What is a Rotation?

A rotation turns a figure in a circular motion around a 'center of rotation'
Rotating around the origin means the center of rotation is the point (0,0)
The ^o symbol means 'degrees'
On the first graph, the original figure is rotated 90 degrees around the origin
The rotated figure is called our 'image'
On the second graph, the original figure is rotated 180 degrees around the origin
On the third graph, the original figure is rotated 180 degrees around the point (-2,1)

1. The fixed point that a figure is rotated around is called the center of rotation
1. Looking at a some examples of rotation will help you better understand the concept
1. First we'll take an example of a 90-degree rotation around the origin, (0,0)
2. Here the origin is our center of rotation
3. In this example, we rotate 90 degrees to the right
4. We could also rotate the figure 90 degrees to the left if we wanted to
1. Next we'll take an example of a 180-degree rotation around the origin, (0,0)
2. Here again the origin is our center of rotation
3. In this example, we rotate 180 degrees to the right
4. 180 degrees is halfway around the center of rotation, so it doesn't matter which direction we rotate
1. Finally, an example of a 180-degree rotation around the point (-2,1)
2. This time the point (-2,1) is our center of rotation
3. In this example, we rotate 180 degrees to the right
4. 180 degrees is halfway around the center of rotation, so it doesn't matter which direction we rotated

What is a rotation?