Scatter Plots & Association
Aligned to 8.SP.A.1 — Common Core State Standards for Mathematics.
What this lesson teaches
A scatter plot shows paired data as points. Look for patterns: positive association (both increase), negative association (one increases as the other decreases), clustering, and outliers that fall far from the pattern.
Worked example
A scatter plot of hours studied vs. test score shows points rising to the right — as hours increase, scores increase — which is a positive association. A student who studied 8 hours but scored very low would be an outlier.
Practice questions
- Describe the association if points fall from the upper-left to the lower-right.
- What does an outlier look like on a scatter plot?
- Sketch a scatter plot showing a positive linear association between temperature and ice-cream sales.
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
Diagramas de Dispersión y Asociación
Un diagrama de dispersión muestra datos en pares como puntos. Busca patrones: asociación positiva (ambos aumentan), asociación negativa (uno aumenta mientras el otro disminuye), agrupamiento y valores atípicos que quedan lejos del patrón.
Ejemplo: Un diagrama de dispersión de horas de estudio contra calificación muestra puntos que suben hacia la derecha — al aumentar las horas, aumentan las calificaciones — lo que es una asociación positiva. Un estudiante que estudió 8 horas pero obtuvo una calificación muy baja sería un valor atípico.
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