(Old) Out of Left Field

Should Major League Baseball stadiums be standardized?

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(Old) Out of Left Field

Should Major League Baseball stadiums be standardized?

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2023-2024 Versions

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Should Major League Baseball stadiums be standardized? Home runs are an exciting part of professional baseball. However, not all stadiums are created equally; some are harder to hit home runs in than others, which can have a big effect on pitchers and batters.

In this lesson, students use a quadratic function to model the trajectory of the average professional home run and debate whether Major League Baseball stadiums should all be designed the same.

REAL WORLD TAKEAWAYS

  • MLB stadiums are not standardized. The outfield walls have different heights and distances from home plate.

MATH OBJECTIVES

  • Write and solve quadratic equations in a real-world context
  • Evaluate a quadratic function at given values
  • Sketch a quadratic function from an equation written in vertex form, and interpret the key features

This complex task is best as a culminating unit activity after students have developed formal knowledge and conceptual understanding.
Algebra 1
Quadratics & Solving
Algebra 1
Quadratics & Solving
Content Standards
Mathematical Practices

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