Lesson Plan: Estimating Derivatives Mathematics
This lesson plan includes the objectives, prerequisites, and exclusions of the lesson teaching students how to use numerical and graphical methods to estimate the derivative of a function at a point.
Objectives
Students will be able to
- estimate the derivative of a function at any point numerically by finding the mean of the slope to the left and right of the point, using a table of values,
- estimate the derivative of a function at a point graphically by estimating the tangent to the graph at that point and finding the slope of the tangent.
Prerequisites
Students should already be familiar with
- the definition of a derivative,
- the concept of the rate of change of a function being the slope of a tangent,
- finding the slopes of straight lines.
Exclusions
Students will not cover
- calculating derivatives.