More Graphs

I wrote about playing dice games and making graphs earlier in my blog, you can find that link here.

This activity was inspired because one of Joy's grandmas gave her a bag of foam shape stickers. They are each a little less than an inch tall, and they come in four shapes. When Joy asked to use them, we took a small handful (maybe 15-20) and then I helped her make a pictograph with them. I did a lot of the work on the first graph, but when we repeated the task over the next few days, Joy did more and more of it.

By the time we made the fourth graph (no more than one a day), Joy was writing the title and making the pictograph by herself. I completed the labels because she hadn't made room for them. The title reads, "Sorting Shapes 4" She also wrote, "Mode stars" on it, which is true!

Why on earth would I make her do this FOUR times? Wouldn't once give her the concept of a graph? Yes... but that's not my goal, or at least not all of it. Understanding and manipulating data is an important skill in mathematics and science; I want Joy to understand how to use data to make decisions. The first step is to learn how data works. By taking a small handful (It would have been better to use a measuring cup, but this is kindergarten!) and sorting them into a pictograph, Joy knows what the graph means. She knows that there are more stars than anything else; she knows that there are fewest squares. And by doing it four times, she knows that it doesn't always come out the same.

That's a vital understanding about data. Data varies. And within those variations, there is some truth. A person shouldn't make decisions based on one trial; you need more proof! And yes, Joy is old enough to understand this at a basic level.

Before we started the fourth graph today, Joy and I looked over the three previous graphs. We looked for patterns in the data. What was the mode in each? Which shape had the least each time? The only real pattern we found was that circles were the fewest each of the first three times. Based on that, Joy predicted that circles would be the least on the fourth graph. They weren't, as you can see on the picture above. But that's good learning! I intend to make as many graphs as the stickers allow, comparing and predicting with more accuracy each time. At the end, we'll translate the data onto a graph of the entire package of stickers.

Today, when the fourth graph was done, Joy and I looked over all of them, comparing and contrasting the data. Joy pointed out that stars were the mode (shape with the most) on three of the four graphs. I mentioned the word trend, but I don't expect Joy to really understand it. I'm delighted that she has a solid definition of mode.

Thanks, Grandma!