Cover lesson · Science and Technology · Year 5 · Advanced
DCF: Data and computational thinking → Data and information literacy
Also assessed, LNF: Numeracy → Learning that statistics represent data and that probability models chance helps us make informed inferences and decisions → Interpreting data
Name: Class: Date:
What this practises: working with data from a temperature data logger in a spreadsheet, on paper: reading cells, writing spreadsheet formulas, sorting, and using the data to test an idea. Pupils also read a line graph and decide which conclusions the data really support, which is real numeracy (interpreting data) and is marked from the sheet. The investigation and its numbers are invented.
Print: this sheet, one per pupil, and the stimulus sheet “Ysgol Maes y Wawr data logger results: which cup keeps a drink hot?”, one between two. Rulers help for reading the graph. No computers are needed. Nothing hot is used in this lesson.
Run: 5 min read the stimulus sheet together · 6 min Step 1 · 12 min Step 2 · 4 min Step 3 · 12 min Step 4 · 10 min Step 5 · 7 min Step 6 · 4 min discuss Dylan’s claim in Step 5 as a class. Total 60 minutes.
Collect: this sheet. Interpreting data (numeracy) evidence is Step 4 (reading the graph) and Step 5 (judging conclusions, including ones that are misleading or uncertain). Quick checks: D5 is 59; drops are 43, 39, 34, 12; the paper cup went below 50°C between 15 and 20 minutes; Dylan’s claim is not supported because the flask also had a lid.
Year 5 at Ysgol Maes y Wawr tested which cup keeps a drink hot for longest. Their teacher poured hot water into 4 cups. A data logger with a temperature probe in each cup took a reading every 5 minutes, and the class put the readings into a spreadsheet. You will be the data analyst.
A cell is named by its column letter, then its row number. Cell A3 holds the number 5.
(a) What is in cell D5? What does it mean?
(b) Which cell holds the temperature of the flask after 10 minutes?
(c) What was the room temperature? (Look at the notes on the stimulus sheet.)
A formula starts with =. The spreadsheet works out the answer for you. The paper cup is done for you.
| Cell | What it works out | Formula | Answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| B9 | Drop for the paper cup (start minus end) | =B2-B8 | 43 |
| C9 | Drop for the plastic cup | ||
| D9 | Drop for the china mug | ||
| E9 | Drop for the flask with lid | ||
| B10 | Lowest reading, paper cup | =MIN(B2:B8) | 37 |
| E10 | Lowest reading, flask with lid |
Check one answer by adding: does end temperature + drop give the start temperature?
A spreadsheet can sort data. Sort the 4 cups from warmest to coolest at 30 minutes.
| Order | 1st (warmest) | 2nd | 3rd | 4th (coolest) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cup | ||||
| °C |
Use the line graph on the stimulus sheet.
(a) Between which two readings did the paper cup first drop below 50°C?
(b) At what time was the plastic cup at exactly 50°C?
(c) Which cup cooled the most in the first 5 minutes? By how many degrees?
(d) Look at the paper cup line. Does it drop faster at the start or at the end? Use 2 numbers to show it.
(e) Why is the line for the flask with lid almost flat?
For each claim, write Supported, Not supported or Not sure. Explain using the data.
| Claim | Your verdict | Because... |
|---|---|---|
| Rhian: “The flask with a lid kept the water hottest.” | ||
| Dylan: “This proves metal is the best material for keeping drinks hot.” | ||
| Elin: “If we leave the paper cup for another hour, it will get down to 0°C.” | ||
| Jac: “The china mug keeps a drink hotter than the plastic cup.” |
(a) Write 2 changes that would make the test fairer or the results more certain.
(b) The class wants to add a prediction for the flask at 35 minutes in cell E11. The flask lost the same amount every 5 minutes. Write a formula for E11 and the answer it would give.