Pencil Rampers: A *FUN* Data and Graphing Activity!
"Pencil Rampers" is one complete data and graphing activity that's fun and engaging. It's one of my FUN DATA! activities, in which students collect, represent, and interpret data in fun ways!
In "Pencil Rampers," students work with partners to roll a pencil down a ramp set at different angles. They record the data in a table, represent the data with a graph, and then answer questions and interpret the data.
Who knew an ordinary pencil could lead to all that?
Let's look a little closer at how the activity works.
With a few simple folds, students first assemble an "Angle Stand." The angle stand is an easy way for students to align their ramp at the angles needed for the activity.
One of the key features of my FUN DATA! resources is the slideshow introduction that walks the class through the main parts of the activity. It helps students visualize what they'll be doing so they can work more independently once they get started.
I like to project the slideshow onto the big screen to introduce the activity. You can also allow students to access it themselves for reference. (The slideshow comes in two formats: PowerPoint and Google Slides.)
Students set their angle stand on the floor and align a clipboard (or other flat object) at the first angle marked, making a 10 degree ramp. Then they put the pencil at the top of the ramp... and let it go!
The pencil will roll down the ramp and across the floor to a certain distance.
Students use a meter stick (or tape measure) to measure the distance the pencil rolled, and they record it in a data table.
At each angle the ramp is set, students will roll the pencil five times. Then they will find the median distance rolled for each angle (the median is the middle value when the data is placed in order).
When students go to graph their median distances, an interesting thing happens. They should notice a bell curve, where the distances the pencil rolled are SHORTEST from both the shallowest and steepest angles, and the distances for the middle angles are the FURTHEST.
A bell curve is a common shape for certain data, so this makes a great discussion point later.
After creating and collecting their data into a graph, students
interpret the data through a series of questions. Teachers can then
debrief as a group, having students share observations, note trends, and
draw conclusions about the data.
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Ready to get the FUN DATA! Pencil Rampers activity? Find it HERE, or tap/click the image below.
The resource comes with all the activity sheets, post-activity questions, angle stand template, full slideshow introduction, and teacher instructions.
Be sure to also check out my FUN DATA! Pencil BUNDLE for more fun data activities using a simple pencil!
Read more about "Pencil Rollers" in my post right HERE.
You might also be interested in my FUN DATA! Coin BUNDLE:
Now let's go out there and collect some data! And let's have fun doing it!
