↗ Positive Slope
The line rises as you move from left to right.
Slope Quest
Go from spotting slopes to solving them! Start by catching positive, negative, zero, and undefined slopes, then plot points on a coordinate plane, draw Rise and Run, and calculate the slope using formulas. Explore four progressive game modes, each building a new math skill.
Grade 8SlopeCoordinate Plane4 Game Modes5 Graph Rounds · 1 Calculation RoundPlot & Calculate
Catch the slope!
Each round gives you a randomly chosen slope type. Watch the rotating line and tap the graph—or press Catch the Slope!—when it matches. Wrong catch? Try again!
Choose Your Game Mode
Follow the progression from the simplest skill to the most advanced one. Each mode builds on the previous mode and adds one new slope skill.
QUICK GUIDE
How to Identify the Slope
A line's slope describes its direction as you read it from left to right. In this game you will first identify the type of slope, then plot points on that slope, then draw the run and the rise, and finally use formulas to calculate the slope.
↘ Negative Slope
The line falls as you move from left to right.
→ Zero Slope
The line is perfectly horizontal. Its slope is 0.
↑ Undefined Slope
The line is perfectly vertical. Its slope is undefined.
Remember: The line can be anywhere on the coordinate plane. Moving a line does not change its slope type. In the game, zero and undefined slopes spin more slowly and snap into a perfectly horizontal or vertical line when you catch them correctly.
Plot Points on the Slope
After you catch the correct slope, the game may ask you to plot two points on that line. Every point has two coordinates:
- x-coordinate: how far the point is to the left or right.
- y-coordinate: how far the point is up or down.
- To plot a point, move across the x-axis first, then move up or down to the y-value.
Example: point A is (-4, -3) and point B is (4, 3). One point is in the negative quadrant and one point is in the positive quadrant, and both points lie exactly on the same slope.
Draw Rise and Run
Once both points are plotted, you can show the slope with two helper segments:
- Run is the horizontal distance between the two points.
- Rise is the vertical distance between the two points.
- In the game, you draw the Run first and then the Rise. The purple Run and orange Rise straighten when drawn correctly and keep their colors. Their green meeting point marks where the two segments connect.
From A (-4, -3) to B (4, 3): the run is 8 units to the right and the rise is 6 units up.
Calculate the Slope
In the last mode, you work without a graph. You use the coordinates of two points and the formulas below to calculate the slope step by step.
- First identify which numbers are x₁, y₁, x₂, and y₂.
- Then find the Rise and the Run.
- Finally divide Rise by Run to get the slope.
The progression goes from seeing the slope, to plotting points, to drawing rise and run, and finally to calculating everything using formulas.
STEP 1
Rise = y₂ − y₁
Subtract the first point's y-value from the second point's y-value.
STEP 2
Run = x₂ − x₁
Subtract the first point's x-value from the second point's x-value.
STEP 3
Slope = Rise ÷ Run
Divide Rise by Run. If Run is 0, the slope is undefined.