Learning Experience Plan

Subject: Mathematics Grade level: 7th grade

Unit: Statistics & Probability Length of LEP (days/periods/minutes):

20 minutes

Topic: Investigating Chance

Content Standards: (include only standards addressed in this LEP)

Investigate chance processes and develop, use, and evaluate probability

models.

5. Understand that the probability of a chance event is a number between 0 and 1

that expresses the likelihood of the event occurring. Larger numbers indicate
greater likelihood. A probability near 0 indicates an unlikely event, a probability
around 1/2 indicates an event that is neither unlikely nor likely, and a probability
near 1 indicates a likely event.

6. Approximate the probability of a chance event by collecting data on the chance

process that produces it and observing its long-run relative frequency, and predict
the approximate relative frequency given the probability. For example, when rolling
a number cube 600 times, predict that a 3 or 6 would be rolled roughly 200 times,
but probably not exactly 200 times.

Literacy Standards: (include only standards addressed in this LEP)

-Model with mathematics

-Look for and make use of structure

-Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning

SMA Jacobs Page 1

Learning Experience Outcomes Learning Experience Assessments
(knowledge/skills)
Students will: Students will work individual to flip the
coins, record the data, and represent it in a
- Given theoretical probabilities based on a graph.
chance experiment, students will describe
what they expect to see when they
observe many outcomes of the
experiment.

- Students will distinguish between

theoretical probabilities and estimated
probabilities.

- Students will understand that

probabilities can be estimated based on
observing outcomes of a chance
experiment.

Differentiation (What will you do to meet the needs of students at these different levels?)
Approaching On-level Beyond
Some students might Students should be able to Some students will be able
have trouble converting predict the correct to work the fractions very
the fractions while outcome, and be able to easily. This will allow them
completing the worksheet. describe the pattern. to move onto the graph
In order to help them, I sooner than the others, and
will be walking around the they will begin to work on
classroom to help them the rest of the project.
figure out the
relationships between the
numbers.
Curriculum Integration (Does this lesson correlate with any other content area? Describe.)

Material Procedures/Strategies
s

Day 1 (add additional days as needed)

Sponge Activity (activity that will be done as students enter the room to get them into the
mindset of the concept to be learned)

Coin Flipping Activity-

As students walk into the class, I will question them on the properties of a
coin. How many sides does it have? What are the chances of flipping a
heads on the first flip? On the second flip? As students begin to
understand the concept, I will hand out coins to everyone in the class. I
will also hand out Worksheet 1, which will look like this:

SMA Jacobs Page 2

 Students will record each of the outcomes, and fill out the corresponding
boxes. For example, if the student flips a head, they will put a H under
the Outcome column, a 1 in the total number of heads column, the
1
fraction
=1 in the frequency column, a 0 in the total number of tails
1

0
column, and the fraction
=0 in the tails column. Students will flip the
1

coin 10 times.

Anticipatory Set (focus question/s that will be used to get students thinking about the days
lesson)

Students will be asked if they noticed any patterns, and if their prediction
for what they thought would happen was correct.

If the coin was tossed 500 times, what do you think the frequency of
flipping tails would be?

Activating Prior Knowledge (what information will be shared with/among students to connect
to prior knowledge/experience)

Students will use their ability to plot numbers on a graph in order to show
the frequency of tossing a heads or tails according to the data they have

SMA Jacobs Page 3

 recorded.

Direct Instruction (input, modeling, check for understanding)

Input

A coin has two sides: heads and tails. The sample space for tossing a coin
is {heads, tails}. If each outcome has an equal chance of occurring, then
1
the probability of getting a heads or a tails is 2 , or 0.5.

I will then introduce the terms theoretical probability and relative

frequency.

Theoretical Probability is the probability formed using the sample space

and what we know about coins.

Relative Frequency is the proportion derived from the number of observed

outcomes of an event divided by the total number of outcomes.

Model

I will toss the coin 50 times before class, and created a graph showing the
relative frequency of heads, and show it to the students. Students will
notice that the relative frequency begins to approach the theoretical
probability.

Check for Understanding

I will ask students if they notice a trend in my data, and if they can see it
in their data as well.

I will ask the students if they think a larger or a smaller sample size would
make the relative frequency be closer to the theoretical probability.

Guided Practice (how students will demonstrate their grasp of new learning)

Students will flip the coins 20 more times, and record the data into similar
charts as the one above. Students will then record their data into a line
graph, showing the correlation between the relative frequency of heads
and the number of tosses.

Independent Practice (what students will do to reinforce learning of the lesson)

Students will complete the worksheet, which includes completing all 30

tosses and creating their graph.

Closure (action/statement by teacher designed to bring lesson presentation to an appropriate

SMA Jacobs Page 4

 close)

I will show students these two graphs:

I will ask students which of these two graphs would NOT represent the
relative frequencies of heads when flipping a coin.

Graph A would not represent a possible graph of relative frequencies.

There are many errors. First of all, after the first toss, the probability could
not be 0.5, it could only be 0 or 1. It also settles at the exact theoretical
probability without showing slight changes from toss to toss.

References: (e.g. Book, course packet, pg #, complete web address URL)

https://www.engageny.org/resource/grade-7-mathematics-module-5-topic-b-lesson-
8/file/61541

SMA Jacobs Page 5