Statistical Variability and Data Displays
Aligned to 6.SP.A.3 — Common Core State Standards for Mathematics.
What this lesson teaches
A statistical question is one that has answers that vary, like 'how tall are the students?' You can summarize a set of data with its center: the mean is the average, and the median is the middle value when the numbers are in order.
Worked examples
Example 1
Find the mean of 4, 6, and 8. Add them to get 18, then divide by how many numbers there are (3): 18 divided by 3 is 6.
Example 2
Find the median of 3, 9, 4, 7, 5. Sort them: 3, 4, 5, 7, 9. The middle value is 5.
Example 3
One outlier can wreck a mean. For 2, 3, 4, 100 the mean is 27.25 — a number none of the data is near — while the median, 3.5, still describes the group.
Practice questions
- Find the mean of 2, 4, and 9.
- Find the median of 3, 7, and 5.
- Is 'what is my favorite color?' a statistical question?
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
Variabilidad Estadística y Representación de Datos
Una pregunta estadística es aquella cuyas respuestas varían, como '¿qué tan altos son los estudiantes?' Puedes resumir un conjunto de datos con su centro: la media es el promedio y la mediana es el valor del medio cuando los números están ordenados.
Ejemplo 1: Encuentra la media de 4, 6 y 8. Súmalos para obtener 18, luego divide entre la cantidad de números que hay (3): 18 ÷ 3 = 6.
Ejemplo 2: Halla la mediana de 3, 9, 4, 7, 5. Ordénalos: 3, 4, 5, 7, 9. El valor del medio es 5.
Ejemplo 3: Un valor atípico puede arruinar la media. Para 2, 3, 4, 100 la media es 27.25 — un número al que ningún dato se acerca — mientras que la mediana, 3.5, sí describe al grupo.
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