Collecting and Counting

Lesson 2 of 15 – "Statistics Made Simple"

Topic: Collecting Data
Year Level: Year 4
Curriculum Level: Level 2, The New Zealand Curriculum
Learning Area: Mathematics and Statistics – Strand: Statistics
Achievement Objective:

• Conduct investigations using the statistical enquiry cycle: posing and answering questions; gathering, sorting, and displaying category data; and discussing the results.

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Learning Intentions

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
✅ Create a simple survey question about a preference
✅ Gather data from their classmates using tally marks
✅ Record data using consistent and clear methods

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Success Criteria

Students will succeed when they:

• Develop a question that includes 3–5 fruit options
• Accurately survey at least 8 classmates
• Record their results neatly using tally marks

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Materials Needed

• Whiteboard and markers
• Prepared example survey on the board (e.g. “What is your favourite fruit?” with 3–5 fruit options)
• Mini whiteboards or clipboards (1 per student)
• Survey recording templates (provided on A4 paper – simple tally chart format)
• Fruit word cards (apple, banana, mango, etc.) for vocabulary support
• Timer or visual countdown
• Pencils, erasers

Note for teachers: This lesson assumes Lesson 1 covered what data is and introduced pictographs in real-world contexts such as lunch choices or weather.

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Lesson Structure (30 Minutes)

⏰ 1. Warm-Up (5 minutes) – Fruit Frenzy Game

Purpose: Activate prior knowledge and introduce vocabulary
Instructions:

• Teacher calls out a fruit (e.g. “banana”), and students must form a quick pose representing it.
• Do this with 3–5 fruits total.
• Afterwards, ask: “What is one fruit YOU like the most?” and have a few students share.

👂 Teacher Tip: Listen in and take note of popular fruits for examples in the next section.

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⏰ 2. Explicit Teaching (8 minutes) – Designing a Survey

Purpose: Learn how to create a meaningful survey

• Introduce the key question: “What is your favourite fruit?”
• On the board, display 4 fruit choices: 🍎 Apple, 🍌 Banana, 🍇 Grapes, 🍊 Orange
• Model how to create a tally chart using marks for each category
• Demonstrate how to ask a question respectfully:
  “Hi, I’m doing a survey. What is your favourite fruit from these choices?”
• Emphasise: Only ask each person once; stay kind and focused!

🧠 Check for understanding: Ask the class, “If I ask 10 people and 3 choose Orange, how many tally marks is that?”

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⏰ 3. Independent Activity (12 minutes) – Student Survey Time

Purpose: Students investigate by collecting real data
Instructions:

• Each student receives a clipboard and a prepared tally chart
• Students survey at least 8 classmates
• Encourage respectful movement and interaction
• Remind them to bring their results back to the mat after 12 minutes

📌 Extension (if time allows): Fast finishers begin turning tally marks into a bar graph using coloured pencils.

🙋‍♀️ Support Strategy: For students needing more help, pair them with a confident peer for the surveying.

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⏰ 4. Wrap-Up Discussion (5 minutes) – Fruitful Findings

Purpose: Reflect and share results

• Gather students on the mat
• Ask: “Who had the most popular fruit? Who had a fruit that was least picked?”
• Discuss why some fruits were more popular – location, lunchboxes, whānau traditions etc.
• Optional: Tally class results on the board to model aggregating multiple surveys

📣 Encourage student voice: “Does anyone want to make a guess about what other classes might choose?”

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Assessment for Learning

• Observation during survey time: Are students collecting accurate data?
• Survey sheets collected and checked for handwriting, tallying accuracy, and completeness
• Informal questioning during wrap-up to evaluate understanding of the process

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Cross-Curricular Connection

Health and Physical Education (Level 2): Students explore food preferences and discuss healthy and culturally relevant fruit options.
Te Ao Māori connection: Include local fruits such as feijoa or kūmara (sweet potato fruit varieties if contextually relevant) to ensure cultural inclusiveness.

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Teacher Reflection Prompts

• Did students remain engaged during the survey activity?
• Were fruit options relatable and accessible for all students?
• Could students explain their process or justify their survey responses?
• Next step: Introduce grouping data and display via pictographs in Lesson 3.

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Kaiako's Treasure Tip 🌿

“The magic of data begins when students realise they can ask questions that matter to them. Even something as simple as fruit preferences opens the door to critical thinking.”

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Follow-Up Ideas

• Create a bar graph as a class using everyone's data
• Invite a staff member (e.g. principal or caretaker) to answer the survey question too – deepens school-wide engagement
• In buddies or whānau time, students can conduct the same survey with a different class and compare results

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Next Lesson: Lesson 3 – Displaying Data Visually (Pictographs)

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Inspired by the New Zealand Curriculum and the rich local contexts that make Aotearoa classrooms unique.