Computer Skills Curriculum
Database Lesson Plan
Title: Which Graph is Best?
Grade: 6
Competency 3.3: Use commercial software to organize and visually
display data to draw conclusions.
Measure 3.3.1: Use graphing software to create several types of
graphs illustrating the number of each color of M&M's in one bag. Decide which graph best represents the
data.
Materials Needed: Activity: Bags of M&M's candy, paper for
drawing graphs, computer graphing program.
Time: One class session.
Terms: Database, Sort, Search, Report
Activities
Pre-computer Activity:
- 1. Place on the board
or overhead an illustration of three different types of graphs--such as
a pie graph, a bar graph, and a line graph. Discuss the graphs in terms of what
each shows:
- pie graph shows relationship
of parts to the whole
- bar graph shows
comparison of parts
- line graph shows
change in relationship of two sets of values
- 2. Divide the class
into groups and provide each group with a bag of M&M's.
- 3. Ask the students to
separate and count the M&M's by color.
- 4. Have each group
make a paper graph for each type of graph and graph the data from the
M&M's:
- pie
graph: number of each color compared to the total number.
- bar
graph: the comparison of the number of each color.
- line
graph: the color (x-axis) compared to the number for that color.
- 5. After each group
shares their graphs with the class, discuss which type of graph shows
best:
- a. Which color is
the greatest in number in each bag?
- b. Which colors had
almost the same number in the bag?
- c. Does any color
comprise half or more of those in its bag?
- d. What is the
average number for one color in the bag?
Computer Activity:
- 1. Provide a graphing
program for each group to generate several different graphs with the
data they collected from their bag of M&M's.
- 2. Ask each group to
discuss the information each graph best illustrates.
Measure
Select one example of each type of graph generated in the class activity
by using the computer graphing progam. Display
these for the class to examine. Ask each student to select the graph that can
be used best to determine what colors comprise between half and three-fourths
of the entire bag illustrated in that graph.
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