Maryland Math 4.DS.A.1.a
The Standard
- 4.DS.A.1
- Ask and answer questions by collecting, organizing and summarizing data, recognizing the importance of context when analyzing data.
Create scaled data visualization (e.g. bar graphs for categorical data; line plots with fraction units of halves, fourths, and eighths for numerical data) to display data to communicate an idea.
Maryland College and Career Ready Standards for Mathematics (2025) · REPRESENT AND INTERPRET DATA.
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students turn category counts into scaled bar graphs and measurements in halves, fourths, and eighths into line plots. They label equal intervals and use each display to make a claim about the data.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student chooses a scale that fits the data and plots every count or measurement accurately. They can support a claim by pointing to values on the graph.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may count each bar graph square as one, even when the scale goes by twos. They may space 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8 evenly on a line plot or put only one X where several measurements match.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: Plot these ribbon lengths on a line plot marked in eighths: 1/2, 3/4, 3/4, 7/8, 1, 3/4 inches. Write which length occurs most often.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs eight paper strips cut to 1/2, 3/4, or 7/8 inch; have them measure the strips and plot the lengths at eighth-inch intervals.
Show a bar graph of 6 apple votes, 4 pear votes, and 2 plum votes scaled by twos; ask what each grid square represents.
Give partners cards showing 4, 6, and 8 books checked out by genre; have them draw scaled bar graphs and check each other's labels.
Survey classmates about how they get to school, graph the counts using a labeled scale, and write which route is most common.
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Related Standards
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