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Mean, Median, and Mode

5th grade nonfiction passage about averages in math: 221 words, five questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

5th grade nonfiction averages in math 221 words

Mean, Median, and Mode

Suppose five friends count how many books each one read last month. The numbers are 2, 3, 3, 4, and 8. How can we describe the group with just one number? Mathematicians have three ways to find a middle, or typical, value. They are called the mean, the median, and the mode.

The mean is what most people mean by the word average. To find it, add up all the numbers and divide by how many there are. Here, 2 plus 3 plus 3 plus 4 plus 8 equals 20. Then 20 divided by 5 is 4. So the mean is 4 books.

The median is the number in the exact middle when the list is placed in order. Our list is already in order, so we can find the middle one by counting in from each end. The median is 3. If a list has an even number of values, the median is halfway between the two middle ones.

The mode is the number that appears most often. In our list, the number 3 shows up twice, and every other number appears only once. So the mode is 3.

Each of these tells a slightly different story. Notice that the child who read 8 books pulled the mean upward. The median stayed at 3 and was not affected much. When a list has one very big or very small number, the median can be a fairer picture of the group.

Questions

  1. What are the three ways to find a typical value? in the text

  2. How do you find the mean? in the text

  3. What is the mean of 2, 3, 3, 4, and 8? in the text

  4. Why is the mode of the list 3? think about it

  5. Why might the median give a fairer picture than the mean when one number is very big? think about it

Words to know

mean
the total of the numbers divided by how many there are
median
the middle number when a list is in order
mode
the number that appears most often
typical
usual or what you would expect
divided
split into equal groups or parts
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One passage, three levels

The same topic and facts written three ways, so a mixed class can read and talk about one text. Each group’s sheet shows only a shape; the key says which is which.

● Easier · 207 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.4

Five friends count how many books each one read last month. The numbers are 2, 3, 3, 4, and 8. How can we describe the group with just one number? Mathematicians have three ways to find a middle, or typical, value. They are called the mean, the median, and the mode.

The mean is what most people mean by average. To find it, add up all the numbers. Then divide by how many numbers there are. Here, 2 plus 3 plus 3 plus 4 plus 8 equals 20. Then 20 divided by 5 is 4. So the mean is 4 books.

The median is the number in the exact middle when the list is in order. Our list is already in order. Count in from each end to find the middle one. The median is 3. If a list has an even number of values, the median is halfway between the two middle ones.

The mode is the number that shows up most often. In our list, the number 3 shows up twice. Every other number shows up once. So the mode is 3.

Each one tells a slightly different story. The child who read 8 books pulled the mean up. The median stayed at 3. When a list has one very big or very small number, the median can give a fairer picture of the group.

▲ This passage · 221 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.3

Suppose five friends count how many books each one read last month. The numbers are 2, 3, 3, 4, and 8. How can we describe the group with just one number? Mathematicians have three ways to find a middle, or typical, value. They are called the mean, the median, and the mode.

The mean is what most people mean by the word average. To find it, add up all the numbers and divide by how many there are. Here, 2 plus 3 plus 3 plus 4 plus 8 equals 20. Then 20 divided by 5 is 4. So the mean is 4 books.

The median is the number in the exact middle when the list is placed in order. Our list is already in order, so we can find the middle one by counting in from each end. The median is 3. If a list has an even number of values, the median is halfway between the two middle ones.

The mode is the number that appears most often. In our list, the number 3 shows up twice, and every other number appears only once. So the mode is 3.

Each of these tells a slightly different story. Notice that the child who read 8 books pulled the mean upward. The median stayed at 3 and was not affected much. When a list has one very big or very small number, the median can be a fairer picture of the group.

■ Harder · 231 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.7

Suppose five friends count how many books each of them read last month, and the numbers are 2, 3, 3, 4, and 8. How can we summarize the entire group using just one number? Mathematicians have developed three methods for finding a middle, or typical, value, and these are called the mean, the median, and the mode.

The mean is what most people intend when they use the word average. To calculate it, add together all of the numbers and divide by how many numbers there are. In this case, 2 plus 3 plus 3 plus 4 plus 8 equals 20, and 20 divided by 5 is 4, so the mean is 4 books.

The median is the number in the exact center when the list is arranged in order. Our list is already arranged, so we can locate the middle value by counting inward from each end. The median is 3. If a list contains an even number of values, the median lies halfway between the two middle ones.

The mode is the number that appears most frequently. In our list, the number 3 appears twice, whereas every other number appears only once, so the mode is 3.

Each of these measurements tells a slightly different story. Notice that the child who read 8 books pulled the mean upward, while the median remained at 3 and was hardly affected. When a list contains one extremely large or extremely small number, the median can provide a fairer picture of the group.

Download as one PDF

How to use it

  1. Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
  2. Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
  3. Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.

Ideas for class

  • Before reading, put mean, median, mode, typical and divided on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the text will be about.
  • Read it aloud once while students follow along, then have them reread it alone or with a partner. At a calm 100 words a minute it takes about 2 minutes to read aloud.
  • Use the Read it big button (or B) to put the text on the projector, and Show answer on one question at a time so the class commits to an answer first.
  • Question 4 asks the reader to infer. Ask students to point to the words in the passage that led them to their answer.
  • Ask students to write one question the passage did not answer, then look for the answer in a book or on a classroom screen.
  • Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "Mean, Median, and Mode"?

It was written for 5th grade. It has 221 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 4.3. That is a formula's estimate from sentence length and syllables, and it is not a Lexile or a guided reading level, so check it against your students.

What do the questions ask?

There are five. 3 ask for something the text says directly and 2 ask the reader to work something out from clues. Each has an answer in the key, and the answers are written as a teacher would accept them, not as the only possible wording.

How long does it take to read?

About 2 minutes read aloud at 100 words a minute. For a one-minute fluency check, paste it into the fluency timer and use the word count.

Can I print it?

Yes. Print student copy gives the passage, the questions with lines to write on, and the word meanings. Print with answers gives the same page with the answers filled in. Both are made in your browser.

Is this passage from a published book?

No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.

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