[Copy of] Modeling with Quadratic Functions

Often, we introduce quadratics using a football or basketball toss. While the trajectory of the balls typically follows a beautiful parabolic path, the function representing the path of the ball is not the same as the function that represents the height/time relationship. This activity introduces students to quadratic functions using a balloon drop. The path is linear, so students can clearly see that the function that models the path of the ball is not the same as the function that models the height time relationship.

By Jay Chow