Teaching young mathematicians about collecting and analyzing data allows for a variety of fun and engaging activities. Here, children observe the weather every day for a month, recording their observations in the form of a bar graph....

Think inside the box. Working in small groups, pupils design a study to answer comparing two data sets. Team members collect data and construct box-and-whisker plots and analyze them to prove or disprove their hypothesis. They develop...

What better way to make predictions about future weather and climate patterns than with actual climate data from the past? Young climatologists analyze data from 400,000 to 10,000 years ago to determine if climate has changed over...

Teach your class how to use descriptive statistics through a hands-on data collection activity. Pupils collect their own data, calculate test statistics, and interpret the results in context. They compare male and female results, looking...

Does writing the name of a color in a different colored ink affect one's ability to read it? Scholars design an experiment to answer this question. They collect the data, analyze the statistics, and draw a conclusion based on...

Scholars show what they know about data collection and analysis with an activity that examines a smaller population of Houghton, Texas. Independently or in pairs, learners identify their research question, gather, graph, and analyze...

Most people claim they can tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi. Scholars conduct a fun experiment to test that claim! Once learners collect their data, they analyze the results and determine if the statistics are significant.

How high can your pupils jump? Learners design an experiment to answer this question. After collecting the data, they create box plots and scatter plots to analyze the data. To finish the lesson plan, they use the data to...

Public transportation is an important aspect of any growing city. Collaborative groups work to redesign a system for a city in need of restructuring. Young scholars design a route, create a timetable, and incorporate a quality control...

A timely lesson uses documentation from the Spanish influenza pandemic of 1918 to compare it to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Scholars watch a short video, analyze sources, complete a worksheet, and write a claim with supporting...

Caffeine affects your heart rate — or does it? Learners study experimental design while conducting their own experiment. They collect heart rate data after drinking a caffeinated beverage, create a box plot, and draw conclusions....

Explore metric measurement, recording data, and creating an electronic spreadsheet displaying results with your math class. Scholars will measure the length of their smiles, record the measurements, and represent the results on an...

Making inferences isn't an exact science. Using data about salaries, learners investigate the accuracy of their inferences. Their analyses includes simulations and randomization tests as well as population means.

How do computers sort data lists? Using eight unknown weights and a balance scale, groups determine the order of the weights from lightest to heaviest. A second worksheet provides the groups with other methods to order the weights. The...

Which fluids make the best bubbles? Pupils experiment with multiple fluids to determine which allows for the largest bubbles before popping. They gather data, analyze it in multiple ways, and answer analysis questions proving they...

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. 

A puzzle isn't about the individual pieces, but how they work together. Scholars assemble a puzzle and discover missing pieces. They write a description of what they expect these pieces to look like, including as many details as...

Explore the power of mathematics through this two-week statistics unit. Pupils learn about several climate-related issues and complete surveys that communicate their perceptions. They graph both univariate and bivariate data and use...

Grouchy? Sad? Here's a great resource that shows kids how music can be used to lift their spirits. Kids collect and chart data on the effects of music on emotions. After analyzing the results of their experiment, they develop...

The last segment of the nine-part unit makes a connection between springs and linear equations. Groups hang weights from the spring and measure its length. Then, using the data collected, they calculate the slope to find the k-value...

What better way is there to introduce conservation of mass than a few simple experiments? Young chemists conduct two chemical reactions, take the masses of reactants and products, then compare their results to determine...

Learn about polymers while playing with shrinky dinks. Young scholars create a shrinky dink design, bake it, and then record the area, volume, and thickness over time. They model the data using a graph and highlight the key features of...

This is one in several lessons that explore the relationship between temperature and phase changes of water. After some discussion, elementary physical scientists place wet paper toweling on a hot and a room-temperature water bag...

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...