In this article, the authors introduce the value of "e" by building on students' prior knowledge of slope and using their abilities to analyze, approximate, and interpret rates of change using graphs, symbols, and numerical data. This approach allows students to construct and interpret the value of "e" while laying the conceptual foundation for limits and the slope of the tangent line. To do so, the authors bring together two topics that are familiar to precalculus students. The first addresses the slope of the line joining any two points in the plane. The second focuses on the properties of exponential functions such as y = 2[superscript x] and y = 3[superscript x] and the constancy of the successive ratios in output values. (Contains 6 figures and 5 tables.)