Alyssa's First Lesson Plan

Target Audience of the Lesson:
The target audience for this mathematics lesson is 3rd grade. It can easily be transferred to other grades and just includes working with excel on the computer.

Big Idea of the Lesson:
Students will learn how to work in groups and observe and record information on a date spreadsheet. They will also learn probability through this lesson through graphs and charts created on Microsoft Excel.


Overall Goal for the Lesson:
Students will be working in groups of about four. One group member will toss a coin in the air 25 times. The students will count how many times it is heads and how many times it is tails. They will then record this information on an excel sheet. The goal of this lesson is to find the probability that the coin with land on heads and the probability that it will land on tails. After they find that, the students will work together to create two graphs to show the data.

Indiana Content Standards Addressed:
3.1.15 Record the possible outcomes for a simple probability experiment.
3.1.13 Interpret data displayed in a circle graph and answer questions about the situation.

ISTE CNETS Student Standards Addressed:
-Students use technology tools to enhance learning, increase productivity, and promote creativity.
- Students use technology to locate, evaluate, and collect information from a variety of sources.

Student Objectives for the lesson:
Given a spreadsheet template, the students will insert the information into the blank boxes. Given a probability worksheet, the students will fill in the blanks and find out the probability of heads and tails.

Length of Lesson: 45 minutes

Schedule of Activities:
I will begin by dividing the students into groups of four and handing out a penny to each group. Next, I will explain that one person in the group is to toss the coin in the air and see whether it lands on heads or tails 25 times in a row. The students, as a group, will count how many times it landed on heads and how many times it landed on tails. I will then show the class how to open Microsoft Excel. I will tell them that in the first row, first column box they need to type out “Heads.” In the first row, second column box they need to type “Tails.” In the box below where they wrote “Heads,” they need to write the number of times it landed on heads. In the box below where they wrote “Tails,” they need to write the number of times it landed on heads. We will then highlight the four boxes and create a graph through Excel. I will then have them present to the rest of the class their findings. Last, as a group, they will find out the probability of the penny landing on heads and landing on tails.


How will these activities be assessed:
Students will fill out the probability worksheet which will ask specific questions and then have them calculate the probability. I will also have them print out a sheet of their spreadsheet and their graph to make sure they correctly completed them.


Adaptations:
Students with special needs will have a sheet with step-by-step instructions for working with Microsoft Excel. There will also be a teacher helping that group at all times. Lastly, the probability worksheet they will receive will be much more in-depth with clear instructions to come up with probability and a lot of fill-in-the-blank.

Materials Needed:
Probability worksheet for each person, four pencils for each group, a computer for each group with Microsoft Excel, a penny for each group