Math IV: Law of Sines

Standards addressed:
MM4A6. Students will solve trigonometric equations both graphically and algebraically.
Apply the Law of Sines and the Law of Cosines.

Essential Questions:
1. Do you understand the derivation of the Law of Sines?
2. Are you able to use the Law of Sines to solve SAA, ASA, and SSA triangles.
Materials: Pencil or pen, paper, calculator, Geometers Sketchpad software.
Warm-Up: (10 min) The warm-up will consist of two triangles, one right and one oblique. Each
triangle will contain an angle measure and side length. The students will be asked to solve for
one of the missing side lengths. We will review triangle notation during this time as well. The
students will not be able to solve the oblique triangle since we have not learned about the Law of
Sines yet. Does anyone remember what an oblique triangle is? I want the students to
recall that an oblique triangle either has three acute angles or two acute angles and one obtuse
angle. We will use the Law of Sines to solve these triangles.
Lesson: (65 min)
Tier 1: Students will complete the Law of Signs Investigation.










27. Write down the measurements of each angle and each side.
28. Consider the oblique !ABC. Sketch an altitude from vertex B.

29. Label the altitude k.
30. The altitude creates two right triangles inside !ABC. Notice that !A is contained in one of the right
triangles, and !C is contained in the other. Using right triangle trigonometry, write two equations,
one involving sin A, and one involving sin C.

sin A = ______ sin C = _____

31. Notice that each of the equations in Question 30 involves k. Solve each equation for k.

32. Since both equations in Question 31 are equal to k, they can be set equal to each other. Set the
equations equal to each other to form a new equation.

33. Notice that the equation in Question 32 no longer involves k. Write an equation equivalent to the
equation in Question 32, regrouping a with Sin A and c with Sin C.

34. Again consider the oblique !ABC. This time, sketch an altitude from vertex C.

35. Label the altitude h.
36. The altitude creates two right triangles inside !ABC. Notice that !A is contained in one of the right
triangles, and !B is contained in the other. Using right triangle trigonometry, write two equations,
one involving sin A, and one involving sin B.

2008 National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
http://illuminations.nctm.org


The Law of Sines NAME

Right triangle trigonometry can be used to solve problems involving right
triangles. However, many interesting problems involve non-right triangles.
In this lesson, you will use right triangle trigonometry to develop the Law
of Sines. The law oI sines is important because it can be used to solve
problems involving non-right triangles as well as right triangles.

Consider oblique !ABC shown to the right.

1. Sketch an altitude Irom vertex B.

2. Label the altitude k.

3. The altitude creates two right triangles inside !ABC.
Notice that "A is contained in one oI the right triangles,
and "C is contained in the other. Using right triangle
trigonometry, write two equations, one involving sin A,
and one involving sin C.

sin A # sinC #


4. Notice that each oI the equations in Question 3 involves k. (Why does this happen?) Solve each
equation Ior k.




5. Since both equations in Question 4 are equal to k, they can be set equal to each other. (Why is
this possible?) Set the equations equal to each other to Iorm a new equation.




6. Notice that the equation in Question 5 no longer involves k. (Why not?) Write an equation
equivalent to the equation in Question 5, regrouping a with sin A and c with sin C.



2008 National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
http://illuminations.nctm.org


The Law of Sines NAME

Right triangle trigonometry can be used to solve problems involving right
triangles. However, many interesting problems involve non-right triangles.
In this lesson, you will use right triangle trigonometry to develop the Law
of Sines. The law oI sines is important because it can be used to solve
problems involving non-right triangles as well as right triangles.

Consider oblique !ABC shown to the right.

1. Sketch an altitude Irom vertex B.

2. Label the altitude k.

3. The altitude creates two right triangles inside !ABC.
Notice that "A is contained in one oI the right triangles,
and "C is contained in the other. Using right triangle
trigonometry, write two equations, one involving sin A,
and one involving sin C.

sin A # sinC #


4. Notice that each oI the equations in Question 3 involves k. (Why does this happen?) Solve each
equation Ior k.




5. Since both equations in Question 4 are equal to k, they can be set equal to each other. (Why is
this possible?) Set the equations equal to each other to Iorm a new equation.




6. Notice that the equation in Question 5 no longer involves k. (Why not?) Write an equation
equivalent to the equation in Question 5, regrouping a with sin A and c with sin C.



sin A = ______ sin B = ______

37. Notice that each of the equations in Question 36 involves h. (Why does this happen?) Solve each
equation for h.

38. Since both equations in Question 37 are equal to h, they can be set equal to each other. Set the
equations equal to each other to form a new equation.

39. Notice that the equation in Question 39 no longer involves h. Write an equation equivalent to the
equation in Question 39, regrouping a with Sin A and c with Sin C.


40. Use the equations in Question 33 and Question 39 to write a third equation involving a, b, c, sin A,
sin B, and sin C.

41. Verify this equation works using GSP. Use your constructed measurements and the Number !
Calculate menu to calculate the three ratios that make up this equation. Grab one of the vertices of
your triangle and observe what happens to each of the ratios. Notice that no matter how you move
the triangle, the ratios are always congruent.
Together, the equations in Questions 33, 39, and 40 form the Law of Sines. The Law of Sines is
important, because it can be used to solve problems involving both right and non-right triangles because
it involves only the sides and angles of a triangle.
Using the Law of Sines, find the missing side lengths and angle measures of the following
triangles:
42. " = 40, # = 60, a = 4.


43. " = 35, # = 15, c = 5

What type of triangles are these?
Tier 2: Students will complete the Law of Sines Investigation in addition to the following
problems.
Do #29 and #31 on page 529 in the book. The book includes diagrams for each of the
problems.
29. Coast Guard Station Able is located 150 miles due south of Station Baker. A ship at sea
sends an SOS call that is received by each station. The call to Station Able indicates that the
ship is located N55E; the call to Station baker indicates that the ship is located S60E.

a. How far is each station from the ship?







b. If a helicopter capable of flying 200 miles per hour is dispatched from the nearest
station to the ship, how long will it take to reach the ship?







31. Consult the figure. To find the length of the span of a proposed ski lift from A to B, a
surveyor measures the angle DAB to be 25 and then walks off a distance of 1000 ft to C and
measures the angle ACB to be 15. What is the distance from A to B?







Tier 3: Students will complete the Law of Sines Investigation in addition to the following
problems.
Do #29 on page 529 in the book. The book includes a diagram for the problem.
29. Coast Guard Station Able is located 150 miles due south of Station Baker. A ship at sea
sends an SOS call that is received by each station. The call to Station Able indicates that the
ship is located N55E; the call to Station baker indicates that the ship is located S60E.

a. How far is each station from the ship?







b. If a helicopter capable of flying 200 miles per hour is dispatched from the nearest
station to the ship, how long will it take to reach the ship?

SSA is known as the ambiguous case. The known information may result in one triangle,
two triangles, or no triangle. Solve the following triangles. State whether there is one
solution, two solutions, or no solution.
1. a = 3, b = 2, " = 40

2. a = 3, b = 2, " = 35

3. a = 2, c =1, $ = 50

Based on the work you did in the 3 previous problems, why do you think solving SSA
triangles can result in one triangle, two triangles, or no triangles?



Closure: (15 min) During the last 15 minutes of class, I will do a quick review of todays lesson
by asking the students:
Can someone come up to the board and write the Law of Sines?
What steps did we take to discover the Law of Sines?
What two cases of triangles can be solved using the Law of Sines?
Why is SSA known as the ambiguous case?

Differentiation: I am using grouping and a tiered lesson to differentiate. For this lesson students
will be grouped by ability level. These groups will be reflective of students performance in the
previous unit and performance on the pre-test. I am differentiating based on process. However,
Tier 3 is slightly differentiated based on content as well. I have also differentiated the homework
assignments for each tier.
Tier 1: This tier is geared towards students below grade level, or students that have a hard time
staying on task. In this tier, students and teachers work through the Law of Sines Investigation
as a class. The teacher will do the GSP portion of the investigation on the Smart Board. There
will be several periods of 5 to 10 minutes where students work in small groups before discussing
their findings with the whole class. So this tier involves periods of time where the students are
working together as a class, in small groups, and individually. While the students are working in
small groups, the teacher will have an opportunity to walk around the classroom and assist
students working in the other tiers.
Tier 2: This tier is geared towards students on grade level. Students work in small groups to
complete the Law of Sines Investigation. Students will complete the GSP portion of the
investigation on their own computers. In addition to the Law of Sines Investigation, students
will complete two word problems. These word problems show students a real-world application
for the Law of Sines.
Tier 3: This tier is geared towards students above grade level. Like in tier 2, students will work
in small groups to complete the Law of Sines Investigation, including the GSP portion. In
addition to the Law of Sines Investigation, students will complete a real-world word problem and
be introduced to the ambiguous cases. The Law of Sines involving the ambiguous case is
typically not covered in the standards, so this portion is an extension of the required curriculum.
Assessment: The class discussion during the closure and a homework assignment will serve as
formative assessments.
Homework: Tier 1 Students: #1-10. Tier 2: #1-6 and #13-19. Tier 3: #11-20.

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Kuta Software - Infinite Algebra 2 Name___________________________________
Period____ Date________________ The Law of Sines
Find each measurement indicated. Round your answers to the nearest tenth.
1) Find AC
24
A
B C
118
22
2) Find AB
7
C
A
B
53 44
3) Find BC
27
B
C
A
51
39
4) Find AB
9
B
C
A
101
63
5) Find BC
16
A
B
C
93
58
6) Find mC
21
26
16.1
A
B C
88
7) Find mC
24
20
29
C
A
B
82
8) Find mC
10
21
17 A
B
C
99
9) Find mA
11
33
25
B
C
A
129
10) Find mA
8
30
27 B
C
A
104
-1-

























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Solve each triangle. Round your answers to the nearest tenth.
11) mA = 70,

c

= 26,

a

= 25 12) mB = 45,

a

= 28,

b

= 27
13) mC = 145,

b

= 7,

c

= 33 14) mB = 73,

a

= 7,

b

= 5
15) mB = 117,

a

= 16,

b

= 38 16) mB = 84,

a

= 18,

b

= 9
17) mB = 105,

b

= 23,

a

= 14 18) mC = 13, mA = 22,

c

= 9
19) mB = 80, mC = 54,

b

= 11 20) mC = 29,

b

= 25,

c

= 21
State the number of possible triangles that can be formed using the given measurements.
21) mC = 63,

b

= 9,

c

= 12 22) mB = 33,

a

= 27,

b

= 22
23) mB = 29,

a

= 14,

b

= 19 24) mB = 95,

b

= 24,

a

= 5
25) mA = 29,

c

= 18,

a

= 17 26) mB = 35,

a

= 24,

b

= 6
Find the area of each triangle to the nearest tenth.
27)
11 cm
11 cm
D
E
F
99
28)
6.7 km
7.6 km
R
P
Q
28
29)
4 mi
7 mi
P
K
H
36
30)
12 mi
5 mi
X
Y
Z
50
-2-
Background information on students: This lesson was designed for a Math 4 class. In my
experience, I have found that general education classes typically have a wider range of abilities
than a remedial or gifted class. Although there are definitely differences among students in those
classes as well. Each tier addresses a different ability level, with tier 3 being the most difficult.
The tiers also take into account whether students do better working together with the class, in
small groups, or individually. The lesson outlined in tier 3 is probably what I would use in an
Accelerated Math 3 class.

Discussion: In this lesson, I highlighted the use of grouping, tiered lessons, and the promotion of
analytical and critical thinking skills. These groups were responsive to student needs [since]
group composition [was] based on the teachers perceptions or evidence of students learning
needs (Riley, 2000, p. 650). As I mentioned above, students were grouped by ability level and
these groups were determined by their performance in the previous unit and their performance on
the pretest.
Winebrenner advises teachers to never let students use the time they buy back from
strength areas to remediate learning weaknesses (Riley, p.642). This advice is evident in tier 2
and 3, where students were given two different extensions. The components of the lesson also
promoted analytical and critical thinking for students in each tier. The Law of Sines
Investigation had students use their previously constructed knowledge of triangles and
trigonometric identities to derive the Law of Sines. Later, students will use the Law of Sines to
find missing angle measures and side lengths that are necessary for determining the area of a
triangle. (Area = " (side a)(side c)sin B) The Law of Sines will also show the students the
relevance of the Law of Cosines. A lot of students find learning tasks, like the Law of Sines
Investigation, to be difficult. Differentiating by process, allowed all students to be exposed to
the material in this investigation. The investigation allowed students to see where the Law of
Sines comes from and how it fits into mathematics as a whole.


References:
Riley, T. L. (2009). Teaching gifted and talented students in regular classrooms.
In Karnes F. A., & Bean, S. M., Methods and Materials for Teaching the Gifted
(pp. 631-672). Prufrock Press Inc.