Here is a set of printable cards about “Exponential Functions” for use in a Precalculus or College Algebra class. I use these problems as part of teaching Chapter 3 Section in “Precalculus with Limits: A Graphing Approach” by Larson, but any Precalculus (College Algebra) textbook will have an equivalent section.

Inventory of this download:

• Section_3.1_Group1.pdf: 56 cards (7 sheets) of problems that ask a student to determine a particular value of a simple exponential function. These problems just make sure that the students know how to use a calculator to evaluate exponentials.
• Section_3.1_Group3.pdf: 56 cards (7 sheets) of problems that ask a student to determine a particular value of a simple exponential function using the natural base. These problems just make sure that the students know how to use a calculator to evaluate exponentials of the form “e to the power of”.
• Section_3.1_Group4.pdf: 56 cards (7 sheets) of problems that ask a student to determine a particular value of exponential functions that are slightly more difficult. These problems just make sure that the students know how to use a calculator to evaluate exponentials. They also demonstrate the order of operations in functions with exponentials.
• Section_3.1_Group5.pdf: 56 cards (7 sheets) of story problems about continuously compounded interest. All of these problems involve solving for the amount of money in an account after a period of years given a particular starting balance and an interest rate.
• Section_3.1_Group6.pdf: 56 cards (7 sheets) of problems similar to those in Section_3.1_Group5.pdf, but with different values and different forms.

Uses in the classroom:

• Speed dating (see instructions included in the download)
• Problems for students to do “in front of the group”
• Flash cards
• Problem sets to use when writing quizzes, tests or other assessments
• Choose harder/easier problems for use in differentiated instruction.

Printing:

• These printable cards can be printed double-sided (so that the answers are on the back of each card) or just print every other page to produce cards without the answers on the back.
• Cut out the individual cards.
• The problems are printed 8 to a page on 8.5x11 paper. I do not have any way to test to see if these cards print appropriately and line up correctly on other sizes of paper, such as A4.