Understanding how we measure spread, like range and interquartile range (IQR), is really helpful in everyday life. Here are some examples of how this works:
In sports, coaches and analysts look at how players perform. By knowing the range of scores, they can see how consistent a player is.
For example, if a basketball player scores 10, 20, and 30 points in three games, we find the range by subtracting the lowest score from the highest score. So, it's points. This shows a lot of variety in their scores.
If the IQR is small, it means the middle 50% of their scores are close together, which shows that the player performs in a more stable way.
Weather experts, called meteorologists, use these measures to look at temperatures.
Let’s say the high temperatures over a week are 15°C, 20°C, 25°C, 30°C, and 19°C.
We can find the range by subtracting the lowest temperature from the highest: . This helps us understand how much the temperatures change.
The IQR can also show us if the weather has been very changeable or pretty steady.
Teachers often compare the test scores of students.
If one class has scores that are very different from each other and another class has scores that are closer together, it can show how well students understand the material.
This information helps teachers know how to support different groups of students better.
In these ways, understanding spread helps us make sense of data and use it in smart ways!
Understanding how we measure spread, like range and interquartile range (IQR), is really helpful in everyday life. Here are some examples of how this works:
In sports, coaches and analysts look at how players perform. By knowing the range of scores, they can see how consistent a player is.
For example, if a basketball player scores 10, 20, and 30 points in three games, we find the range by subtracting the lowest score from the highest score. So, it's points. This shows a lot of variety in their scores.
If the IQR is small, it means the middle 50% of their scores are close together, which shows that the player performs in a more stable way.
Weather experts, called meteorologists, use these measures to look at temperatures.
Let’s say the high temperatures over a week are 15°C, 20°C, 25°C, 30°C, and 19°C.
We can find the range by subtracting the lowest temperature from the highest: . This helps us understand how much the temperatures change.
The IQR can also show us if the weather has been very changeable or pretty steady.
Teachers often compare the test scores of students.
If one class has scores that are very different from each other and another class has scores that are closer together, it can show how well students understand the material.
This information helps teachers know how to support different groups of students better.
In these ways, understanding spread helps us make sense of data and use it in smart ways!