Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Your notes

Maths: Core
Linear Graphs
Contents
Coordinates
Gradient of a Line
Equations of Straight Lines (y = mx + c)
Drawing Straight Line Graphs
Parallel Lines

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 Coordinates
Your notes
2D Coordinates
What is the Cartesian plane?
The Cartesian plane is a two-dimensional grid that has
a horizontal scale, called the x-axis
a vertical scale, called the y-axis
The two axes meet at the origin
where x and y are both 0

What are coordinates?

Coordinates are a pair of numbers, x and y , that describe the location of a point on the
grid
They are written in brackets as (x , y )
The point is
x units on the horizontal scale
y units on the vertical scale
The origin is (0, 0)
Positive values of x are to the right of the origin
Negative values are to the left
Positive values of y are above the origin
Negative values are below
For example, from the origin:
(2, 5) is the point 2 units to the right and 5 units up
(-1, -4) is the point 1 unit to the left and 4 units down
"Along the corridor, up the stairs" helps to remember horizontal then vertical, (x , y)

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Check the scale on the coordinate grid!
1 square might not be 1 unit

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Worked Example Your notes
(a) Write down the coordinates of the point A shown on the axes below.

A is 3 units to left, so x is −3
A is 4 units up, so y is 4
Give your answer in brackets
(−3, 4)
(b) Mark the point B with coordinates (3,- 2) on the same set of axes.
Start at the origin
Count 3 units right and two units down
Mark the point with a solid circle or cross and label it B

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 Your notes

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 Gradient of a Line
Your notes
Gradient of a Line
What is the gradient of a line?
The gradient is a measure of how steep a straight line is
A gradient of 3 means:
For every 1 unit to the right, go up by 3
A gradient of -4 means:
For every 1 unit to the right, go down by 4
A gradient of 3 is steeper than 2
A gradient of -5 is steeper than -4
A positive gradient means the line goes upwards (uphill)
Bottom left to top right
A negative gradient means the line goes downwards (downhill)
Top left to bottom right

How do I find the gradient of a line?

Find two points on the line and draw a right-angled triangle

change in y
Then gradient = change in x
rise
Or, in short,
run
The rise is the vertical length of the triangle
The run is the horizontal length of the triangle
Put the correct sign on your answer
Positive for uphill lines
Negative for downhill lines

You can also find gradient of a line between two points, x 1, y 1 and x 2, y 2
( ) ( )

y2 − y1
Use the formula
x2 − x1

How do I draw a line with a given gradient?

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 2
To draw the gradient
3 Your notes
The rise is 2
The run is 3
It is positive (uphill)
Move 3 units to the right and 2 units up

5
−
To draw the gradient 5 make it a fraction, −1
The rise is 5
The run is 1
It is negative (downhill)
Move 1 unit to the right and 5 units down

Examiner Tips and Tricks

A lot of students forget to make their gradients negative for downhill lines!

Worked Example
(a) Find the gradient of the line shown in the diagram below.

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 Your notes

Find two points that the line passes through

( 0, 2 and 1, 5
) ( )

Use the grid to draw a right-angled triangle

Find the 'rise' (vertical length) and 'run' (horizontal length)

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 Your notes

rise
Work out the fraction
run
3
1
=3
Look to see if the line is uphill or downhill
uphill, so the gradient is positive
The gradient is 3
(b) On the grid below, draw the line with a gradient of −2 that passes through (0,1).

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Mark on the point (0, 1)
2
-2 is the fraction −1 Your notes
The rise is 2, the run is 1, the line goes downhill (so 1 across, 2 down)

2
(c) On the grid below, draw the line with a gradient of that passes through (0,-1).
3
Mark on the point (0,-1)
The rise is 2, the run is 3, the line goes uphill (so 3 across, 2 up)

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 Your notes

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 Equations of Straight Lines (y = mx + c)
Your notes
Finding Equations of Straight Lines
What is the equation of a straight line?
The general equation of a straight line is y = mx + c where
m is the gradient
c is the y-intercept
The value where it cuts the y-axis
y = 5x + 2 is a straight line with
gradient 5
y-intercept 2
y = 3 - 4x is a straight line with
gradient -4
y-intercept 3

How do I find the equation of a straight line from a

graph?
Find the gradient by drawing a triangle and using

rise
gradient =
run
Positive for uphill lines, negative for downhill
Read off the y-intercept from the graph
Where it cuts the y-axis
Substitute these values into y = mx + c

What if no y-intercept is shown?

If you can't read off the y-intercept
find any point on the line
substitute it into the equation
solve to find c
For example, a line with gradient 6 passes through (2, 15)
The y-intercept is unknown

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 Write y = 6x + c
Substitute in x = 2 and y = 15
Your notes
15 = 6 × 2 + c
15 = 12 + c
Solve for c
c =3
The equation is y = 6x + 3
What are the equations of horizontal and vertical lines?
A horizontal line has the equation y = c
c is the y-intercept
A vertical line has the equation x = k
k is the x-intercept
For example
y=4
x = -2

Worked Example
(a) Find the equation of the straight line shown in the diagram below.

Find m, the gradient

Identify any two points the line passes through and work out the rise and run
Line passes through (2, 4) and (10, 0)

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 Your notes

The rise is 4
The run is 8

rise
Calculate the fraction
run
rise 4 1
=
run 8
=2
The slope is downward (downhill), so it is a negative gradient

1
gradient, m =− 2
Now find the y-intercept
The line cuts the y-axis at 5

y-intercept, c = 5
Substitute the gradient, m, and the y-intercept, c, into y = mx + c

1
y=− x +5
2
(b) Find the equation of the straight line with a gradient of 3 that passes through the
point (5, 4).
Substitute m = 3 into y = mx + c
Leave c as an unknown letter

y = 3x + c
Substitute x = 5 and y = 4 into the equation
Solve the equation to find c

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 4=3×5+c
4 = 15 + c Your notes
− 11 = c
You now know c
Replace c with −11 to complete the equation of the line
y = 3x − 11

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 Drawing Straight Line Graphs
Your notes
Drawing Linear Graphs
How do I draw a straight line from a table of values?
You may be given a table of values with no equation
Use the x and y values to form a point with coordinates (x , y )
Then plot these points
Use a ruler to draw a straight line through them
All points should lie on the line
For example
The points below are (-3, 0), (-2, 2), ... etc

x -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3

y 0 2 4 6 8 10 12

How do I draw a straight line using y = mx + c?

Use the equation to create your own table of values
Choose points that are spread out across the axes given
For example, plot y = 2x + 1 on axes from x = 0 to x = 10
Substitute in x = 0, x = 5 and x = 10 to get y coordinates
Then plot those points

x 0 5 10

y 1 11 21

How do I draw a straight line without using a table of

values?
Start at the y-intercept, c
Then, for every 1 unit to the right, go up m units
m is the gradient
If m is negative, go down

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 If m is a fraction, remember that gradient is change in y divided by change in x

a Your notes
A gradient of would be a units up for every b units right
b
This creates a sequence of points which you can then join up
Be careful of counting squares if axes have different scales
1 unit might not be 1 square

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Always plot at least 3 points (just in case one of your end points is wrong!)

Worked Example
3
On the same set of axes, draw the graphs of y = 3x − 1 and y = − 5 x + 3 .
For y = 3x − 1, create a table of values
x 0 1 2

y -1 2 5

Plot the points (0, -1), (1, 2) and (2, 5)

Connect with a straight line
Alternatively, start at the y-intercept (0, -1) and mark the next points 3 units up for
every 1 unit to the right

3
For y = − 5 x + 3, create a table of values
Because of the fraction, x = 5 is a good point to include

x 0 3 5

y 3 1.2 0

Plot the points (0, -1), (1, 2) and (2, 5)

Connect with a straight line
Alternatively, start at the y-intercept (0, 3) and mark the next points 3 units down for
every 5 units to the right

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 Your notes

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 Parallel Lines
Your notes
Parallel Lines
What are parallel lines?
Parallel lines are straight lines with the same gradient
Two parallel lines will never meet
They just stay side-by-side forever
The equation of the line parallel to y = mx + c is y = mx + d

y = 2x + 1 and y = 2x + 5 are parallel

y = 2x + 1 and y = 3x + 1 are not parallel
How do I find the equation of a parallel line?
For example, to find the equation of the line parallel to y = 2x + 1 which passes through
the point (3, 14)
write the parallel line as y = 2x + d
using the same gradient of 2
substitute x = 3 and y = 14 into this equation
14 = 2 × 3 + d
14 = 6 + d
solve to find d
d =8
The equation is y = 2x + 8

Worked Example
Find the equation of the line that passes through the point (2, 1), which is parallel to the
= +
straight line y 3x 7 .

Parallel means the gradient will be the same

Use y = mx + d where m = 3

y = 3x + d
Substitute in x = 2 and y = 1

1=3×2+d

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Simplify the equation

1=6+d Your notes

Solve the equation to find d (by subtracting 6 from both sides)

−5 = d
Write out the final answer in the form y = mx + d

y = 3x − 5

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