty paper |
| Pencil, scissors, tape |
| Sketches of Sierpinski Gasket and sample polygons on the
accompanying page. |
|