Grade 8 Lesson 4.

6: Writing Equations in Slope-Intercept Form

Goal: Todays lesson is writing an equation of a line in slope-intercept form.
Lesson Objective: In the Activity, students developed an understanding of how to write an
equation of a line using its slope and y-intercept. In the Lesson, students will write an equation of
a line using the slope and y-intercept.
Materials for Motivate in Teaching Edition: paper towel tube
Materials for Lesson Notes in Teaching Edition: none
Materials for Lesson in Pupil Edition: none
Pacing: 45 minutes

CC State
Standards

CC Mathematical
Practice Focus

8.F.4

MP1a, MP4,
MP7, MP6

1. INTRODUCTION (5 minutes)

Other Resources

Warm Up

Have students answer Start Thinking! and/or Warm Up questions. Review the answers as a class.
Review previously assigned homework, if necessary.

Dynamic Classroom
Start Thinking! and
Warm Up

Homework Check

Answer Presentation

Motivate from Laurie's Notes in Teaching Edition

Story Time: Tell students that as a child you loved to dig tunnels in the sand. Ask if any of them like to dig tunnels or if they
have traveled through tunnels. Hold a paper towel tube or other similar model to pique student interest. Share some facts
about tunnels. The worlds longest overland tunnel is a 21-mile-long rail link under the Alps in Switzerland. The tunnel took
eight years to build and cost $3.5 billion. It reduces the time trains need to cross between Germany and Italy from 3.5 hours
to just under 2 hours. The worlds longest underwater tunnel is the Seikan Tunnel in Japan. It is about 33.5 miles long and
runs under the Tsugaru Strait. It opened in 1988 and took 17 years to construct. The Channel Tunnel (Chunnel) connects
England and France. It is 31 miles long and travels under the English Channel.
Focus on Mathematical Practices 1a and 4
In this lesson students will make quick visual inspection of linear graphs to approximate the slope and the y-intercept. This
approximation is a helpful check when the slope and y-intercept are computed.

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2. EXAMPLE 1 (15 minutes)

Other Resources

Writing Equations in Slope-Intercept Form

This example writes an equation from a graph.

Write the slope-intercept form of an equation, y = mx + b. Review with students that the coefficient of the x-term is
the slope, and the constant b is the y-intercept. Also, review how to compute slope.
Ask the question What do you know about the slope of the line in part (a) by inspection? Explain.
Ask the question In part (a), what are the coordinates of the point where the line crosses the y-axis?
Use the slope and the y-intercept to write the equation.
Have students work independently On Your Own Questions 1 and 2. Then have neighbors check each others
work.

3. EXAMPLE 2 (10 minutes)

This example matches an equation with a graph.

Dynamic Classroom
Lauries Lesson Notes
PowerPoint Example
Extra Example
Lesson Tutorials
Answer Presentation

Other Resources

Writing an Equation

Make a quick sketch of the graph to reference as you work the problem.
When finding the slope, students are unsure of how to simplify 0/3. This is a good time to review the difference
between 0/3 and 3/0.
Have students work independently On Your Own Question 3. Then have neighbors check each others work.
Review the answers together, with students presenting their work to the class.

Dynamic Classroom
Lauries Lesson Notes
PowerPoint Example
Extra Example
Lesson Tutorials
Answer Presentation

Focus on Mathematical Practice 7

Students dont always recognize that y = 4 is a linear equation written in slope-intercept form. It helps to write the extra
step of y = (0)x + (4) so students can see that the slope is 0. Students should recognize that y = 4 and y = (0)x + ( 4)
are equivalent.
Focus on Mathematical Practice 6
Encourage students to sketch a graph of the line through the two points to give them a clue as to how to begin. The visual
model is an approximation that can be used to check their final answer. This technique will help students start Question 4.

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4. EXAMPLE 3 (10 minutes)

Other Resources

Real-Life Application
This example finds the equation of a line from a graph on tunnel digging.

Ask a volunteer to read the problem. Discuss information that can be read from the graph.
Ask the question By visual inspection, what do you know about the sign of the slope and the y-intercept in this
problem?
Ask the question What does a slope of 500 mean in the context of this problem?
The x-intercept for this graph is 7.
Note that the graph is in Quadrant I. In the context of this problem, it doesnt make sense for time or distance to be
negative.
Have students work in pairs On Your Own Question 4.

5. ASSESS (5 minutes)

Dynamic Classroom
Lauries Lesson Notes
PowerPoint Example
Extra Example
Lesson Tutorials
Answer Presentation

Other Resources

Closure (as time allows)

Writing Prompt: For a line that has been graphed in a coordinate plane, you can write the equation by
Assignment:

1, 2, 511 odd, 1218

Taking Math Deeper

Mini-Assessment
Extra Practice (A and B)
ExamView
Assessment Suite

Answer Presentation

Other Resources

Puzzle Time
Record and Practice
Journal

Lesson Tutorials

Skills Review Handbook

Enrichment and

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