Pythagorean Spiral Project

You will create a poster of the Pythagorean spiral. The result needs to be
colored and may be creatively decorated. You will need to turn in your poster and
a separate piece of paper with all calculations. As part of this project, you will
also research Fibonacci and the Pythagorean spiral in nature.
Materials: Watercolor Paper, ruler, protractor, pencil, colored pencils or
markers
Please follow these steps for creating your Pythagorean spiral:
# 1. Place the poster paper in landscape orientation. From the top left hand
corner, measure 7 inches right and 4.5 inches down and make a point. This will
be the starting point for your spiral. Measure precisely so your spiral will fit on
the poster.
# 2. Using your ruler create an isosceles right triangle starting at the above
location. The lengths of the sides of the original triangle should be 2 inches.
Draw the triangle to the right of the starting point. The base of the triangle needs
to be parallel with the top and the bottom of the poster paper. Use your protractor
to create the 90 angle.

# 3. On a separate piece of paper, use the Pythagorean Theorem to calculate

the length of the hypotenuse. Show all work and round your answer to the
nearest tenth. Measure the triangle with a ruler. Do the calculations match the
measurement? Fill in the table
# 4. Using the hypotenuse of the first triangle, create another right triangle on
top of the previous hypotenuse. The old hypotenuse will be the new base. Use
your protractor to draw a perpendicular segment with length 2 inches to this
segment. Connect the two segments to form a new hypotenuse.

# 5. Continue to show the calculations to find the length of the new

hypotenuse on your separate sheet of paper. Show the calculations for all 17
triangles. All work must be shown. Round your answers to the nearest
hundredth.
# 6. Continue to repeat this process of connecting and constructing new
triangles with one leg 2 inches using the previous hypotenuse as the other leg.
Continue to show your calculations on your separate piece of paper. Construct
triangles until you have formed a full spiral. You must have 17 total triangles.
# 7. Detail your Pythagorean Spiral with a design. Use color and a pattern to
make a creative picture. ( See example below.)
#8.

Once you are done, attach your table to the back of the poster.

Rubric:
Number of
Points
4

Use of Compass
Constructions
Evidence of each
compass
construction shown

Calculations for
each hypotenuse
All work is shown
using the
Pythagorean
Theorem and each
answer is
simplified

Evidence of most
compass
constructions
shown

Partial or incorrect
constructions
shown

All work is shown

using the
Pythagorean
Theorem but some
answers are not
properly simplified
All work is shown
but with errors in
calculation and/or
simplification

Construction
markings are not
visible

Grade: ____x3=

Only partial work is

shown and/or no
evidence of the
Pythagorean
Theorem

_____/48

Poster Result

Creativity

The result shows

17 right triangles
that rotate around
to the right and
the last triangle
overlaps the
original
The result shows
an error in
construction
resulting in one
fewer or one more
triangle
The result goes
the wrong
direction and/or is
off by more than
one triangle
The result does
not appear to have
followed the
proper
requirements

The poster is
creatively
colored and
decorated

The poster is
colored but
the results are
not neat.
The poster is
partially
colored or
incomplete.
The poster is
not colored or
decorated