SCORE Mathematics

Standards Connections

The Bigger They Are ...        

Introduction:

• "Man, he really put his weight into that one!"
• "The only reason he gets more rebounds is because he is so tall!"
• "They don't cover him anymore because he is so old, that is why he catches so many passes!"

Are any of these statements legitimate? The students will examine the league leaders in each of these categories to see if there is any truth to those statements.

Prior Knowledge:

Students need to know how to create and interpret Scatterplot graphs.

Grade Level: 4-7

Task:

Gather information and create scatterplot graphs to examine the correlation.

Resources:

graph paper (if not creating graphs on computer)
Student Worksheet

Process:

1. Copy the league leaders in each category.
2. Find and record the secondary information for each of the league leaders.
3. Determine the range for each axis of the scatterplots (subtract the lowest value from the highest value).

Learning Advice:

Invest time in learning the Scatterplot and finding the correlation. This will help when they are trying to find the "Line of best fit."

Evaluation:

The students will be evaluated on their ability to gather information and their ability to interpret the Scatterplot Graph.

Extensions:

Try to find other things that have relationships. (examples - hand size/height, hat size/GPA, time spent on the phone each night/GPA.

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 California Mathematics Academic Strand:

Grade 4:
Statistics, Data Analysis and Probability
1.0 Students organize, represent, and interpret numerical and categorical data and clearly communicate their findings.

1.1 formulate survey questions; systematically collect and represent data on a number line; and coordinate graphs, tables, and charts
1.3 interpret one- and two-variable data graphs to answer questions about a situation

Mathematical Reasoning
1.0 Students make decisions about how to approach problems.

1.1 analyze problems by identifying relationships, discriminating relevant from irrelevant information, sequencing and prioritizing information, and observing patterns

Grade 5:
Algebra and Functions
1.0 Students use variables in simple expressions, compute the value of the expression for specific values of the variable, and plot and interpret the results.

1.1 use information taken from a graph or equation to answer questions about a problem situation

Statistics, Data Analysis and Probability
1.0 Students display, analyze, compare, and interpret different data sets, including data sets of different size.

1.4 identify ordered pairs of data from a graph and interpret the meaning of the data in terms of the situation depicted by the graph

Mathematical Reasoning
3.0 Students move beyond a particular problem by generalizing to other situations.

3.1 evaluate the reasonableness of the solution in the context of the original situation

Grade 6:
Statistics, Data Analysis and Probability
2.0 Students use data samples of a population and describe the characteristics and limitations of the samples.

2.3 analyze data displays and explain why the way in which the question was asked might have influenced the results obtained and why the way in which the results were displayed might have influenced the conclusions reached
2.5 identify claims based on statistical data and, in simple cases, evaluate the validity of the claims

Mathematical Reasoning
1.0 Students make decisions about how to approach problems.

1.2 formulate and justify mathematical conjectures based on a general description of the mathematical question or problem posed

Grade 7:
Algebra and Functions
1.0 Students express quantitative relationships using algebraic terminology, expressions, equations, inequalities and graphs

1.5 represent quantitative relationships graphically and interpret the meaning of a specific part of a graph in terms of the situation represented by the graph

Statistics, Data Analysis and Probability
1.0 Students collect, organize, and represent data sets that have one or more variables and identify relationships among variables within a data set by hand and through the use of an electronic spreadsheet software program.

1.2 represent two numerical variables on a scatter plot and informally describe how the data points are distributed and any apparent relationship that exists between the two variables (e.g., time spent on homework and grade level)

Mathematical Reasoning
1.0 Students make decisions about how to approach problems.

1.1 analyze problems by identifying relationships, discriminating relevant from irrelevant information, identifying missing information, sequencing and prioritizing information, and observing patterns

NCTM 5-8:

STANDARD 1: MATHEMATICS AS PROBLEM SOLVING
STANDARD 2: MATHEMATICS AS COMMUNICATION
STANDARD 5: NUMBER AND NUMBER RELATIONSHIPS
STANDARD 7: COMPUTATION AND ESTIMATION
STANDARD 10: STATISTICS
STANDARD 13: MEASUREMENT