Curriculum / Math / 6th Grade / Unit 8: Statistics / Lesson 2
Math
Unit 8
6th Grade
Lesson 2 of 14
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Describe data that is represented in a dot plot. Represent data using dot plots and frequency tables.
The core standards covered in this lesson
6.SP.B.4 — Display numerical data in plots on a number line, including dot plots, histograms, and box plots.
6.SP.B.5.A — Reporting the number of observations.
The foundational standards covered in this lesson
4.MD.B.4 — Make a line plot to display a data set of measurements in fractions of a unit (1/2, 1/4, 1/8). Solve problems involving addition and subtraction of fractions by using information presented in line plots. For example, from a line plot find and interpret the difference in length between the longest and shortest specimens in an insect collection.
5.MD.B.2 — Make a line plot to display a data set of measurements in fractions of a unit (1/2, 1/4, 1/8). Use operations on fractions for this grade to solve problems involving information presented in line plots. For example, given different measurements of liquid in identical beakers, find the amount of liquid each beaker would contain if the total amount in all the beakers were redistributed equally.
The essential concepts students need to demonstrate or understand to achieve the lesson objective
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Problems designed to teach key points of the lesson and guiding questions to help draw out student understanding
Two classrooms at the Roosevelt Middle School collected data on student height—one sixth-grade classroom and one seventh-grade classroom. A dot plot represents each data set, shown below.
a. Describe the 6th Grade dot plot of height data.
b. Describe the 7th Grade dot plot of height data.
c. How would you describe the spread or span of data of each dot plot?
Grade 6 Mathematics > Module 6 > Topic A > Lesson 2 of the New York State Common Core Mathematics Curriculum from EngageNY and Great Minds. © 2015 Great Minds. Licensed by EngageNY of the New York State Education Department under the CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US license. Accessed Dec. 2, 2016, 5:15 p.m..
Mia is a sixth grader at Roosevelt Middle School and is thinking of joining the middle school track team. She read that Olympic athletes have lower resting heart rates than most people. She wondered about her own heart rate and how it would compare to other students’. Mia was interested in investigating the statistical question: What are the resting heart rates of students in my sixth-grade class?
Heart rates are expressed as beats per minute (or bpm). Mia knew her resting heart rate was 80 bpm. With the teacher’s help, the other sixth graders in her class found their heart rates and reported them to Mia. The following numbers are the resting heart rates (in beats per minute) for Mia and the other 22 students in Mia’s class.
80 89 87 85 84 90 79 83 85 86 88 84 81 88 85 83 83 86 82 83 86 82 84
a. Skim the questions in part C. Why would a graphical representation of the data help you answer the questions more easily?
b. Construct a dot plot of the data and then use it to answer the questions below.
c. Answer the questions about the heart rate data:
A survey of a sixth-grade classroom asked students how many movies they have seen in the last month and the genre of each movie. The data is shown below.
a. Create two frequency tables: one for the number of movies watched and one for the genre of movies watched.
b. Make a dot plot of the data set that represents numerical data.
A set of suggested resources or problem types that teachers can turn into a problem set
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A task that represents the peak thinking of the lesson - mastery will indicate whether or not objective was achieved
A city planner for a neighborhood of Boston is trying to determine if a new park should be built in the neighborhood. She goes around the neighborhood, knocking on doors, asking, “How many children under the age of 7 live in this household?” The data she collected from 28 households is shown in the frequency table below.
a. Create a dot plot to represent the data. Describe your dot plot in words.
b. What number would you use to represent the center of the data? Explain why you chose that number.
c. Based on the data, what would you recommend to the city planner about the new park? Does this neighborhood seem like a good place to put the new park? Explain why or why not using the data.
The following resources include problems and activities aligned to the objective of the lesson that can be used for additional practice or to create your own problem set.
Lesson 1
Lesson 3
Topic A: Understanding Statistics & Distributions
Define and identify statistical questions.
6.SP.A.1 6.SP.B.5.A
6.SP.B.4 6.SP.B.5.A
Represent data using histograms.
6.SP.B.4
Describe and analyze the overall shape of dot plots and histograms, including symmetry, skewness, outliers, and clusters.
6.SP.A.2
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Topic B: Measurements of Center & Variability
Define and determine the mean of a data set.
6.SP.A.2 6.SP.B.5.C
Define and determine the median of a data set.
Define and determine the mode of a data set.
Determine which measure of center best represents a data set. Determine how measures of center change when data is added or removed.
6.SP.A.2 6.SP.B.5.D
Use the range and interquartile range to understand the spread and variability of a data set.
Understand and determine mean absolute deviation (MAD) as a measure of variability of a data set.
6.SP.B.5.C
Compare measures of center and measures of spread to describe data sets.
6.SP.A.3
Topic C: Box Plots & Circle Graphs
Represent data using box plots.
6.SP.B.4 6.SP.B.5
Analyze box plots and other representations, and summarize numerical data in context.
Analyze circle graphs in context.
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