Lesson Plan: Equations of Tangent Lines and Normal Lines Mathematics
This lesson plan includes the objectives, prerequisites, and exclusions of the lesson teaching students how to find the slope and equation of the tangent and normal to a curve at a given point using derivatives.
Objectives
Students will be able to
- find the equation of the tangent to a curve at a given point,
- find the equation of the normal to a curve at a given point,
- find the point on the curve at which the normal or tangent is parallel or perpendicular to a given line,
- find the point at which two curves meet orthogonally.
Prerequisites
Students should already be familiar with
- differentiating polynomial, trigonometric, rational, and radical functions,
- completing an equation given the slope of the tangent to the curve at a given point,
- the chain, product, and quotient rules of differentiation.
Exclusions
Students will not cover
- implicitly defined curves,
- differentiation of reciprocal trigonometric functions.