Create+a+Graph

== = = = = [| Create a Graph] is an interactive, online tool that allows users to make and interpret a variety of graphs, including bar, line, pie, area, and xy type graphs. Sponsored by the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES), this site provides an easy way to create graphs which can then be printed or saved.

Connections to Strategies

 * Testing Hypothesis - using a given set of data, create a graph to test and visualize your predictions
 * Nonlinguistic Representation - graphs are a powerful way to visually show the relationship between data
 * Effort & Recognition - create a graph that shows the relationship between effort and achievement
 * Identifying Similarities & Differences - use graphs to demonstrate comparisons

Learn About Create A Graph
Read[| All About Graphs] and be sure to click on the Examples tab to explore different types of graphs. Learn [|Which Graph to Use]to best display the kind of data you are using. Read the [|Create A Graph Tutorial] - directions to create and save your graph. Here are [|specific instructions] for creating bar charts, line charts, and scatter plots.

Activity - Use Create A Graph for Generating and Testing Hypotheses
1. Go to [|Create A Graph.] 2. Using your own data set, select the most appropriate type of chart to use. For example, if you are looking at population data for a given city over time, you would probably want to use a line chart. If you are using data that compares height to age, would use a bar chart. If you want to see the relationship between latitude and average temperature, an XY scatterplot would be appropriate. See the following examples with questions students might use to test the data and make predictions: What factors may have influenced change in population at certain times? || Do age and height increase proportionately from age 0 to 3? What would be an indicator of abnormal growth? || Is temperature affected by how close you live to the equator? Do cities located along similar latitudes have the same temperature? || 3. Click on the following tabs as you create your chart: 4. Upload the image of your chart to your //Generating & Testing Hypotheses// page. Develop two or three questions related to your chart that would help students generate and test a hypothesis. Share ways this tool is applicable to your curriculum.
 * [[image:Philadelphia_Population.jpg width="359" height="270"]] || [[image:Height_to_Age.jpg width="360" height="273"]] || [[image:Latitude_&_Temp.jpg width="360" height="273"]] ||
 * How has the population of Philadelphia changed over the past 200 years?
 * //Design - appearance of the graph 2D/3D, color, shading//
 * //Data - title of your chart, XY axis labels if required, and your data here//
 * //Labels - axis, title and data series//
 * //Preview - what your chart looks like as you work on it//
 * Click on the //Print/Save// tab and save your chart as a .jpg file.


 * For additional help with this activity, refer to the step-by-step instructions:** **[|Create a Graph.pdf]**

Extension (optional)
Use the following instructions from Create A Graph to make a chart showing your school's student population.
 * 1) Go to [] and select private or public school by clicking on the correct category.
 * 2) Click on your state and then click on the letter your city begins with. Find your city and click on it. Then scroll through the list of schools until you find yours. Click on your school.
 * 3) Look at Enrollment by race/ethnicity and see how it is represented in a pie chart.
 * 4) Write down the information under Enrollment by Grade, recording how many students are in each grade.
 * 5) Then go to the Create-A-Graph and use the information you recorded to make your own graph showing how many students are in each grade at your school. What is the best graph to use? Try using different kinds of graphs.

**[|ChartGo]** -
Allows users to create charts online quickly. Create bar charts, line charts or pie charts by simply pasting your data in the chart data area and hitting the create chart button.


 * Excel** or other spreadsheet software

Other Tools That Use This Strategy
**[|EdHeads] ** **[|NOVA Building Big] ** **[|Smog City] ** **[|Primary Access] ** **Kids Invent! ** **[|Explore Learning] ** **[|Zoo Matchmaker] ** **[|Windward!] ** **Darwin Pond - **requires software download
 * Design a Roller Coaster ** - Experimental inquiry
 * Invention at Play ** - Invention
 * [|Plimoth Plantation’s You Are the Historian] **- Investigating the first Thanksgiving
 * Tsunami Strike! ** - requires login
 * Hurricane Strike! ** - requires login

**Inventive Thinking Toolkit for Teachers ** **Additional Resources for Generating & Testing Hypotheses **