Lesson 7.1 Summary

For further information about linear equations in slope-intercept form, see pp. 340 - 349 of Mathematics 10.

The slope-intercept form is a way of writing a linear equation. This equation format is useful because the slope and the y-intercept of the graph of the corresponding relation can be easily obtained from the equation. On the graph of a linear relation, the slope represents how quickly one quantity changes as the other quantity changes, and the y-intercept gives the y-value when the x-value is zero. These two pieces of information can be used to sketch graphs quickly, or to visualize a graph without actually sketching it.

In the next lesson, you will explore another form for a linear equation that is used to represent linear relations – the general form.