Practice describing variability with tide height data

Examine the variability of real data from Bar Harbor to decide if all tides rise to the same height.
Details

Activity Type: 

Mini-Lesson

Types of Instruction: 

  • Data Practice

Grades: 

  • 6, 7, 8

Subjects: 

  • Earth Science

Topics: 

  • Earth's Surface Systems

Statistical Concepts: 

  • Variability

Skills: 

  • Describing variability

Graph Types: 

  • Dot plot

Standards: 

Practice 4
Analyzing and interpreting data
Crosscutting 2
Cause and effect: Mechanism and explanation
Crosscutting 5
Energy and matter: Flows, cycles, and conservation
6.SP-5
Summarize numerical data sets in relation to their context.
Practice 1
Asking questions and defining problems
6.SP-4
Display numerical data in plots on a number line, including dot plots, histograms, and box plots.
Literacy.RI.6.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings.
Literacy.RI.7.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone.
Literacy.RI.8.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.
Literacy.W.6.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
Literacy.W.7.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
Literacy.W.8.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
Literacy.RST.6-8.4
Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades 6-8 texts and topics.
Literacy.RST.6-8.7
Integrate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text with a version of that information expressed visually (e.g., in a flowchart, diagram, model, graph, or table).
Crosscutting 3
Scale, proportion, and quantity
MS-ESS2-2
Construct an explanation based on evidence for how geoscience processes have changed Earth's surface at varying time and spatial scales.
Activity Files

Data Activity : 

Mini Lesson 2 (PRAC) Tide Heights

Data Sets: 

Tides and Moon Phases Data - no images (xls)
Tides and Moon Phases Data - with images (xls)

Data Literacy Instructionals: 

Show and Describe Variability
Make a box plot from a dot plot
Getting familiar with frequency plot types
Measuring Tides
Making a dot plot and scaling its axis
Language for describing variability