Question

mrs. munson wants to know how her son’s height and weight compare with those of other boys his age. she uses an online calculator to determine that her son is at the 48th percentile for weight and the 76th percentile for height. explain to mrs. munson what these values mean. 48% of boys at the same age as mrs. munson’s son have weights that are equal to that of her son, while 76% of boys at the same age as mrs. munson’s son have heights that are that of her son. her son’s weight is the typical weight for boys his age and he is the typical height for boys his age.

Explanation:

• For weight: A 48th percentile means 48% of boys his age have weights less than his weight (since percentile represents the percentage of data below a value). So the correct phrase is "less than" (the original "equal to" is wrong).
• For height: A 76th percentile means 76% of boys his age have heights less than his height, so the correct phrase is "less than".
• For weight description: "Typical weight" often refers to the mean or median. Since his weight is at the 48th percentile, which is close to the median (50th percentile), his weight is around the typical weight, so "about equal to" the typical weight.
• For height description: His height is at the 76th percentile, which is above the median (50th percentile), so he is "above" the typical height.

Answer:

• 48% of boys at the same age as Mrs. Munson’s son have weights that are $\boldsymbol{\text{less than}}$ that of her son.
• 76% of boys at the same age as Mrs. Munson’s son have heights that are $\boldsymbol{\text{less than}}$ that of her son.
• Her son’s weight is $\boldsymbol{\text{about equal to}}$ the typical weight for boys his age.
• He is $\boldsymbol{\text{above}}$ the typical height for boys his age.