Subject: Junior Certificate Maths

Teacher: Ms O’Dell
Week: Week 14
Lesson: Co-ordinate Geometry

14 Learning Intentions

Students will have the ability to;

• Be able to plot co-ordinates on an x/y plane
• Find the midpoint of a line and the distance between 2 points
• Understand what slope is and the different methods to find slope depending on what we have been
given
• Write the equation of a line and find information using the equation of line allowing them to sketch
the line
• Find the point of intersection of two lines and prove a point lies on a line
• Draw graphs of lines

14.0 Specification

GT.5

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 14.1 Exercise

Plotting Co-ordinates
Points are plotted on and xy plane. The x-axis is the horizontal line and the y-axis is the vertical line. We
make co-ordinates by checking the number on the x and y axis and putting them in brackets example) (1, 2)
is the co-ordinate where the x value is 1 and the y value is 2. The x value always come first and the y value
always comes second.

List the co-ordinates on the xy plance below:

plot the following co-ordinates on the xy plane above;

G(5, -4) H(-3, -4) J(4, -5) I(-5, 5)

Plotting lines
To plot lines we need at least two points

14.2 Exercise

Given the following points plot the line |AB| and the line |CD|;
A(-1, -1) B(4, 3) C(1, -2) D(3, -4)

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 Midpoint
To find the midpoint between two points or the midpoint of a line segment we need two endpoints and a
formula.
• Line segment – A line with two endpoints
• Endpoints – two co-ordinates that are at either end of a line

This Midpoint formula is given to us in the exam in our formula book

Step 1) Label your points (X1, Y1) and (X2, Y2).

Step 2) Write out the formula.
Step 3) Use algebra substitution to input the values into the formula

14.3 Exercise

A(1, -2) and B(-3, 4) are two points. Find the midpoint of |AB|.

Finding the Distance between two points

To find the distance between two points we must be given the two points and we fill in a formula.
Question will be written as |AB|.

This distance formula is given to us in the exam in our formula book

Step 1) Label your points (X1, Y1) and (X2, Y2).

Step 2) Write out the formula.
Step 3) Use algebra substitution to input the values into the formula

14.4 Exercise
Find IABI, when A(-1, 1) and B(2, 5)

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 Slope
A slope refers to how steep a line is, also known as the gradient or a line. The higher the slope the
steeper the line is.
Depending on what we are given there are several ways to find the slope of a line. Slope in maths is
represented by the letter M.
1) Given two points we can use a formula
2) Given a graphed line we can use rise over run
3) Given the equation(name) of the line we use y=mx + c

Finding the slope of a line, given points on the line.

To find the slope of a line using two points we need two points and a formula.

This slope formula is given to us in the exam in our formula book

Step 1) Label your points (X1, Y1) and (X2, Y2).

Step 2) Write out the formula.
Step 3) Use algebra substitution to input the values into the formula

14.5 Exercise
Find the slope of a line given that E and F lie on the line, where E(-2, 4) and F(3, 1)

Finding the slope of a line, given the graph of the line.

Step 1) We pick out two points on the line (use ones that are going through corners)
Step 2) We count how many places on the Y-axis(we call this the rise) we move up or down and how
many places we move across the X-axis(we call this the run).
𝑅𝑖𝑠𝑒
Step 3) We write down our formula 𝑚 = 𝑅𝑢𝑛 , and fill it in.

Be aware that we read from left to right, so our rise can be a negative number

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Positive slope – line slopes upwards Negative slope – line slopes downwards

14.6 Exercise

Find the slopes of the lines below;

Finding slope of a line, given the equation.

To find the slope using the equation of a line we must first learn how to get the equation of the line.

How to find the equation of a line

The equation of the line is like the name of a line, each name is specific to each line
To do this we need to have three pieces of information;
1) A point (any point we know is on the line)
2) The slope of the line
3) The formula

This line formula is given to us in the exam in our formula book

Type 1) Given a point and the slope of the line

Step 1) Find the three things we need
Step 2) Write out the formula.
Step 3) Use algebra substitution to input the values into the formula

14.7 Exercise

Find the equation of the line which passes through point A(3,6) and has a slope of 4

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Type 2) Given two points
Step 1) Find the three things we need (in this case we will need to use the slope formula to find the slope of
the line).
Step 2) Write out the formula.
Step 3) Use algebra substitution to input the values into the formula

14.8 Exercise
Find the equation of the line which passes through points A(-2, 3) and B(3, 6).

You can be asked to leave your answer in the form of y = mx + c or ax + by + c = 0.

Using y = mx + c
Why is the form y = mx + c so important?
This is how we find the slope of a line, given the equation of the line
When we get a equation of a line into this format we can pick out information from it
Here we use the same method as we learnt in algebra for ‘manipulation of formula’.
Remember that ‘m’ is the slope
‘c’ represents where the line crosses the y-axis on the graph

Example) 6x + 3y = 9
Change this equation into the form of y=mx + c

14.9 Exercise

Sketch the following lines

1) Sketch the line l: y = 2x -1
2) Sketch the line k: 2y = 3x + 2
3) Sketch the line J: -3x – 2y + 6 = 0

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 Parallel and perpendicular lines
If lines are parallel, their slopes will be the same.
If lines are perpendicular, their slopes will be the negative reciprocal of each other.
3 −2
Meaning that if I have a slope of 2 , the perpendicular slope will be 3

Finding an equation of a line, given a perpendicular or parallel slope

To do this we must find the slope of the given line, then;
-If the line is parallel, we use the same slope
-If the line is perpendicular, we flip the slope and change its sign

14.10 Exercise

2015 paper 2 Q6 (c)

The equation of the line l is 5 + y – 2x = 0.
The line j goes through the point (11, 6) and is perpendicular to the line l.
(i) Write down the slope of the line j.

(ii) Find the equation of the line j.

Lines parallel to x or y axis

When given a line parallel to one of the axis we check and see what point it intersects the axis at and use this
value
2016 paper 2 Q4 (b) 14.11 Exercise
Find the equation of the lines |AC| and |AB|.

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 To prove a point lies on the line
To prove a point is on the line, you substitute the point in for x and y. If we get both sides to equal then
the point is on the line.
14.12 Exercise
2016 paper 2 Q5 (a)
Is the point (3, -5) on the line 5x + 3y + 6 = 0? Justify your answer.

Finding a point of intersection of two lines

To do this we use Simultaneous equations. We learnt these during algebra.

14.13 Homework task

2019 Paper 2 Q5(a,b,c,f,g)

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