Line Graphs 
Lesson Plan #1
Line Graphs
Duration:
2 to 4 days
Objectives:
Students will:
Materials:
FAST FACTS ABOUT LINE GRAPHS WORKSHEET
FIVE STEPS TO A LINE GRAPH WORKSHEET
Key Vocabulary:
vertical, horizontal, axes, labels, title, scale, coordinate, data
Procedure:
1. Use a bulletin board to create a coordinate grid.. Use strips of paper for grid lines, or draw the grid on poster paper. Title the graph ATTENDANCE. Label the horizontal axis DAYS OF THE WEEK and indicate the lines that represent each day, MONDAY through FRIDAY. Label the vertical axis NUMBER OF KIDS and calibrate it to fit the number of children in your class.
2. Talk with your class about how you usually record daily attendance. Then tell them that you're going to show attendance in a new way, on a line graph.
3. On Monday, when you take attendance, have a volunteer find the line for Monday. Then have another child find the number on the vertical axis that equals the number of children in attendance that day. Demonstrate where the lines intersect and place a pushpin there.
4. Each day for the rest of the week, locate the point for the day's attendance on the graph and attach a pushpin the show it.
5. At the end of the week, stretch yarn from point to point to complete the line graph.
Assessment:
Use this questionnaire to assess students understanding of line graphs "Wrap it UP".
Home Learning:
Students will collect and display data on sunrise times.
Give each student the Sunny Side Up worksheet. Explain that they are to find the exact time of sunrise. Show the children how to find this fact in the local paper, or tell them to hear it on TV or radio.
Tell the class that they are going to work together to make a graph that shows when the sun rises each day of a week.
In the classroom make a large grid on chart paper. Call it Sunrise Times this Week. Label the horizontal axis DAY OF THE WEEK, and fill in the days of the week. Label the vertical axis TIMES, and calibrate it by minutes.
Each day the students share their information, draw a large dot to indicate the day's sunrise time. Connect the two points with a line. Continue adding data throughout the week. Have a different student be responsible for adding the data each day.
After recording data for a week ask the following questions:
What pattern does the line graph show?
When was the earliest sunrise, latest?
About how many minutes did the sunrise time change from one day than another?
What was the average time during the week?
If we forget to record the time on Wednesday, how could we use the graph to estimate the unknown time?
What do you think the graph will look like next week?
Extension Activity: (Technology )
Students can put the data collected in class on a spreadsheet program like ClarisWorks and create a line graph.
Click here to learn how to make a graph using ClarisWorks.
Have students record the sunset times for a week and create a graph using the computer. Students can compare and contrast the sunrise times graph with the sunset times graph.
