Three routes to differentiate x/(x + 1), compared on a class Padlet.

The teacher sets y = x/(x + 1) and asks students to differentiate it by any route: the quotient rule, the product rule on x(x + 1)^-1, or rewriting it as 1 − 1/(x + 1) first. Students work in their books, check their answer by plotting it in GeoGebra alongside the output of GeoGebra's Derivative command, and post a photo of their working to the class Padlet. The teacher sorts the posts by route as they arrive, asks one student from each route to talk through their working, and picks out any post where the check caught an error. Students end by trying a second function and writing which route they would choose and why.

Tools: GeoGebra, Padlet Nine ideas for your own version in Generate