Strategic plan on how to study Word problems involving Right Triangles

I. Related topics
Trigonometric ratios
II. Concepts and Ideas
Angles of elevation or inclination are angles above the horizontal, like looking up from
ground level toward the top of a flagpole. Angles of depression or declination are angles below
the horizontal, like looking down from your window to the base of the building in the next lot.
Whenever you have one of these angles, you should immediately start picturing how a right
triangle will fit into the description.
The angle of elevation of an object as seen by an observer is the angle between the
horizontal and the line from the object to the observer's eye (the line of sight).
If the object is below the level of the observer, then the angle between the horizontal and
the observer's line of sight is called the angle of depression.
To minimize round-off error, I'll use all the digits from my calculator in my computations,
and try to "carry" the computations in my calculator the whole way.
If you have the length of the given side, you can find the total height, using the angle that
measures the elevation from the bottom to the peak of the given object vice versa.

I
f the object is below the level of the
observer, then the angle between the
horizontal and the observer's line of sight is
called the angle of depression.

The angle of elevation of an object as seen

by an observer is the angle between the
horizontal and the line from the object to
the observer's eye (the line of sight).

III. Summary, Conclusion and Insights

Summary
The angle of elevation of an object as seen by an observer is the angle between the
horizontal and the line from the object to the observer's eye (the line of sight).
If the object is below the level of the observer, then the angle between the horizontal and
the observer's line of sight is called the angle of depression.
In order to solve problems involving angles of elevation and depression, it is necessary to
use basic right triangle trigonometry, solve equations which involve one fractional term is also
important to know, find an angle given a right triangle ratio of sides, and the fact
that corresponding angles formed by parallel lines have the same measure.
Conclusion
I therefore conclude that you should assign a variable to represent the missing
measurement like x or y near the undefined side or an upper case English letter to represent
a missing angle measurement.
A trigonometric ratio often helps us set up an equation which can then be solved for the
missing measurement. If the two legs of the triangle are a part of the problem, it is a tangent
ratio. If the hypotenuse is part of the problem, it is either a sine or cosine ratio.
Insights
A typical problem of angles of elevation and depression involves organizing information
regarding distances and angles within a right triangle. In some cases, you will be asked to
determine the measurement of an angle, the problem might be to find an unknown distance. This
type of problem requires a diagram of a carefully labelled right triangle. The measurements of
the sides and one angle should be labelled based on the information given. One measurement in
the triangle is missing. It is the goal of the problem to find this measurement.