In this activity, students use data visualization methods presented in Dear Data: A Friendship in 52 Weeks of Postcards to introduce themselves at the beginning of the school year. Dear Data details a pen-pal data sharing project between two friends (Thriftbooks link). This activity will engage students with data in a fun and individualized way, strengthen data literacy skills, and if done early in the school year, build interpersonal relationships.

  • Objective: Students create a visual representation of data they collect about themselves over a set period of time.   
  • Grades: 6, 7, 8 – adaptable to 9 thru 12
  • Time: 2 class periods, data collection time frame flexible
  • Author: Dean Holbrook

Arizona Standards Engaged

Science & Engineering Practices        
Ask questions and define problems – Develop and use models – Plan and carry out investigations – Analyze and interpret data – Use mathematics and computational thinking – Construct explanations and design solutions – Engage in argument from evidence – Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information 
    
Math Practices
Reason abstractly and quantitatively – Real world statistical information gathering – Data expression

Dear Data Student Intro

Dear Data Student Intro.pdf

Dear Data Activity Slides

Dear Data Activity Slides.pptx

Gallery Walk Student Worksheet

Dear Data Gallery Walk Worksheet.pdf