Geometry is essential for ice skating. Take a moment to write down a few ways in which geometry affects the precision of the sport.
Discussion Questions
- What data is necessary to collect in order to understand the role of geometry in figure skating, hockey, and speed skating?
- What spatial perspectives and/or mathematical planes are important for precision?
The cover of The Geometry of Figure Skating, to the right above, features a skater in action.
Discussion Questions
- What angles can be measured on the diagram, in order to understand the accuracy of technique?
- Is any essential information missing from the picture? What is necessary in order to measure that information?
Geometry diagrams featuring ice skating are available in the following books from Schottenbauer Publishing:
Geometry Workbooks
On the surface level, both the technique and beauty of ice skating can be described by geometry, in terms of the angles of knee bends and arm positions. On a technical level, geometry is essential for understanding the science of ice skating, including the physics of force and motion.
The books The Geometry of Winter Olympic Sports and The Geometry of Figure Skating contain diagrams which introduce children and teens to the task of identifying angles in ice skating. Consider the diagram below, excerpted from page 25 of The Geometry of Winter Olympic Sports (Copyright 2014, All Rights Reserved).
Discussion Questions
- How many angles are formed in this diagram?
- From a casual analysis, what types of angles (Acute/Obtuse/Right) are located in the diagram? Indicate the location of each angle.
- In order to analyze the angles in this diagram, where should the coordinate axis be placed? Why? Is it necessary to identify more than one coordinate axis? Why or why not? If so, where should the axes be placed?
- Using a protractor, measure all the angles in the diagram that are relevant to the art or physics of skating.
- Is it possible to identify the direction of motion from this diagram? Why or why not?
- Is this a figure skater or a hockey player? Justify your answer.
Assistance answering some of these questions may be found by watching the video How to Use Geometry Workbooks on the publisher's YouTube channel.
The following books from Schottenbauer Publishing contain geometry diagrams relevant to ice skating, figure skating, and hockey.
- The Geometry of Figure Skating
- The Geometry of Winter Olympic Sports
