Course Guide - USAID Teacher Education Project

e) Line plots (as opposed to line graphs) are based on a segment of the number linewith an "x" written above a point on the number line for each data entry. Althoughthey are best used for a limited range of data, they quickly show the range, minimum,maximum, clusters, outliers, etc. (These are all vocabulary words that students needto know.) Line plots also begin to help students notice the "shape" of the data.f) After data have been collected, the information needs to be organized before adisplay can be designed.g) Some types of graphs are more suitable than others for conveying information.h) These simple types of graphs involving discrete data can provide answers to"counting" questions such as, "What was the most popular...?" "How many peoplechose...?" "Were some things chosen the same number of times?"2. How do children think about these concepts?a) Children can begin creating displays of data by using tally marks to recordinformation. Although tally marks can be jotted down informally, children need tosee how tally marks can be organized into a more formal display of data such as thischart about cats, dogs, and hamsters (which if plotted on a bar graph would displaycategorical data).b) Pictographs are helpful as an introduction to data display for young children.However, consider the following image, which again deals with pets.