Pythagoras' theorem

A complete lesson for first introducing Pythagoras’ theorem.

Activities included:

Starter:
A set of equations to solve, similar to what pupils will need to solve when doing Pythagoras questions. Includes a few sneaky ones that should cause some discussion.

Main:

• Examples and quick question to make sure pupils can identify the hypotenuse of a right-angled triangle.
• Optional ‘discovery’ activity of pupils measuring sides of triangles and making calculations to demonstrate Pythagoras’ theorem.
• Questions to get pupils thinking about when Pythagoras’ theorem applies and when it doesn’t.
• Examples and quick questions for pupils to try on the standard, basic questions of finding either the hypotenuse or a shorter side. A worksheet with a mild progression in difficulty, from integer sides and answers to decimals.
• An extension task of a ‘pile up’ activity (based on an idea by William Emeny, but I did make this one myself).

Plenary:
Some multiple choice questions to consolidate the basic method, but also give a taster of other geometry problems Pythagoras’ theorem can be used for (e.g. finding the length of the diagonal of a rectangle).

Printable worksheets and answers included.

Please review if you buy as any feedback is appreciated!