Show and Tell

This lesson allows students to describe their graphs using appropriate vocabulary and to develop skills in posing and responding to questions about their graphs. Students also demonstrate an understanding of how to organize and interpret data. In addition, this lesson helps students move from the concrete through pictorial to abstract representations of displays of data, namely a graph.

 

Weblink address (URL): 
Show and Tell

Standards & Objectives

Learning objectives: 

Students will:

  • Sort buttons.
  • Create pictorial graphs of their button data.
Essential and guiding questions: 

How many columns of buttons are there?
How many different sets of buttons were a part of this group?
Which column has more buttons?
Which column has the fewest buttons?
Are there any columns that are equal in length? Do they represent the same number of items? How do you know?

What other questions could you ask about or answer from your graph?

Lesson Variations

Blooms taxonomy level: 
Creating
Extension suggestions: 

To help students make the transition from concrete to abstract representations, use commercial “stampers” or stickers to create a pictorial graph from data. Repeat this activity using other objects. These representations would allow students to understand the relationship between the objects and the pictures that represent them.

Give students small objects to sort, organize, and display on a bar graph. Ask students to sort the objects and name their sorting rule, then record this information by drawing a picture or writing the rule. Next have students place the objects on the graph grid (provided at the end of this lesson) to create a concrete graph. Finally ask them to generate an abstract grid by coloring a separate graph grid to represent the sorted objects.

Students at the upper end of this grade band should include a title and labels. Some younger students may be able to copy a title and label and others might dictate them. These two samples should be reviewed to determine the level of understanding of each student.

References

Contributors: 
Angela Hamilton
Originator: 
Ayers Institute for Learning & Innovation