Developing: Recording Data (Pictograms)

Vocabulary

pictogram, horizontal, vertical

represents, frequency, data

symbol, key, tally

column, row

more, less

fewer, greater

Hints and Tips

Collecting data for a purpose helps show your child one way in which maths is used in the real world.

The best way to get children really involved in data handling is to encourage them to find out their own information and show them how to record this accurately in a number of ways. 

Your child also needs to understand how to analyse information.

This is also a useful skill for lots of other areas of maths.

Essential Prior Knowledge

Know that one counter or one tally, when collecting data represents one object in a survey.

Activity

 

With your child choose a topic for a survey.

Make sure it is a topic that provides a picture(s) to go on the pictogram.

Your child has knowledge of both tally charts and surveys so he/she should be able to conduct a survey.

In Green Recording Data your child counted while you made a tally. In order to fully understand a tally your child will need support from you with making the lines as he/she counts.

The pictogram will be made from this tally

Carry out the survey..

Ask your child to design the picture(s) that will be put on the pictogram and remind him/her how he/she has recorded data in previous activities.

Construct the pictogram. Use the tally you have made and discuss how to turn the counting marks in to a pictogram, exchanging each tally for one symbol.

Talk about giving the pictogram a title and a key to let others know what each symbol represents.

Ensure that your child understands that the pictures should be roughly the same size and lined up in the columns or rows, depending on the orientation of the pictogram (vertical or horizontal) so there will be no mistakes reading the data.

Talk to your child about how one symbol represents one item on the pictogram.

 

Continue to undertake surveys and construct pictograms until your child is confident with this concept.