25–30 Minute Interactive Museum Walk

Welcome to the Museum of Data

You are a museum curator studying three famous data exhibits: mean, median, and mode. Walk through the museum, inspect the artwork, solve the data mysteries, and earn curator stamps.

CURATOR MISSION

✅ Study the artwork carefully.
✅ Solve the data problems.
✅ Explain your thinking.
✅ Collect all 7 museum stamps.

Map

Gallery Walk Route

Entrance Hall

Preview the mission and key vocabulary.

Average Wing

Mean as the average of a data set.

Median Wing

Sort data and find the middle.

Mode Wing

Count repeats and find the most common value.

Game Gallery

Sort, match, and answer quick checks.

Curator Lab

Choose the best measure for real situations.

Preview

Three Main Exhibits

EXHIBIT A

Mean

The average. Add all values, then divide by how many values there are.

EXHIBIT B

Median

The middle number after the values are ordered from least to greatest.

EXHIBIT C

Mode

The number or category that appears most often in the data set.

Museum Passport

Student version: visible answers have been removed. Use the check buttons to see whether your answer is correct.

🖼️ Average Wing 🎯 Median Wing ⭐ Mode Wing 🔢 Sorting 🧠 Matching 🧩 Curator Lab 🎟️ Exit Ticket

Exhibit Wing 1

Mean: The Average Exhibit

The mean is the average. To find it, add all the values together and divide by the number of values. The mean gives one balanced value for the entire data set.

CURATOR LABEL

➕ Add the values.
🔢 Count the values.
➗ Divide sum by count.

What the artwork is showing

Mean = average. The average can be shown by a line across a graph. That line helps us see the balanced value for the whole data set.

Visual

Gem Count Average

→

Avg 5

Add the values. Count the values. Divide to find the mean.

Visual

Average Line Artwork

The dashed gold line marks the average height of the bars.

Average line

Use the bars to estimate and then calculate the average.

Practice

Average Exhibit Problems

Average Exhibit 1

Warm-Up

BOOKSHELF ARTIFACT

Number of books read: 3, 7, 5, 9, 1. What is the mean?

37591

Show Your Work Guided Mean Steps

Step 1

Add: 3 + 7 + 5 + 9 + 1 = ______

Step 2

Count: There are ______ numbers.

Step 3

Divide: ______ ÷ ______ = ______

Add all the values. Count how many values are in the set. Then divide the sum by the count.

Mean =

Average Exhibit 2

Practice

SOCCER SCOREBOARD

Goals scored in 4 games: 2, 6, 4, 8. What is the mean?

2648

Work Space Add · Count · Divide

Add all the values. Count how many values are in the set. Then divide the sum by the count.

Mean =

Average Exhibit 3

More Practice

QUIZ PAPER

Quiz scores: 80, 90, 70, 100. What is the mean score?

809070100

Work Space Add · Count · Divide

Add all the scores. Then divide by the number of scores.

Mean =

Average Exhibit 4

Challenge

GRADE TARGET

A student scored 82, 91, 78, and 85. What 5th score is needed for a mean of 85?

82917885?

Work Space Work Backward

Think backward: target mean × number of tests gives the total needed. Compare that total to the current total.

5th score =

Exhibit Wing 2

Median: The Middle Exhibit

The median is the middle value after the numbers are placed in order from least to greatest.

CURATOR LABEL

1️⃣ Order the data.
2️⃣ Find the middle.
3️⃣ If two middles, average them.

What the artwork is showing

Median = middle. First arrange the data. Then cross off values from both ends until you reach the center.

Odd Number of Values

One number lands in the middle.

Find the middle value.

Even Number of Values

Two numbers land in the middle. Average those two.

Average the two middle values.

Interactive

Click-to-Sort Exhibit

Click numbers to move them into order

Goal: move the numbers from least to greatest.

Your ordered data

Practice

Median Exhibit Problems

Median Exhibit 1

Warm-Up

MIDDLE OF THE LINE

Ages in a club: 11, 14, 12, 13, 10. What is the median?

1114121310

Show Your Work Guided Median Steps

Step 1

Order: ______, ______, ______, ______, ______

Step 2

Cross off from both ends until one number is left.

Step 3

Middle number = ______

Put the values in order from least to greatest. Then look for the middle value.

Median =

Median Exhibit 2

Practice

SCORE SHEET

Test scores: 88, 72, 95, 81, 77, 90. What is the median?

887295817790

Work Space Order · Find Middle

Put the values in order. Because there are two middle values, average those two middle values.

Median =

Median Exhibit 3

More Practice

GREENHOUSE DATA

Plant heights: 5, 12, 8, 3, 15, 9, 6. What is the median?

512831596

Work Space Order · Find Middle

Put the values in order from least to greatest. Then cross off values from both ends until you reach the middle.

Median =

Median Exhibit 4

Challenge

HOMEWORK CLOCK

Homework minutes: 45, 30, 60, 25, 50, 40. What is the median?

453060255040

Work Space Order · Two Middles

Put the values in order. Because there are two middle values, average those two middle values.

Median =

Exhibit Wing 3

Mode: The Most-Popular Exhibit

The mode is the value that appears most often. It is like the winner of the data set.

CURATOR LABEL

🔎 Look for repeats.
🧮 Count each value.
🏆 Highest count wins.

What the artwork is showing

Mode = most often. A data set can have one mode, more than one mode, or no mode if nothing repeats more than the others.

Visual

Snack Vote Exhibit

Apple

🍎🍎

2 votes

Chips

🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔

Count the votes

Cookie

🍪🍪🍪

3 votes

Pretzel

🥨🥨

2 votes

Cases

Mode Can Look Different

One Mode

1, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 5

Which value repeats most?

Two Modes

1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 4, 5

Which values tie?

No Mode

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Check for repeats.

Practice

Mode Exhibit Problems

Mode Exhibit 1

Warm-Up

SHOE WALL

Shoe sizes: 7, 8, 6, 8, 9, 8, 7, 6, 8. What is the mode?

786898768

Show Your Work Guided Mode Steps

Step 1

Tally each shoe size.

6: ______

7: ______

8: ______

9: ______

Step 2

Most repeated value = ______

Step 3

Mode = ______

Make a tally for each value. The value with the greatest tally is the mode.

Mode =

Mode Exhibit 2

Practice

FITNESS STATION

Push-ups: 15, 20, 15, 30, 20, 15, 25, 10. What is the mode?

1520153020152510

Work Space Tally · Most Often

Make a tally for each value. The value with the greatest tally is the mode.

Mode =

Mode Exhibit 3

Words

PAINT PALETTE

Colors: red, blue, red, green, red, blue. What is the mode?

redblueredgreenredblue

Work Space Tally · Most Often

Count how many times each color appears. The color with the greatest count is the mode.

Mode =

Mode Exhibit 4

No Mode

UNIQUE SCORES

Quiz scores: 91, 83, 77, 95, 88. Does this data set have a mode?

9183779588

Work Space Check Repeats

Check whether any value repeats more than the others. If nothing repeats, there may be no mode.

Answer =

Interactive Wing

Game Gallery

Play short museum games to review the difference between mean, median, and mode.

GAME GOALS

🎮 Sort data.
🧠 Match concepts.
⚡ Choose the best measure.

Game 1

Memory Match: Word + Meaning

Game 2

Quick Curator Checks

Which measure is the average?

Which measure finds the most common value?

Curator Lab

Choose the Best Measure

Now you decide which measure makes sense for the real-world situation.

CURATOR THINKING

🔎 Read the situation carefully.
🧠 Decide what the question is asking for.
✍️ Type the measure that fits best.

Curator Choice 1

Scenario

COACH DATA

A coach wants to know the typical number of points scored per game across the season.

Show Your Thinking Guided Measure Choice

Step 1

What is the situation asking for? __________________________

Step 2

Does it ask for average, middle, or most common? __________________________

Step 3

Best measure = __________________________

Best measure:

Clue: Read the situation carefully and decide what kind of information is needed.

Curator Choice 2

Scenario

STORE DISPLAY

A store wants to know which shirt size was sold the most.

Work Space Choose the Measure

Best measure:

Clue: Read the situation carefully and decide what kind of information is needed.

Curator Choice 3

Scenario

MIDDLE SCORE

A teacher wants the middle score after arranging all scores from lowest to highest.

Work Space Choose the Measure

Best measure:

Clue: Read the situation carefully and decide what kind of information is needed.

Curator Choice 4

Multi-Step Challenge

OUTLIER MANSION

House prices, in thousands of dollars: 180, 190, 200, 210, 720.

First enter the prices on the line from least to greatest. Then calculate the mean, median, and mode before choosing the best measure.

Scratch Work List · Calculate · Decide

Step 1 · Put the data on the line

→ → → →

Put the prices from smallest to largest. Start with the lowest price and end with the highest price.

Step 2A · Calculate the mean

Mean =

To calculate the mean, add all 5 prices. Then divide the total by 5. Keep your answer in thousands of dollars.

Step 2B · Calculate the median

Median =

To calculate the median, use your ordered line. There are 5 values, so the median is the value in the center position.

Step 2C · Identify the mode

Mode =

To identify the mode, tally each price. If no price repeats more than the others, type “no mode.”

Step 3 · Now choose the best measure

One mansion is much more expensive than the other homes. Which measure may better show the middle home price?

Best measure:

Think about whether one extreme value changes the average. Then decide which measure better represents the middle home price.

Final Stop

Museum Exit Ticket

Complete the final reflection to leave the museum as a certified Data Curator.

SUCCESS CRITERIA

✅ Explain each measure.
✅ Choose the correct measure.
✅ Use math vocabulary.

Mean

Write what this measure tells you.

Median

Write what this measure tells you.

Mode

Write what this measure tells you.

Exit Ticket

Explain the difference between mean, median, and mode. Give one example of when someone might use each one.

🏛️ Data Curator Status

Collect stamps throughout the museum. Your progress will show here.