Wet Heads
Statistics
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Objective
Students will create stem and leaf plots and back-to-back stem and leaf plots to display data collected from an investigative activity.
Overview of the Lesson
Students first estimate the number of drops of water that will fit on the head of a penny.
The teacher engages the class in a discussion on how to organize and display this data in a
stem and leaf plot. Using a Post-it, each student records the units digit of their guess and
places it in the appropriate position on the stem and leaf plot. To check the range of
guesses, each student experiments by actually placing as many drops of water on the head
of a penny as they can. The units digit of the actual numbers are also recorded on Post-its
and displayed on the same stem and leaf plot, thus creating a back-to-back stem and leaf
plot. Students work in groups to analyze the data, paying particular attention to its range
and to the extent that different variables may have had in contributing to the disparities.
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