Representação pictórica e linguagem matemática em Geometria Euclidiana na educação básica

Abstract

The use of figures in teaching Geometry is of great importance for the interpretation, visualization and understanding of mathematical concepts. A figure can lead the reader to an adequate apprehension or it can lead him to a mistaken construction about the definition of a mathematical object. To obtain the desired result, it is necessary that the pictorial representation (i.e., expression through figures) be done appropriately; otherwise, a mathematical object may be misunderstood. For example, if, when representing a parallelogram, figures with consecutive non-perpendicular sides are always used, a rectangle may not be seen as a type of parallelogram. The use of mathematical language is also discussed in this text, since it is not possible to represent some mathematical objects exclusively through figures. In this sense, this work discusses the importance of a pictorial representation to express geometric objects – more precisely triangles and quadrilaterals, as well as some particular cases of these polygons. Furthermore, it also discusses the contributions to pictorial representations suitable for teaching Geometry in basic education.