8th Grade Data Analysis & Probability Skills
Prior Standards Implementation

The standards listed below have been replaced by a newer set of standards.

Please go to Current 8th Grade Math Standards for current resources.

Data Analysis and Probability
Identify an appropriate sample to test a given hypothesis. 8.5.1 DP	What Percentage of your Class is Right or Left Handed? - a data collection and analysis class experiment
Interpret appropriate graphical representations of data (i.e., histograms, box plots, and scatter plots). 8.5.2 DP	Box-and-Whisker Plot Box Plot - the Wikipedia entry Box Plot - Use this tool to summarize data using a box plot graph Box Plot - This activity from Shodor allows the user to view box plots for either built-in or user-specified data, and experiment with outliers Box Plot 2 - This activity from Shodor allows the user to view box plots for either built-in or user-specified data, and experiment with outliers Box Plot - an interactive online illustration of creating a box plot, includes an interactive illustration Box Plot - Students can create box plots which use the median in calculating the interquartile ranges for either built in or user-specified data as well as experiment with outliers Box Plotter - This activity allows the user to explore maximum, minimum, median, upper quartile, lower quartile and outliers while learning how to draw box plots. Box-and-Whisker Plot - A box-and-whisker plot can be useful for handling many data values Box and Whisker Plot - [ 2:52 min ] a video explaining this type of plot Box and Whisker Plot - [ 52 sec ] a YouTube video Box-and-Whisker Plots - from Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center Box-and-Whisker Plots - from the Worsley School Box-and-Whisker Plots - a large number of examples are provided Box Plot and Whisker Plots in Excel 2007 - step by step example on how to make them in Microsoft Excel 2007 Constructing Box and Whisker Plots - explanation and several good examples from Canada's National Statistical Agency Create Your Own Graph - explanation and several good examples from Canada's National Statistical Agency Horizontal Box and Whisker Plots - a large number of examples are included How-To Activity for Your Graphing Calculator - a six page how to document How to Use your TI-83 or 84 Calculator to Make a Scatter Plot - provided by MathBits Interactive Box Plot - students enter data and make their own scatterplot with this National Library of Virtual Manipulatives page Mean and Median - this applet allows the user to investigate the mean, median, and box-and-whisker plot for a set of data that they create Measures of Spread: Box and Whisker Plots - from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Quartiles, Boxes, and Whiskers - from Purple Math Quartiles and Box and Whisker Plots - from Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center Steppin' Out - a Middle School Math Project lesson plan Scatter Plot Creating a Scatter Plot in Excel - a long tutorial (27 pages if printed) on making your own scatter plot Creating an XY (Scatter) Plot in Excel - a seven page tutorial on how to use Excel to make a scatter plot Displaying Data - [ designed for 7th grade - use for remediation ] explanation, examples and several interactive practice activities Displaying Data - [ designed for 8th grade ] explanation, examples and several interactive practice activities How to Use Your TI-83 or 84 Calculator to Make a Scatter Plot - provided by MathBits Interactive Scatter Plot - from Shodor Interactive Scatterplot - students enter data and make their own scatterplot with this National Library of Virtual Manipulatives page Introduction to Bivariate Data - several good examples of scatter plots are included Line Graphs and Scatter Plots - several good examples Linear Regression - an applet which allows your students to investigate a regression line , also known as a "line of best fit." Pizza Palace - Students will construct box plots independently. Students identify the mean, median, mode, and range of a set of data The Regression Line and Correlation - a lesson plan from Illuminations Sample Scatterplots and Data - posted by the Quantitative Environmental Learning Project (QELP) - Types of scatterplots found here - Linear, Exponential, Logistic, Power Rule, Periodic, and Other Bivariate - data included Scatterplots - explanation and several good examples from Canada's National Statistical Agency Scatterplots - a lesson plan from North Canton City Schools worksheet to use with the activity above Scatter Plot - includes examples of positive association, negative association, and no trend Scatter Plot - links to ten different examples are included with this Engineering Statistics Handbook entry Scatter Plot - the Wikipedia entry Scatter Plot and Line of Best Fit - four interactive applets to experiment with Scatter Plot: States in the US - an interesting example of a scatter plot Scatter Plots - explanation, examples and several interactive practice activities Scatter Plots - from the Business Knowledge Center Scatter Plots - includes examples of perfect correlation, high correlation, and low correlation Scatter Plots - from Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center Scatterplot with Overlaid Linear Prediction Plot - includes links to other plots on the right Another version of the above information Using Excel to Display a Scatter Plot - an Internet4Classrooms step-by-step module on making your own scatter plots Graphs and charts - four different graphs and charts for you to consider The Hot Tub - This is a fun activity where students tell the story behind a graph and relate slope to rate of change. Interactive Graphs - large number of interactive graphs related to social studies topics Interpreting Line Graphs - explore line graphs. Leap Frog - design an experiment to answer a question, collect information, and interpret the results using charts. Magic Bullets: Chemistry vs. Cancer - In this activity students will work with data about cancer deaths. The purpose of the activity is to give students some experience in reading and interpreting graphs. worksheet associated with the data sets Spy Guys Interactive - Understanding and Interpreting Graphs - Lesson 10 Sample Histograms and Data - posted by the Quantitative Environmental Learning Project (QELP) - data included Using Data and Statistics - good graphs, however they are not interactive
Determine the mean or median of a given set of real-world data. 8.5.3 - mean DP	Basketball Debate - explore the meaning of average (or mean) and relate these concepts to real world experiences. Comparing Properties of the Mean and the Median through the use of Technology Exploring Histograms - The interactive data analysis tool in this investigation allows students to create their own sets of data and examine how various statistical functions such as mean, median, and standard deviation depend on the choice of data. Medians - understand and apply the concepts of median and mean.
Connect data sets and their graphical representations (i.e., histograms, stem-and-leaf plots, box plots, and scatter plots). 8.5.4 DP	Box Plot - explanation from the Engineering Statistics Handbook Box Plot - comparing the average height of singers Box Plot - interactive Box and Whisker Plots Box and Whisker Plot - use your TI-83+ graphing calculator with box and whisker plots A lesson designed to introduce students to stem-and-leaf plots An overview of stem-and-leaf plot - a display that organizes data to show its shape and distribution An Overview of Mean, Median, and Mode Let the Games Begin : Olympic Trials in Data Analysis Long Distance Airplanes - a stem-and-leaf plot lesson from Illuminations (rated 3rd-5th grade, but quite useful) Make a Stem-and-Leaf plot of the data you enter into the text area (ignore the warning about Internet Explorer, it works fine). Organizing Data in a Stem and Leaf Plot - a lesson plan from Annenberg CPB Making a Stem and Leaf Plot - An excellent interactive assignment can be found at the bottom of this page . Ordering a Stem and Leaf Plot - An excellent interactive assignment can be found at the bottom of this page. Grouping by Fives - An excellent interactive assignment can be found at the bottom of this page. Overview of a Stem-and-leaf plot by Nicole Carroll followed by a practice quiz Stem-and-Leaf Plots - Their Construction and Use - an overview followed by several suggested assignments Stem and Leaf Plotter - an interactive applet that allow students to input data Stem-and-Leaf plots - from Purple Math Worksheet to accompany a "Stem-and-Leaf Plots" Lesson
Make conjectures and predictions based on data. 8.5.5 GR	Adjustable Spinner - Students can create a game spinner with variable sized sectors to look at experimental and theoretical probabilities. Parameters: Sizes of sectors, number of sectors, number of trials. Adjustable Spinner - Change the number of sectors and increase or decrease their size to create any type of spinner. Then, conduct a probability experiment by spinning the spinner many times. How does the experimental probability compare with the theoretical probability Analyzing game probabilities - online quiz Basic Spinner - Students can create a game spinner with one to twelve sectors to look at experimental and theoretical probabilities. Parameters: Number of sectors, number of trials. Fun and Sun Rent-a-Car - students use tables, graphs, linear functions to solve a real-world problem Graphing Skills - What's the point? Find the point on the grid Marbles - Students learn about sampling with and without replacement by modeling drawing marbles from a bag. Parameters: Number and color of marbles in the bag, replacement rule. Million Dollar Mission - a mathematics fantasy Probability - online quiz Probability Spinner - Check out your probabilities here! Practice with Data - answer questions pertaining to collecting and organizing data Two Colors - Students choose between three boxes and choose one marble from the box to look at conditional probabilities. Parameters: Number of trials. Understanding Experimental Probability - Experiment with experimental probability using a fixed size section spinner, a variable section spinner, 2 regular 6-sided number cubes or design your own number cubes. Using Graphs to Understand Data - online quiz Vehicle Stopping Distance And Time - use data to reach conclusions - use their Vehicle Stopping Distance Calculator to do actual model calculations The Winning Edge: Probability in Basketball - Time has run out in the big basketball game, and the score is tied. However, Up-State College has the ball with time out. You're the coach. Which players should you put into the game to give you the best chance of winning? (students collect data and make prediction based on the data)
Connect the symbolic representation of a probability to an experiment. 8.5.6 DP	Coin Flipping page - flip up to 100 coins and see the total number of heads and tails. Excellent for teaching about probability. Hand Squeeze - (a data collection and analysis class experiment) - Pass a "hand squeeze" around a circle and measure the amount of time that it takes for the hand squeeze to complete the circle. Interactive Probability Tutorials: Sample Spaces and Events , Estimated Probability , Empirical Probability , Abstract Probability and Conditional Probability and Independence Probabilistic Situations - a short slide show on the topic Probability Theory: The Layman's Guide to Probability - An in-depth but easily readable guide on probability theory, covering various aspects of the theory with a bias to gambling games and strategies. Includes working examples in an excel spreadsheet. What are Your Chances - What many people refer to as 'good luck' can actually be explained by a little knowledge about probability and statistics. Our dice game allows you to see how increasing or decreasing the number of dice rolls effects an outcome.
Determine the mean or median of a given set of real-world data. 8.5.7 - median DP	Bicycles Ala Mode - understand and apply the concepts of mean, median and mode. Comparing Properties of the Mean and the Median through the use of Technology Exploring Histograms - The interactive data analysis tool in this investigation allows students to create their own sets of data and examine how various statistical functions such as mean, median, and standard deviation depend on the choice of data.
Recognize misleading presentations of data. 8.5.8 DP	Class Interval - how to make the same data appear to support two different positions CNN posted misleading graph - poll results on Schiavo case - graph as presented and how it should have been shown Histograms and Bar Graphs - lesson plan on how data can be graphically represented (and mis-represented) Junk Charts - several examples of using graphs to mislead Misleading Graphs - a short YouTube video using one example graph Misleading Graphs - from a BBC site on Data Handling Take a Practice Test on the subject - five questions Misleading Graphs - comparison of two graphs Misleading Graphs - using only part of the data to misrepresent a point Misleading Graphs - [ designed for grades 5-6 ] a worksheet to use in class Misleading Graphs - lesson plan Misleading Graphs - lesson plan from Shodor Misleading Graphs - how deaths from measles may be misrepresented Misleading Graphs - sheet to print and use in class [from Glencoe] Misleading Graphs - showing the relationship between asphalt use in Finland and asthma rates Excel file - use this spreadsheet to support the lesson plan above The Treasury Department's Junk Chart - example and explanation Vertical Scale Discussion - lesson plan from Shodor Visual, as well as Statistical, Misunderstanding - examples of misleading presentation of data Context: Compared to What? - a graph must not show data out of context Goosed Up Graphics - making things appear to be `better' than they are by fiddling with the scales Have Something to Say - "Knowin' all the words in the dictionary ain't gonna help if you got nuttin' to say" - a quote from Blind Lemon Jefferson, the great blues musician The Lie Factor - the ratio of the size of an effect shown in the graphic is not proportional to the size of the effect in the data Missed Opportunities - some important information was there, but the graph maker missed it Wikipedia article on the Laffer Curve - showing possible misuse of data in economics
Virtual Manipulatives	Data Analysis & Probability (Grades 6-8) Virtual Dice - four styles available; single, double, triple, or +/- dice
Review Help
Practice Tests!	Virginia State Standards of Learning - Select Math 8 , and then select 10, 20, or 40 questions.
ISAT	Interactive Sample Tests - released sample items from the Illinois State Board of Education
Released Tests & others	Eighth Grade Math - Read each question and choose the best answer. Then mark the circle next to the letter for the answer you have chosen. ( from Texas ) FCAT Sample Test Book - [ 2008 ] sample questions and test taking tips FCAT Sample Answer Book - [ 2008 ] sample questions and test taking tips TAKS 2006 Test - four subjects - math on pages 5-29 Texas end-of-year Math test 2003
Various Review Aids	Geometry Jeopardy - Topics covered: Polygons & Transformations, Circles, Symmetry, Lines & Angles, and Triangles & Congruency Illuminations - interactives for grades 6-8 Junior High Math Interactives - includes interactive math activities, print activities, learning strategies, and videos that illustrate how math is used in everyday life. Math TV: Video Word Problems - [ Grades 5+ ] Math TV is a project whose goal is to help middle school students learn how to solve challenging word problems. Each of the nineteen math problems comes with step by step video solution, follow up problems, an online calculator, and sketch pad.

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