Question

guided practice

1. a student is measuring the height of a plant she is growing for a science experiment. her data is shown to the right.

a which type of data display is best for this type of information? justify your answer.
b create the display, labeling all parts.
chart: week (1–10) and plant height (cm) as follows: 1: 1.5, 2: 2.5, 3: 3.1, 4: 3.4, 5: 4.0, 6: 4.3, 7: 4.7, 8: 5.1, 9: 5.2, 10: 5.2

Explanation:

Part (a)

The data consists of plant height over successive weeks, which is a relationship between two variables (time in weeks and height) showing change over time. A line graph is best because it effectively displays trends and changes in data over a continuous interval (weeks here), making it easy to see how plant height evolves with time. Other displays like bar graphs are better for comparing discrete categories, while line graphs emphasize the progression.

Answer:

A line graph is best. Justification: The data shows plant height over time (weeks), and a line graph is ideal for displaying how a variable (plant height) changes over a continuous independent variable (time), allowing easy visualization of trends (e.g., growth rate) over the 10 - week period.

Part (b)

To create a line graph:

1. Axes Setup:

• X - axis (Horizontal): Label it "Week" and mark the weeks from 1 to 10 (at equal intervals, e.g., 1, 2, 3, ..., 10).
• Y - axis (Vertical): Label it "Plant Height (cm)". Determine a suitable scale. The minimum height is 1.5 cm and the maximum is 5.2 cm. A scale from 0 to 6 cm with intervals of 0.5 cm or 1 cm would work. For example, mark 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 on the Y - axis.

1. Plotting Points:

• For each week, plot the corresponding plant height:
• Week 1: (1, 1.5)
• Week 2: (2, 2.5)
• Week 3: (3, 3.1)
• Week 4: (4, 3.4)
• Week 5: (5, 4.0)
• Week 6: (6, 4.3)
• Week 7: (7, 4.7)
• Week 8: (8, 5.1)
• Week 9: (9, 5.2)
• Week 10: (10, 5.2)

1. Drawing the Line:

• Connect the plotted points in order with a straight line (or a smooth line, though since it's discrete data points, a straight - line segment between consecutive points is appropriate) to show the trend of plant height over the weeks.

1. Title:

• Add a title to the graph, such as "Plant Height Over 10 Weeks".

(Note: Since this is a text - based response, a visual representation can't be fully shown here, but the above steps describe how to construct the line graph.)