Activities that Practice Probability and Data Analysis Concepts

The activities listed below are designed for either group or individual exploration for topics such as an introduction to probability, conditional probability, sampling, expected value, statistics, histograms, boxplots, and the normal curve. Also includes statistical simulations.

The activities are Java applets and as such require a java-capable browser.

Each activity comes with supplementary pages. These pages are accessed from the activity page. Each will open in a new window, when its button is pressed.

What: gives background on the activity;
How: gives instructions for the activity;
Why: gives curriculum context for the activity.



Statistics and Probabilty Concepts

Histogram Students can view histograms for either built-in or user-specified data, and experiment with how the size of the class intervals influences the perceptions. Parameters: Data sets, class sizes.
PieChart Students view piecharts. Parameters: Number of sectors, size of sector as a percent.
Circle Graph Enter data categories and and the value of each category to create a circle graph. Similar to "Pie Chart" but the user can define the data set.
Bar Graph Sorter Sort colored shapes into a bar graph. Appropriate for elementary grades.
Bar Graph Enter data to create a bar graph, then manipulate the graph's maximum and minimum values.
Multi Bar Graph Enter data to create a double bar graph, then manipulate the graph's maximum and minimum values.
Stem and Leaf Plotter Students view stem-and-leaf plots of their data, and then get to practice finding means, medians and modes. Parameters: Data.
Scatter Plot Similar to Simple Plot allowing the user to graph ordered pairs but also gives the ability to label x- and y- axes thus making the activity more appropriate for data sets and the resulting scatter plot.
Boxplot Students can create boxplots which DO use the median in calculating the interquartile ranges for either built-in or user-specified data as well as experiment with outliers.
Boxplot 2 Students can create boxplots which DO NOT use the median in calculating the interquartile ranges for either built-in or user-specified data as well as experiment with outliers.
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. Appropriate for elementary grades.
Racing Game with One Die Two players each roll a die, and the lucky player moves one step to the finish. Parameters: what rolls win and how many steps to the finish line.
Racing Game with Two Dice N players roll two dice, the lucky player moves one step to the finish, or everybody moves one step and the lucky player moves two steps to the finish. Parameters: the number of players, number of trials and length of the race.
Crazy Choices Game Three players play games of chance using dice, cards, spinners or coin tosses, to compare theoretical and experimental probabilities. Parameters: Type of game for each player, number of trials.
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.
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.
Two Colors Applet Students choose between three boxes and choose one marble from the box to look at conditional probabilities. Parameters: Number of trials.
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.
Simple Monty Hall Students choose one of three doors to experimentally determine the odds of winning the grand prize behind one of the doors, as in the TV program "Let's Make a Deal." Parameters: Staying or switching between the two remaining doors.
Generalized Monty Hall Students run a simulation to mimic the simple monty hall activity with multiple trials. Parameters: Number of doors, number of trials, staying or switching between the two remaining doors.
Advanced Monty Hall Students choose one of N doors to experimentally determine the odds of winning the grand prize behind one of the doors, as in the TV program "Let's Make a Deal." Parameters: Number of doors, number of trials, staying or switching between the two remaining doors.
Dice Table Students experiment with the outcome distribution for a roll of two dice by playing a dice throwing game. Parameters: Which player wins on which rolls.
Stock Exchange Students learn about expected value and payoff for an event that will occur with a known probability, by playing a game in which the payoff is earnings from stocks. Parameters: Probability of receiving cash, cash amounts, number of trials.
Plop It! Students click to build dot plots of data and view how the mean, median, and mode change as numbers are added to the plot. Parameters: Range for observations.
Measures Students enter data and view the mean, median, variance and standard deviation of the data set. Parameters: Number of observations, range for observations, which statistics to view, identifiers for the data.
Normal Distribution Students can change the standard deviation of the graphed normal distribution to create a new distribution, allowing them to observe properties, for example, how well the histogram fits the curve and how areas under the curve correspond to the probability that a number is selected. Parameters: standard deviation, number of trials, class intervals.
Skew Distribution Students can change the median standard deviation of the graphed normal distribution to create a skewed distribution, allowing them to observe properties, for example, what it means for the mean, median, and mode to be different. Parameters: median, standard deviation, number of trials, class intervals.
Fire!! Students run a simulation of how a fire will spread through a strand of trees, learning about probability and chaos. Parameters: Probability that a tree will burn.
Directable Fire!! Students run a sumulation of how fire will spread through a strand of trees, learning about probability and chaos. Parameters: Probability that a tree will set fire to each of its eight neighbors.
A Better Fire!! Students run a simulation of how a fire will spread through a strand of trees, learning about probability and chaos. Parameters: Forest density, wind direction, size of forest.
Life Students run the classic game of life, learning about probabilities, chaos and simulation. Parameters: Type of world, types of "life," rules for living.
Life Lite Similar to Life with fewer options for creatures and world configuration.
Rabbits and Wolves Students experiment with a simple ecosystem consisting of grass, rabbits and wolves, learning about probabilities, chaos and simulation.
The Chaos Game Students play the Chaos Game by experimenting with probabilities, and they learn about an apparently random process with a not-so-random, geometric fractal result.
Buffon's Needle Students experiment with a simulation to get an approximation of Pi.
Stopwatch Functions just like a real stopwatch as well as recording set times, accurate to the nearest tenth of a second. Parameters: Count up from 0 or count down from a set time.