Author: Charity Mansfield
 Date Created: 3/8/2006 10:59:00 AM EST
 
How many pets do YOU have?
VITAL INFORMATION
Subject(s):
Mathematics, Technology

Topic or Unit of Study:
This lesson will be a practice in data collection and the creation of graphs.

Grade/Level:
4

Objective:
Students will collect data regarding the number and type of pets that all of the students in their groups have.

Students will collect data from the rest of the groups regarding the total number and type of pets that their members have.

Students will use Excel to create a graph representing the number and type of pets that each group of students has.

Summary:
Students will collect data and then use Excel to create a graph of that data.

IMPLEMENTATION
Learning Context:
This lesson is part of a unit on different types of charts and graphs.

Procedure:
Day 1

1. Teacher will write DOGS ARE THE BEST PETS on the board. Class will discuss why the agree/disagree and what kind of pets they think are best.
2. Teacher will show students the sample graph on the overhead.
3. Teacher will break students into groups of five and pass out one blank data-collection table to each student.
4. Students will interview each person in their group about how many pets they have and what kinds (dog, cat, reptile, bird, etc.) and record the numbers on the table.
5. After interviewing each person in their group, a representative from each group will tell the rest of the class what their totals were, and the class will record each groups' results on their table in the appropriate rows.
6. Students will go to computer lab.
7. Teacher will show students how to open Excel.
8. Teacher will point out the column letters and the numbered rows to the students.
9. Teacher will tell students to pick an appropriate title for their graph and type it in cell A1.
10. Teacher will show students how to highlight cells A1-G1 and click the center alignment so that the title stretches completely across.
11.Students will stretch title across top.
12.Teacher will show students how to move from cell to cell to type the categories (Groups and total in rows, types of pets in columns).
13.With help from the media specialist and the teacher, students will enter in the titles of each row and column.
14.Students will save their work in the Ms. Mansfield folder under Grade 4.

Day 2

1. Students will go to computer lab.
2. Teacher will show students how to enter the data from their collection tables into the correct cells in Excel.
3. With guidance from teacher and media specialist, students will enter in the data from each group.
4. Teacher will show students how to use the summation feature of Excel to put values in the total row.
5. Teacher will demonstrate how to highlight cells A2-G7 and click the "chart wizard" button.
6. Students will go to the chart wizard and pick the appropriate type of graph, making sure that the bars are clustered by Group, not by Pet.
7. Students will print out their graphs.
8. Students will compare their graphs within their groups, and then we will put all of the graphs onto a bulletin board.
9. Students will discuss why different people like different kinds of animals.

Differentiated Instruction:
Accessible technology is available in the computer lab for those students with special needs.

Sample Student Products:
Attachments:
 1.  Sample Pets Graph
The students will create a chart like this using the data that they collect in class.

Collaboration:
Students will work collaboratively & individually. Students will work in groups of 5.

Time Allotment:
2 class periods. 1 Hr per class.

Author's Comments & Reflections:
Make sure to sign up for two days (first day half hour, second day hour) in the computer lab.

MATERIALS AND RESOURCES
Instructional Materials:
Attachments:
 1.  Pets Data Collection Handout
This is the chart the students will use to record information they collect.

Resources:
  • This lesson will give a brief tutorial on using Excel to make a clustered bar graph.
  • The number of computers required is 1 per student.
  • Technology resources:
    Excel, printer
  • Materials and resources:
    *Handout (Attached in instructional materials above.)
  • Students Familiarity with Software Tool:
    Students already know how to use the keyboard to enter information.

STANDARDS & ASSESSMENT
Standards:
USA- ISTE: Profiles for Technology Literate Students (includes NETS for Students)
• Grade : Grades 3-5

Numbers in parentheses following each performance indicator refer to the standards category to which the performance is linked. The categories are:
1. Basic operations and concepts
2. Social, ethical, and human issues
3. Technology productivity tools
4. Technology communications tools
5. Technology research tools
6. Technology problem-solving and decision-making tools

Reprinted from National Educational Technology Standards for Students - Connecting Curriculum and Technology, copyright © 2000, ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education), 800.336.5191 (U.S. & Canada) or 541.302.3777 (Int’l), iste@iste.org, www.iste.org. All rights reserved. For more information about the NETS Project, contact Lajeane Thomas, Director, NETS Project, 318.257.3923, lthomas@latech.edu. Reprint permission does not constitute an endorsement by ISTE or the NETS Project.

 Performance Objective 1: Use keyboards and other common input and output devices (including adaptive devices when necessary) efficiently and effectively. (1)
 Performance Objective 2: Discuss common uses of technology in daily life and the advantages and disadvantages those uses provide. (1, 2)
 Performance Objective 3: Discuss basic issues related to responsible use of technology and information and describe personal consequences of inappropriate use. (2)
 Performance Objective 4: Use general purpose productivity tools and peripherals to support personal productivity, remediate skill deficits, and facilitate learning throughout the curriculum. (3)
 Performance Objective 5: Use technology tools (e.g., multimedia authoring, presentation, Web tools, digital cameras, scanners) for individual and collaborative writing, communication, and publishing activities to create knowledge products for audiences inside and outside the classroom. (3, 4)

MI- Michigan Curriculum Frameworks
• Subject: Mathematics
• Strand III: Data Analysis and Statistics
We live in a sea of information. In order not to drown in the data that inundate our lives every day, we must be able to process and transform data into useful knowledge. The ability to interpret data and to make predictions and decisions based on data is an essential basic skill for every individual.
• Standard III.1: Collection, Organization and Presentation of Data
Students collect and explore data, organize data into a useful form, and develop skill in representing and reading data displayed in different formats.

Knowing what data to collect and where and how to collect them is the starting point of quantitative literacy. The mathematics curriculum should capitalize on students’ natural curiosity about themselves and their surroundings to motivate them to collect and explore interesting statistics and measurements derived from both real and simulated situations. Once the data are gathered, they must be organized into a useful form, including tables, graphs, charts and pictorial representations. Since different representations highlight different patterns within the data, students should develop skill in representing and reading data displayed in different formats, and they should discern when one particular representation is more desirable than another.

Students collect and explore data, organize data into a useful form, and develop skill in representing and reading data displayed in different formats. (Collection, Organization and Presentation of Data)
• Grade E - Elementary
 Performance Benchmark 1: Collect and explore data through counting, measuring and conducting surveys and experiments.
 Performance Benchmark 2: Organize data using concrete objects, pictures, tallies, tables, charts, diagrams and graphs.
 Performance Benchmark 3: Present data using a variety of appropriate representations and explain the meaning of the data.


Assessment/Rubrics:
Rubrics:
Pets Galore Data Collection Activity