Geometry Transformations

Today in class we went over the concepts of reflections, translations, and rotations. We did activity sheets and drew out the shapes and lines on grid-sheets. The translation part was easy. All we had to do was follow along the x and y-axis to form the new shapes. We then did the reflection activity. The center-points were based on wherever the problems said they were located along the x and y-axis. For instance, if the problem says to reflect along the x-axis then we draw the center line vertically. If the problem states to reflect along the y-axis then we draw the center line horizontally.

The rotation activity was pretty tricky. We had to figure out where the shapes would be located along the x or y-axis based on whether they are rotated 90 or 180 degrees clockwise or counterclockwise. The trick is we have to turn the paper in whatever rotation the problem indicates to see the new image. We then have to use a patty paper. I’m still stumped on this part but I will eventually figure it out. The professor also showed us some videos that are related to the assignment. One video is called “Transformation” involving a guy being rotated, translated, and reflected (although you may need to create an account to watch this video): http://www.brainpop.com/math/geometryandmeasurement/transformation/preview.weml

Here is another video from the Denise Carter’s website (Smarty Bunch) called “Geometry Transformations.”

Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0hllwR2zL4

I recommend teachers use these videos because they are very helpful and even fun to learn about geometry.

I found a very helpful math website and I regularly use it for this class. It goes over the three main transformations of the shapes: rotation, reflection, and translation. Here it is:

http://www.mathsisfun.com/geometry/transformations.html