1. ## Parabolas..

Ok, havin' a bit of a problem with a parabola, well, problem...
First off, I can't graph y=x squared.
Or any parabola for that matter.. I can find the vert and the axis of symmetry,however, i'm havig trouble graphing points (again, I can't graph y=x squared), and it seems to me like it's just educated-guess work on that portion, randomly plotting points based on the aos and whether or not it's wider or narrower than y=x sqrd....

2. Originally Posted by TNB
Ok, havin' a bit of a problem with a parabola, well, problem...
First off, I can't graph y=x squared.
Or any parabola for that matter.. I can find the vert and the axis of symmetry,however, i'm havig trouble graphing points (again, I can't graph y=x squared), and it seems to me like it's just educated-guess work on that portion, randomly plotting points based on the aos and whether or not it's wider or narrower than y=x sqrd....

i don't see how you would be able to find all that and then not be able to graph it. you know what parabolas look like, right? their general shape? if you can find all the points you say you can, you simply draw that shape going through those points.

see here, it should help. if not, say so. there are also tons of resources on the net that you can find on this topic. going through it step by step here is really reinventing the wheel. try googling "how to graph a parabola" or something like that. that's what i searched for to find this site.

attached you will find a graph of $y = x^2$. it is not a graph that you are allowed to say, "i can't graph that." it is really something you should know by heart, and can produce at will in a few seconds.

3. Originally Posted by TNB
Ok, havin' a bit of a problem with a parabola, well, problem...
First off, I can't graph y=x squared.
Or any parabola for that matter.. I can find the vert and the axis of symmetry,however, i'm havig trouble graphing points (again, I can't graph y=x squared), and it seems to me like it's just educated-guess work on that portion, randomly plotting points based on the aos and whether or not it's wider or narrower than y=x sqrd....

For very simple graphs such as $y=x^2$ i would recommend making a table of values and then graphing. You should know, by looking at this that the vertex, $V=(0,0)$.
Now make a table for x using lets say $-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3$ plug those into $y=x^2$ for $x$ to find the $y$ values and plot the points and draw your parabola.