Interpreting Data: What's the Range?

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

Throughout this Interpreting Data series, you have learned to find the mean, median, and mode.

Review what you have learned so far by listening to 3M's - Mean, Median and Mode Rap | Mister C, from Learning Science is Fun:

Now, find the mean, median, and mode for the following set of data:

112, 103, 126, 111, 111, 110, 122, 115, 112, 102

If any of your answers were incorrect, make sure to go back and review the previous Related Lessons, found in the right-hand sidebar, before moving forward with this lesson.

Now, you will learn to find the range for a set of data.

• Based on what you know about the term range, what do you think this term may mean in math?

In math, the range is the distance between the lowest and highest number in a set of data.

Let's start by looking at the same problem we have used throughout this series.

The table below shows the number of goals scored in each of Josie's soccer games this season. Before you learn how to find the range, make a prediction about what you think the range is for this set of data:

To find the range for this set of data, start by putting the numbers in order from least to greatest:

2, 2, 3, 3, 5

After you have put the numbers in order from least to greatest, the only numbers you need to look at are the smallest and biggest numbers:

2, 2, 3, 3, 5

Subtract the smallest number from the biggest number:

5 - 2 = 3

The range for this set of data is 3 because there is a distance of three from the smallest to the biggest number.

• Did you guess three?

Want to try out some problems involving range? Move on to the next section to practice.