Day 134 Central Tendency Study Guide

6th Grade Math Standards: 6.SP.2 Understand that a set of data collected to answer a statistical question has a distribution which can be described by its center, spread, and overall shape.
6.SP.3. Recognize that a measure of center for a numerical data set summarizes all of its values with a single number, while a measure of variation describes how its values vary with a single number.

Quote of the Day: “Research shows that our natural tendency is to choose others to work with who are very similar to us. But the most creative teams, the teams that solve problems the fastest, are eclectic and combine people with very different backgrounds and personalities…A certain amount of stress and tension is important. If you want to rise above yourself, put in the hard work it takes to accommodate differences. You’ll be handsomely rewarded.” – Andrew Sobel & Jerold Panas

Question from Yesterday (As always asked by a student): "Are mean, median, and mode the only ways to measure central tendency?"

"If a data set is 5, 5, 6, 7, 4, 4 is the mode 4 and 5?"

The Learning Objective: Find the mean, median, and mode of a data set; find a missing data value given the mean

Assessment: Students worked in groups on the study guide and the jumpstart. I assessed them by looking at their work in a jigsaw teaching method.

Agenda:

1. QSSQ
2. Bethel jumpstart
3. Very quick homework review
4. Study guide 
5. Money by month graph

Glass Half-Full: I have been utilizing groups of 4 to do many of the assignments lately it is working as well as it ever has worked. It's hard to say if students would be learning as efficiently or more efficiently if we were in rows, but at the end of the days I feel less stress and have more energy. I think that's because students are teaching each other and I'm forcing them to do more thinking and giving less attention to showing them every detail of what to do. Based on that description it sounds as if I'm not trying as hard, but that is not really the truth. I swear.

Regrets: As the students work in their groups, I'm pulling a heterogeneous group within those groups out three at a time to work with me on the areas that I think they will confront the greatest struggles and helping them work through. I then have them rejoin their groups to review those "struggle spots." I should be modeling this process to students and spending time teaching exactly what I want.

I also regret the amount of time I had to review homework today. It was almost better to not even assign homework because the students with misconceptions on the homework never got them addressed. I think time could have been better spent on the Bethel jumpstart. As students worked on this I worked on their finding of averages one on one in the back of the room. My time would have been better served showing this out in a lecture format instead of one on one. Then if I did a fist of five to see how students felt (though some would lie) I could better use time and actually go over the homework.

Link of the Day: Inside Mathematics is a good resource for problem solving and other things for teachers.