Laying the Foundation
Box-and-Whisker Plots
Statistics is made approachable, and dare we say fun, in this activity on using box-and-whisker plots to analyze and compare data sets. Specific emphasis is placed on interpretations and explanations while graphing, and in using the...
Curated OER
Penny Basketball: Making Sense of Data
Explore four web-based interactive sites to develop a baseline understanding of statistics. Learners play a series of penny basketball games and collect data regarding their shooting statistics. Groups decide who is the "top" penny...
Virginia Department of Education
Field Goals, Balls, and Nets
Score a resource on ratios. Young mathematicians learn about different ways to express ratios. Using sports data, they write statements about the statistics in ratio form.
Curated OER
State Names: Frequency
Data grathers determine the frequency of specified data. They identify the frequency that specified letters occur in the names of all 50 states. They create stem-and-leaf plots, box-and-whisket plots and historgrams to illustrate the data.
Virginia Department of Education
May I Have Fries with That?
Not all pie graphs are about pies. The class conducts a survey on favorite fast food categories in a lesson on data representation. Pupils use the results to create a circle graph.
Curated OER
Raisin the Statistical Roof
Use a box of raisins to help introduce the concept of data analysis. Learners collect, analyze and display their data using a variety of methods. The included worksheet takes them through a step-by-step analysis process and graphing.
American Statistical Association
Happy Birthday to . . . Two?
How many people do you need in a room before two likely share the same birthday? Scholars consider this puzzle by analyzing a set of data. They ponder how to divide the data and determine the proper size of a group for this event to...
Curated OER
A Day at the Beach
Help learners determine the rate of change for the temperature of sand. They will collect data on the temperature of wet and dry sand over time with a heat lamp overhead. Then make a scatter plot of the data and find a linear model to...
American Statistical Association
Armspans
Young mathematicians collect data on the arm spans of classmates. Then they sort the data by measures of center, spread, and standard deviation. Finally, they compare groups, such as boys and girls, to interpret any differences.
Curated OER
Graphing the Forecast-Line Graph or Bar Graph?
Students explore bar and line graphs. In this data collection, graphing, and weather instructional activity, students compare bar and line graphs and discuss which type of graph would be most appropriate for displaying a ten day weather...
Curated OER
Mean Absolute Deviation in Dot Plots
The lesson focuses on the ideas of dot plot representations and the mean absolute deviation of data sets.
Illustrative Mathematics
Rolling Dice
Rolling dice is a great way for your mathematicians to get a hands-on approach to probabilities. Use the chart to record whether they rolled a six during ten attempts. Calculate results individually (or in small groups) and then record...
Curated OER
Seized Before Flights: Graph
In this bar graph learning exercise, students analyze a graph that show the number of prohibited items intercepted at U.S. airport screening checkpoints. Students answer 3 problem solving questions about the data on the graph.
Buffalo State
Adding and Subtracting Integers Unit
Just because one integer is larger than another doesn't mean it will make sense right away. Go beyond note taking and show learners, through the use of algebra tiles and a Four-Pan Algebra Balance, how the numbers relate to one another...
Illustrative Mathematics
Puzzle Times
Give your mathematicians this set of data and have them create a dot plot, then find mean and median. They are asked to question the values of the mean and median and decide why they are not equal. Have learners write their answers or...
Curated OER
Graphing the Forecast - Line Graph or Bar Graph?
Sixth graders compare and contrast bar and line graphs. Using a weather forecast of the area, 6th graders record the high and low temperatures in a table. Students determine and justify the most appropriate graph to display a given set...
Curated OER
Mean and Standard Deviation
Get two activities with one lesson. The first lesson, is appropriate for grades 6-12 and takes about 20 minutes. It introduces the concept of measures of central tendency, primarily the mean, and discusses its uses as well as its...
Practical Money Skills
Saving and Investing
Learn the difference between saving money and investing money, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each. Kids review banking and personal finance terms before studying the different ways that people can reach their financial...
Curated OER
Dangerous Fun
In this line graph activity, students analyze the data on a graph about toy-related injuries by year. Students solve 5 problems in which the change in injuries per year is calculated and recorded on a table.
Curated OER
Decisions, Decisions, Decisions
Learners examine graphs to find the most appropriate for various kinds of data. In this graphing instructional activity, student create bar, line and circle graphs. Students create graphs electronically and manually interpreting the data.
Curated OER
Shake It Up with Scatterplots
Students identify how to use a scatterplot to compare two sets of data to determine if they are related. Then they identify and describe the definition of regression line (the "line of best fit"). Students also identify how scientists...
Mathematics TEKS Toolkit
Grade 6: Exploring c/d = pi
Introduce your math class to the perimeter of a circle. Teach them that pi describes the relationship between the circumference and the diameter. As a hands-on investigation, pairs or small groups use string to compare these two values...
Curated OER
Calculating the Cost of a "Sound Basic Education"
Students state their opinions about school funding and the use of monetary resources by school districts and use reasons, facts, and examples to support their ideas. They compare sets of data related to school funding and draw...
Curated OER
Water: From Neglect to Respect
The goal of this collection of lessons is to make middle schoolers more aware of the ways in which they are dependent upon water to maintain their standard of living. Learners compare water use in Lesotho to water use in the United...