Steppin' Out
Statistics
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Objective
Students will construct box and whisker plots to analyze and compare data sets.
Overview of the Lesson
Pose the following question: Do longer legged people run faster than shorter legged
people? To investigate this question, students first find the measurement of their
legs. They then line up in order from the shortest legged student to the longest
legged student. The class discusses box and whisker plots while simultaneously
creating a human box and whisker plot. They then locate the median, upper and
lower quartiles, upper and lower extremes and outliers. Cash register tape is
wrapped around the students to create the box portion of the box and whisker plot.
Students then go outside to the track and take turns running sprints. The median
divides the students into two groups, the longer legged students and the shorter
legged students. The times it takes for each of the students in each group to finish
the race are measured. Using a computer and graphing program, this data is
organized to create two box and whisker plots. The two box and whisker plots are
compared and analyzed. Based on these comparisons, students reach their
conclusions and are prepared to explain their reasoning.
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