Spreadsheets

M&M's Food for Thought is a great presentation.
http://edtech.boisestate.edu/elearn/newbridges/cds/M&M's/mmteaching.htm

The presentation uses M&Ms to make and understand bar graphs and entering data about certain groups of information, mostly averages! Mr. Huckins used a Smart Board to demonstrate to his students how to convert their data tables into spreadsheet tables, how the spreadsheet makes calculations, and how graphs can be created to visually represent data. He starts off carefully describing the parts of the spreadsheet, describing the rows and the columns. Then he describes how to enter data on the sheet. He then talks about how to change the color, size, shape and appearance. His data sheet he had them used he had already figured out the formulas and calculations for the sums, averages etc. for their M&M experiment. Each person makes a graph to represent their own bag of M&Ms in one range on the graph on their spreadsheets. They then learn to add charts to their spreadsheets using the charts in excel.
The students learned how to write down and understand the data from their M&Ms and then use that data and enter it into the spreadsheet. they learned all about spreadsheets and how to enter data, make formulas, and change the appearance of the document.Mr. Huckins used an experiment about color frequency of M&M's to introduce students to the advantages of using a spreadsheet to calculate and visualize data. He used this presentation and lesson to help the students know how to use the collection, recording, and organizing of data while introducing the basic skills necessary to use a computer, spreadsheet software, and fact-fact-conclusion questions as tools to understand data. Most of the project is geared to teach averages, mean, median, and range.
He has a wonderful lesson plan that really covers everything that he needs to do and cover and everything that the students will learn, do and understand. I am really impressed with his ability to predict how and what the students will do in the lesson. I can tell he must have been teaching for a while. He has really good assessment as well of the students at the end of the project. Lastly, he has a great plan to help out kids with special needs, so that they will be able to participate in the project as well.
This lesson will defiantly help students learn how to use and apply data into a spreadsheet and even graphs. The kids will have fun using M&Ms to learn spreadsheets!!!

To use this in my own classroom I could do the same project, just make it for a higher level. instead of just using the data to make a simple spreadsheets, we can find out more complicated matter and apply it to sheets the students create themselves. I love this idea for a future lesson!